san diego tourist attractions

North County, Tourism, Valley Center February 23, 2024

Memories of Pikake Gardens

Its gates are forever locked. The koi have died. A lonesome breeze blows through faded gardens overgrown with weeds. The waterfalls have ceased falling and even the roses have faded into wilted dreams. Welcome to Pikake Botanical Gardens at 15515 Villa Sierra Road, once one of the wonders of the horticultural world, now reduced to ashes and memories. A private botanical garden on nine acres,…

Blogs, Columns/Blogs, North County, Tourism, Travel September 6, 2015

Out and About with Russel Ray — “The Big Eye”

The Russel Ray, Property Consultant home inspection this past Thursday was out on Palomar Mountain. It caught me off guard when I scheduled it because I had no clue that there were homes up on Palomar Mountain. Once I finished the inspection, I headed over to the “Big Eye,” more properly known as Mount Palomar Observatory: The Big Eye is only 62 miles from where…

You're engaged at The Grapevine -- you're reading this, correct -- and enjoy the varied and interesting stories especially created for the North San Diego County community. And you have a product, service, company or whatever to publicize. We can help you if you want to help us. We offer 500-to-700 word stories with optional photo display that runs in our new featured content section. Stories run forever on the site with the latest stories at top of the section. Cost is $300 to $750 depending on the feature. It’s a great way to get out the word about you while helping us cover the community in the rich way it deserves. We also are open to other custom arrangements. Email us at escondidograpevine@gmail.com and we’ll work it out.