Moving out Californee way (San Diego !) in July - tips on living, hiking, skiing?

[Deep Days]

The Goose will once again be loose, this time in the Pacific Time zone, for two whole years starting on July 2... STOKED.

June 30, I will finish my one-year "sentence" of general surgery in New Orleans. Again: STOKED. In August I’ll be starting a clinical/research fellowship in orthopedic hip preservation surgery with two private guys (Dr. Santore and Dr. Muldoon)—quasi-affiliated with UCSD’s residency program but more at Sharp hospitals on their own than anything—and doing a two-year UCSD grad program in clinical research which starts at the end of this month.

Anybody wanna do an SD maggot roll call…? I’ve got
- jtran
- liv2ski
- shaft (who I think is an OB doc, eh?)
Who else??

I’ll be out June 23 to June 26 to look at properties to move into and to do my first week of grad school before going back to NOLA for the last couple days of work. Would love to drink a beer and get some dirt on my shoes around then…

I’ve been on the phone for the last week and a half chasing down availability of places to live from the interwebz, and unfortunately it looks like my budget is a tough one in San Diego. Looking for about $1200/mo plus utilities around Clairemont/UTC/Mission Valley (work is about at the 805-163 junction) and not really downtown. 600+ sq ft is a must to be able to get my home office set up for productivity, and a gym on-site is a definite bonus. Going rate around SD seems more like $1500 – 1600 for a decent place, so we’ll see how the financial aid works out. Anybody know of anything kicking around? Anybody have any friends moving out June 30??

It’s getting hot here in NOLA and of course I’m getting stoked for the prospect of some hiking in nice weather. Would love some input on good trails to hit up to feel like I’m outside after work if I get off early. Mission Trails looks like a good one… 2-3 or 4-mile jaunts would be perfect on moderate grade, and maybe some tougher stuff for weekend missions in summer. Anybody have any favorite hikes within 20-30 min or an hour of northern SD?

Finally, the question of skiing around SD. Word on the street is I might actually have a day or so off per week, and I’d love to spend that getting snow on myself… Suggestions on weekend warrior spots? This website looks like a good start and makes Mt. Baldy look pretty spectactular for $149 season pass and only 2 ½ hr drive! http://strayoutdoors.com/ski-and-sno...ern-california
Any good reason for a decent skier stuck in New Orleans for the past five years NOT to ski there when I can? (Besides having to pay for a whole tank of gas each time I go… BTW anybody who skis around there and wants to go split-sky on fair should holla, cuz I’m happy to play driver no matter what…) Looking to make probably one trip to Tahoe and maybe one or two to Mammoth each winter, if—again—I can afford it…

If time and finances permit, I think I'll have to get a mountain bike, too! Lordy, Cali looks pretty sweet from where I'm sitting...

This photo from Mt. Baldy’s terrain park makes the peak in the background look like freaking Washington! (Anybody know the name? Is there an access road??) 150” per year not great, but there are some legit pow shots on the website. Hell, CB gets only 200+” per year, so I don’t mind a few rocks. Any practical input on skiing on the reg around SD would be rad.



So... learn some orthopedics, learn how to operate, publish a few papers, work out, hike, ski, and maybe bike and surf? Twist MY arm!

Hope to see you guys around the bars and the hills (and maybe beaches if I get some legs and money for a surfboard!)

- Goosey 3-oh-3 seven-4-eight, four-33-7

[stuckathuntermtn]

Welcome back to tgr. We missed you!

[whyturn]

Welcome. I'm in LA now but grew up in SD. Visit when I can. Baldy sucks

[shaft]

San Diego totally sucks. There's no dirt or forest, just sand and brush. The lineups are crowded, people hickish, hikes lame, weather either cloudy or too hot, mountains small, and they don't use salt on the roads or know how to drive their cars...so Baldy goes from 2.5hrs to 6hrs on the weekend. I'd switch your residency to Colorado if you really like skiing. I heard I-70 doesn't have traffic anymore

Working at Sharp Memorial? Got a family in-tow? What sport are you most trying to do day-to-day of those listed? Here's the skinny on layout:

-Everything from Mexico to La Jolla to La Mesa is a 10-20 minute drive when there isn't traffic. Traffic flow is very directional. Imagine that everyone lives in Mexico and commutes to North County for work...or lives in East County and commutes downtown for work. My point is, you could look outside the options you listed for locations. If I was living alone, I'd be looking to pay $1000-1300. Since you're looking from a distance, it's a little harder...your $1600 number might be accurate especially north of 600sqft. The rental market right now is out of control. Places going like it's NYC or something.

Let's meetup when you get to town. I've still never done that with the local maggots. The Liv2ski Coronado brewery Fridays thing seems to be the go...still never made it though.

