RESTORING & PROTECTING THE DEL MAR MESA PRESERVE
A San Diego Coastal Mesa the Way They Were
Located in the northern City of San Diego about six miles from the Pacific Ocean, the 814-acre Del Mar Mesa Preserve is an important natural remnant of San Diego-area coastal mesas and canyons that has been nearly entirely lost to development elsewhere in the region.
Prior to 20th Century development of western San Diego County, today’s communities of Mira Mesa, Miramar, Kearny Mesa, Tierra Santa, and the entire mesa stretching from Bankers Hill and Mission Hills to La Mesa all supported thousands of acres of the same chaparral shrublands and unique vernal pool wetlands that have been lost in most places other than Del Mar Mesa.
North City Core Preserves & Corridors
Natural habitats on the Del Mar Mesa Preserve are part of an integrated system of natural open space preserves in the northern City of San Diego that provide ecological connections in and between the Black Mountain Open Space Park, Carmel Mountain Preserve, Gonzales Canyon Preserve, Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve, Pacific Highlands Ranch natural open space, San Dieguito River Park, and Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve.
The Del Mar Mesa Preserve and contiguous Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve to the south and Pacific Highlands Ranch natural open space to the north are considered a “biological core area” under the San Diego Multiple Species Conservation Plan and altogether support many sensitive habitats, including scrub oak chaparral, southern maritime chaparral, coastal sage scrub, native and non-native grasslands, riparian woodlands and scrub, and vernal pools. These sensitive habitats in turn support over fifty sensitive animal and plant species.
Close call With Development
Up until the early 1980s, the Del Mar Mesa Preserve was planned for eventual dense residential development similar to nearby Mira Mesa. The story of preservation of Del Mar Mesa began in 1978 with the listing of an endangered plant, the San Diego mesa mint under the federal Endangered Species Act. Soon after, in 1979 the City of San Diego adopted a new General Plan identifying the rural northern City of San Diego as a “Future Urbanizing Area”. In 1985, restrictions on development in the Future Urbanizing Area were defined and strengthened when a citizens’ initiative Proposition A was approved by voters amending the City’s General Plan to require a citywide-election prior relaxing development restrictions in the Future Urbanizing Area including Del Mar Mesa.
In 1986, the California Department of Transportation acquired the first preserve land on Del Mar Mesa as mitigation for the loss of vernal pool wetlands in Kearny Mesa that supported the endangered San Diego Mesa mint. In the early 1990s, the City of San Diego began preparation of the Multiple Species Conservation Plan (MSCP) that was approved in 1998 and limited development of private property on most of Del Mar Mesa. Following Caltrans’ example, several agencies and developers began acquiring habitat mitigation property on Del Mar Mesa to offset impacts elsewhere from development. To date, most private property has been acquired to complete the Del Mar Mesa Preserve in a patchwork of agency ownership including the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, California Department of Transportation, City of San Diego Parks and Recreation Department, County of San Diego Department of Parks and Recreation, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Habitat Restoration & Stewardship for the Future
Today, The Chaparral Lands Conservancy is working with agency preserve owner/managers to complete a vision of preservation, restoration, and management of sensitive habitats and species on the Del Mar Mesa Preserve. The Preserve provides an excellent opportunity for restoration of original chaparral ecosystems in San Diego County. Aside from the historic loss of some native animals like the California condor, California grizzly bear, and Pronghorn, the ecology of the Del Mar Mesa Preserve is still relatively intact. Some areas of the Preserve have been impacted by historic homesteading, clearing for agriculture, and off-road vehicle use. And invasive plant weeds and construction and use of unauthorized trails have also impacted the area. But most original natural terrain and soils are intact and ideal for restoration and enhancement of vernal pools, native upland vegetation, and associated sensitive animals and plants.
To support habitat restoration and management across the entire Del Mar Mesa Preserve, The Chaparral Lands Conservancy and Friends of Los Penasquitos Canyon Preserve have prepared a comprehensive planning document, the Programmatic Habitat Restoration and Monitoring Plan for the Del Mar Mesa Preserve that identifies 19 possible locations for habitat restoration across the Preserve (Click to open).
Recreation & the Del Mar Mesa Preserve
Click here for an official Del Mar Mesa Preserve trail map
The Del Mar Mesa Preserve was established for the exclusive purpose of protecting some of the rarest native animals, plants, and ecosystems remaining anywhere in southern California. Every property inside the Preserve was formerly private and was purchased for preservation using state, federal, and private funding for habitat and species preservation. Respectful and responsible visitors who enjoy outdoor recreation activities are welcome. But visitors must respect that trail uses like mountain biking, hiking, and horseback riding are privileges, not entitlements or the purpose of the Preserve.
Sadly, the Del Mar Mesa Preserve has become a leading example of irresponsible trail-use where visitors have cut dozens of miles of unauthorized trails through sensitive areas, modified trails into bicycle race tracks, and fences and signs are routinely vandalized. As visitors, we are all responsible for knowing and following Preserve rules, the location of legitimate authorized trails, and the principles of leaving no trace.
Trails shown in Google or Apple maps, AllTrails, Strava, and other apps are user-created and do not show actual legitimate authorized trails. This map of the Del Mar Mesa and Los Penasquitos Canyon Preserves is the only official trail map for the area. Using the following instructions, visitors can download the official georeferenced map in the app Avenza to see their current location on the preserves in relation to legitimate authorized trails.
Instructions
- Download the official map of Del Mar Mesa and Los Penasquitos Canyon preserves to your phone or tablet.
- Download Avenza app on your phone or tablet.
- Upload map to Avenza and view your current location in relation to legitimate authorized trails.
- If there is a trail shown at your current location, then enjoy! But if there is no trail shown, then you are not on a legitimate trail.
The Del Mar Mesa Habitat Restoration Project has been made possible through the generous financial support of the California Wildlife Conservation Board, the Friends of Los Penasquitos Canyon Preserve, and the Center for Biological Diversity.