A Day Trip to Julian, CA: Apple Pies, Antique Stores, and a Gold Rush Town
Summary
I’ve been wanting a low-effort day trip out of San Diego, and Julian kept coming up. It’s about an hour and fifteen minutes from La Jolla, small enough to see in a day, and known for one thing above everything else: apple pie. I went on a cold day, which turned out to be the right call, since nothing makes a warm slice of pie make more sense than driving up into the mountains when it’s freezing outside.
Table of Contents
Getting to Julian from La Jolla
The drive up is easy, a little over an hour, and Julian itself is small enough that you can walk most of it in a few hours without rushing.
Julian Pie Company and Main Street
My first stop was Julian Pie Company, and I still don’t fully understand how a town this size draws this many people just for pie. BUT I have to admit, Julian Apple Pie is YUM! People were relaxed, eating slowly, in no hurry to leave here. I got my pie to go, took one bite in the car, and saved the rest for friends back home.
Julian Pie Company sits on Main Street, which is also where most of the town’s gift shops, restaurants, and cafes are packed in.
I love gift shops in general. Walking into one and killing twenty minutes browsing is basically my definition of being a total tourist. I also stopped into an antique store on 2626 Main Street. These places get a steady stream of visitors, and plus there aren’t many other stores around. Thus, I wasn’t expecting to find anything special, and I didn’t, but it was still a fun way to kill some time in this little apple pie town.
Stop by the Bailey House to get a cup of hot chocolate or apple cider, you won’t regret it.
Miner's Diner and Julian Cafe and Bakery
By early afternoon, I was hungry and stopped at Miner’s Diner, which has old-fashioned American diner decor I LOVE. I sat at the bar, which is not always the best move for a solo female, since I always end up next to someone who wants to talk a lot. This time it was a woman visiting from out of state. We chatted for a bit, and the strange part came the following week: I spotted her driving through Pacific Beach with her husband, completely by chance.
Before heading back home, I grabbed a coffee from Julian Cafe and Bakery to go.
The Drive Back: Wynola Junction and the Story Behind Julian's Name
On the way out of this small town, about ten minutes down the road, I stopped at Wynola Junction Antiques and spent a while poking around. From there I passed the Renaissance Peddler gift store and Julian Mining Co., which I’d never heard of until I looked it up afterward. It turns out they run gold mining activities for visitors, panning and all. That sent me down a small rabbit hole on the town’s name: Julian was founded by two cousins, Drue Bailey and Mike Julian, who arrived during San Diego County’s only gold rush in 1870. The town took Mike Julian’s name.