[Deep Days]

Good to be back!

"switch your residency"? Ha. If only it were that easy... Didn't make ortho with the first go-around, hence trying to take the backdoor route the second. Wanted Utah orthopedics soooo bad and REALLY thought I was going there. World can be cruel sometimes...

I'd be down for the Coronado brewery gig for sure. May bring the woman by on the 4th if it's happening...

Sharp Memorial is where I'm slated, if I can get operative privileges. Tough stuff, since they are not a teaching hospital, so it is taking some wangling.

How much of your first paragraph is exaggeration and how much is truly legitimate frustrated truth, shaft? Time to Baldy get any easier if I make it through LA before 7am? What's the skiing quality like there (on a good day with all terrain open and on an average day, which I presume doesn't have all of it)?

[Sirshredalot]

Good to be back!

"switch your residency"? Ha. If only it were that easy... Didn't make ortho with the first go-around, hence trying to take the backdoor route the second. Wanted Utah orthopedics soooo bad and REALLY thought I was going there. World can be cruel sometimes...

I'd be down for the Coronado brewery gig for sure. May bring the woman by on the 4th if it's happening...

Sharp Memorial is where I'm slated, if I can get operative privileges. Tough stuff, since they are not a teaching hospital, so it is taking some wangling.

How much of your first paragraph is exaggeration and how much is truly legitimate frustrated truth, shaft? Time to Baldy get any easier if I make it through LA before 7am? What's the skiing quality like there (on a good day with all terrain open and on an average day, which I presume doesn't have all of it)?

On a good day with all terrain open, baldy is sick. On a non pow day in a good snow year, it is very fun. In a crap snow year, baldy barely opens.

You shouldn't have trouble with traffic coming up I 15. But the access road can be a fucking mess. A very early start is a very good idea.

[shaft]

"How much of your first paragraph is exaggeration ...."

The whole thing. I've moved here 3 times and love SD. All the locations you mentioned living in are aight, but if you socialize much you might want to consider: North Park, Little Italy, OB, PB, Crown Point, Banker's Hill, Golden Hill, Univ Heights, Hillcrest, or East Village. Most of those places are quicker to get to SMH than UTC. Not sure how often you need to go to UCSD campus. Check PM if you want more info.

Like SirShred said, Baldy is very cool terrain if they got the snow, and on weekdays crowds shouldn't be a problem. If you go to the Snowjam gearswap, i've heard you can get a lot of free tickets for the local resorts. Mammoth is awesome if you got 3 days to play with.

[philth]

Damn!!! La Jolla, Del Mar and Torrey last year for the first time. Enjoy…place rules.

[whyturn]

I have been skiing baldy for 10 years and next year should be El Niño. Season pass gets 3 days at Brian head and avoid ticket window junk show on pow day. Hit baseline by 7 and your fine. Happy to show you around on a pow day and midweek is money.

Try old town area for lodging maybe?

[Tye 1on]

nice. I've never lived in san diego or even stayed in most of the areas you mentioned, so clearly my advice is fuckin money----

i'd rent in lesser Leucadia, skip Baldy, save the ski budget, and fly to SLC 2 or 3 times over the winter...

[nickwm21]

i'd rent in lesser Leucadia, skip Baldy, save the ski budget, and fly to SLC 2 or 3 times over the winter...

I lived in Leucadia '11-'13. I concur. Encinitas is the best coastal CA town by far.



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[buttahflake]

so it is taking some wangling.
?

you had to offer yer wang?
you want to operate on humans?
not seeing it, guy.
dont waste yer time and money

[splitinbend]

Learn to surf. San Onofre is a beginners playground. I got a friend that shapes boards in San Clemente, if your interested shoot me a PM.

[406]

I suggest living close to work if your fellowship is going to be intense...but I'm not a fan of traffic. The neighborhoods around Sharp are pretty boring. If you want a more lively neighborhood with walk to bars, a commute from North Park or Hill Crest or South park wouldn't be that bad, traffic gets bad north of 805/163 cross. Like others said, the north county beach towns are awesome, but expensive and 5 north of 805/5 merge can be rough...depends on your hours.

Yes, get a mountain bike.

Regarding surfing, I found it has a steep learning curve for strong swimmers that didn't surf while young. But it is lots of fun.

Skiing: Baldy is 2 hours away with no traffic and is totally doable as a day trip. It needs natural snow to open, so doesn't open every year. Powder and corn days are really fun. It has lots of character and takes sometime to learn all the tricks to hit it when it is good. Lots of backcountry options about 2 hours away. Check out the SoCal Snow thread from the past few years. Unless it is part of a social thing, I don't think the skiing at Mammoth is worth the drive. But the Sierra have amazing backcountry and are a good long weekend trip. Non stop flights to Reno & SLC make for nice 3-4 day weekend trips also.

