The San Diego Hiking Club™ was founded in 1980 by the late Skip Ruland for the purpose of acquainting people with the wilderness areas of San Diego County.  When The Wilderness Association of San Diego, Inc. was established in 1986, it began sponsorship of the Club.  The Association was created by a group of people whose common bond was a strong interest in the preservation of San Diego County’s wilderness and the desire to experience the beauty of our mountains, deserts, and beaches.  The founders felt it was important to foster a sense of wonder and respect for our natural surroundings through personal experience.

Members of the Club lead weekend outings including day hikes, overnight car camps, and backpacking trips.  Destinations include beaches, foothills, mountains, and deserts.  Adventure trips have gone further afield to places such as the Grand Canyon, High Sierra, and also to Colorado and Utah for hiking, river rafting, and canoeing.

The Club maintains a membership of over 100 persons and supports two chapters in San Diego County.  Both chapters meet once a month where past and future outings are discussed and usually a slide show is presented to share the various places we visited.  Sign-ups for hikes are only possible in person and at the meetings.  Activity schedules are published quarterly in a newsletter that is mailed to all members.

If you would like to find out more or would like to come to one of the meetings, please e-mail us at the address shown in the photo of our squirrel friend.  We will send you our newsletter as a PDF file or via regular mail if you prefer.  In the newsletter you will find information about current meeting dates and locations, scheduled outings, and Club news.  Please remember that sign-ups for hikes are only possible in person at one of our meetings.  (The e-mail address image is used instead of a link to help reduce spam e-mails.  Be sure to use the "@" symbol instead of "at" when you type in our e-mail address.)

Our page of links provides easy access to information on parks, trails, the desert, other organizations, and more!

Plan your next hiking trip or other Club activity with the outings guidelines in mind (free Adobe® Reader® required).