If you like beer, lots of local stuff. Ale Smith and Port are my favorites.

Local hiking that wouldn't be too hot would be in the Laguna mtns, 1 hour east of town. Nice pine trees and meadows, but no peaks. Stop at Alpine brewing in Alpine on the drive home. There is some ok hiking in town, Iron mtn, LPQ, Cowels; but most gets lots of sun.

[nickwm21]

Really, I wouldn't be scared to move more north or towards SD. Traffic is more seasonal than anything. Are the horses racing? Is it spring break? Are the chargers playing the raiders?

[Deep Days]

Thanks for all the input, everybody.

Yes, the next two years will be HEAVILY focused on work, but also heavily focused on maximizing the amount of fun in the time that isn't work.

I am admittedly on the fence about the philosophy of giving up character to live closer to where I work (I have done that this year around New Orleans: live in a neighborhood that a lot of people wouldn't go out of their way to visit, in order to be a 5 min drive from my hospital and get 10 min extra sleep each morning!)

I heard from the Mt. Baldy people that $149 season pass price is based on how awful last winter was and that all I can do is pray that this winter will be better.

I have WEAK shoulders (and thus NEED a gym) since I quit intensely water skiing about 7 or 8 years ago, so the learning curve on a surfboard does scare me. But I do sure as hell hope to get enough money for a nice trail bike. I guess a question worth asking is whether there are some decent shuttle runs for more downhillish style rides within 45 min or an hour of the north side of town... I think my main goal really is just to go do some fun stuff outside, rather than get the most intense biking or hiking or skiing experience. TIRED of going to work in the dark and getting home in the dark and being surrounded by duds who just want to go drinking--often inside, in a city with some kinda gross weather--on the few days I do get off this year.

Seems like a lot of where I will live is being dictated by availability at this point (and by who will actually call me back!). Fair number of pretty sweet properties in places that I think look sensible with regard to getting to work (I DO hate traffic since it will cut into my ability to get a consistent 5-6 hr of sleep per night...) A lot of my main concern is safety, rather than how close bars are--I have no problem driving 20 min or so on the day and change per week that I'll be able to get out and socialize, since a lot of the name of the game will be get up, work, school, work out, eat, study, sleep, rinse and repeat on the average day. So maybe that influences my choice of neighborhoods... The other thing to consider is proximity to UCSD campus, since I'll have class two to three or four afternoons per week up there.

At any rate, thanks for the input. Love to hear more... I'll bump this thread when I get into town and would love to buy some beers.

[PNWbrit]

I have no problem driving

Apart from remembering to remove the gas nozzle?

[nickwm21]

I have WEAK shoulders (and thus NEED a gym) since I quit intensely water skiing about 7 or 8 years ago, so the learning curve on a surfboard does scare me. But I do sure as hell hope to get enough money for a nice trail bike. I guess a question worth asking is whether there are some decent shuttle runs for more downhillish style rides within 45 min or an hour of the north side of town... I think my main goal really is just to go do some fun stuff outside, rather than get the most intense biking or hiking or skiing experience. TIRED of going to work in the dark and getting home in the dark and being surrounded by duds who just want to go drinking--often inside, in a city with some kinda gross weather--on the few days I do get off this year.

You should have no problem getting outside more in SD. Everyone is active and healthy there.

You have to go pretty far east to get good shuttle-able mountain biking. All the local stuff is XC desert/foothill riding. Which can be fun on the right bike.

Best riding in SD is Noble - it is shuttle-able, or you can just ride up the road for 8 or so miles if you are solo. http://www.mountainbikebill.com/NobleCanyon.htm

Another good shuttle-able ride is Romana trail. You can drive up the dirt road or ride if solo. http://www.mountainbikebill.com/ThomasMtnRamona.htm.

[Game Over]

I'm in SD half the time. We are in Adams North overlooking Qualcomm and the 15/8 intersection.

Gym- we belong to chuze fitness. $10 a month all the machines you need.

If you can handle hipsters check out normal heights north of Adams. Close to great bars and close to ucsd. South of Adams is ghetto. University heights is also a great hood. Hillcrest is cool, very LGBT friendly (NTTIAWWT) but spendy.

Blind lady ale house on 34th and Adams is a great beer spot. It's run by the guy who invented most of Stones beers. Pint specials every Friday $2 before 2, $3 before 3 and $4 before 4. They also have great fair priced wood fired pizza. Their sister bar Tiger! Tiger! also has the same deal but the days are kinda random. Tiger also has a great cheapish menu. They also just won the bidding to start a place in Balboa Park.

I'd stay away from mission valley - it is close to both school and the 805/163 junction but traffic blows getting out and in.

[liv2ski]

Welcome to SD Deep Days. There are a few Sharp Hospitals in town. Will you be working at the one in Hillcrest? If yes, maybe a roommate rental in North Park, University Heights, Hillcrest or Mission Hills could keep you at the rent level or lower you are shooting for and close to the hospital.

As far as skiing, I just go to Mammoth, as I have never scored at Baldy, but I don't pay it to much attention either. Maybe if this winter turns on, I can get in some Baldy or Snow Valley powder days???

Surfing is the thing to look into when you live here. Get a cheap 9'0"+ and get out there.

I am way to old to Mtn Bike, so clueless which direction to point you in for that. Hiking? I take my dogs on 4 mile walks along the coast. I have never driven to Cleveland or Palomar state parks to do some hiking, but people do it.

Beers? Hell ya!!! Lots of great breweries in SD.

[Game Over]

I think there was a pretty good lift ticket/airfare deal last winter to mammoth- l want to say it was around 100 a day if you got ten?

[Deep Days]

MD $$$s still about 10 yr down the road... This two-year fellowship, then hopefully 5 yr of residency, then a year or two of more fellowship, then a few years to pay off debt. Then begin the yearly trips to AK and SA... :firedevil: A resident/fellow salary is way closer to $50,000/yr than to $500,000 /yr.

As a surgery intern, I've been on about $45,000 before taxes this past year in New Orleans, paying $1000 per month with a few utilities for a 900-sq ft place. Pretty good standard of living in NOLA. So SD will be a bit of an adjustment, with higher cost of living and pretty substantial pay cut.

If I'm lucky, in SD, I'll get a $2500/mo stipend (before taxes) from my orthopedic fellowship for the first year since my clinical duties will be somewhat limited by time spent with grad school for the first year (of two). Unfortunately, this is not a residency, so I will still need to apply for a five-year orthopedic residency after this two years of "purgatory" (albeit pretty sweet-ass and extremely educational purgatory) with no guarantee whatsoever that I'll end up as an orthopod, no matter how qualified at the end of this. Again: cruel world, sometimes...

So I'll be dependent on student loans to pay for grad school, and I'm hoping $1000/mo (plus $1500/mo for rent) will be enough to cover food, gas, utilities, phone bill to call long-distance woman, insurance, and something left over to have fun... Found a 600-sq ft place today in east Clairemont that's about $1250/mo including utilities that may fit the bill for what I need quite nicely. Couple miles from each Sharp Memorial, orthopedic clinic, and UCSD. Student aid office is dragging its feed regarding figuring out timing for disbursement, so we'll see what I can actually end up affording... Gonna be tough, but I'll make it work! With some luck, I may be able to take call a weekend or more per month and earn some bucks there.

Thanks for info on Baldy. If I've got time on my hands to be in good physical shape, I think looking at some more backcountry options (in the SoCal snow thread) and tightening my belt to purchase an AT setup could be mucho attractivo.

Keep it comin', y'all. All good stuff. Looking forward to meeting some of y'all when I come in.

[shaft]

"Found a 600-sq ft place today in east Clairemont that's about $1250/mo including utilities that may fit the bill for what I need quite nicely. Couple miles from each Sharp Memorial, orthopedic clinic, and UCSD. "

1BR or 2BR? The one thing to understand about SoCal is that all traffic engineering is designed around the assumption that you're going to use the freeways to get everywhere. The surface streets are what add time. This is notoriously evident in Clairmont, where it can take longer to get from one end to the other than from SMH-->UCSD. It totally depends on where you live in Cmont, but traffic lights can be a pain there. I guess what I'm saying is make sure you're less than 1.5 mi of surface streets from 163 or 805 near what the map calls "Cmont Mesa East." And then just be forewarned that it is stripmalls & car dealerships.

I'll admit being partial to OB, but if you're trying to get the beach experience on a budget, and typically commute outside of rush hour, have you considered Loma Portal? You can bike to the beach from there. If you're ever going to work @ UCSD Hillcrest, then Steepconcrete's recos are killer with great freeway access. Not trying to mess with your process. I've just moved to a few places short-term and know how hard it is to understand a city's layout from afar.

[1000-oaks]

I heard from the Mt. Baldy people that $149 season pass price is based on how awful last winter was and that all I can do is pray that this winter will be better.

Actually it's based on Baldy not opening at all this last season, and being awful the prior two years. Getting a pass at Baldy is like putting $100 on black at the roulette wheel. Maybe half the time it pays off, and half the time it's just a donation to the house.

[whyturn]

^^^but when it pays it's like the slot machine mega jackpot. When it sucks it's like a casino full of old ladies smoking menthols