Julian is a mountain community of 3012 people located near the geographic center of San Diego County.

Julian offers a lifestyle, climate and beauty not available anywhere else in Southern California. The clear, fresh air, coupled with four mild seasons, provides unusually lovely and comfortable living.

Julian's charming and historical small town has a friendly, safe and peaceful lifestyle not found in today's cities and suburbs. Beauty abounds everywhere ... from pine and oak covered mountains to lush meadows and starlit nights. Julian provides all the joys of country living, while only a short drive to the city and ocean.

At an elevation of 4200 feet, Julian boasts a mild four-season climate with an annual precipitation of 25 inches, some in the form of snow. Summer heat is normally dry and seldom exceeds 90 degrees. Winter rarely dips below 30 degrees, and the occasional snows melt away within a day or two.

Each season has a unique charm. Spring brings wildflowers in a brilliant profusion of red, blue, purple and yellow blossoms. Summer is perfect for biking, hiking and camping. Fall's apple and pear harvest takes place against a backdrop of leaves changing color into yellow, gold, orange and red. Winter means crisp air tingled with a rich aroma of oak and pine smoke rising from wood stoves and fireplaces.

Whatever the season, you can stroll the length of town admiring the many original "old west" buildings dating from the late 1890's, visit shops offering imaginative selections of arts, crafts and gift items, enjoy apple pie (whole or by the slice), ride a horse drawn carriage and explore an authentic gold mine.

Julian is perhaps most remarkable for its town spirit and activism. Civic and charitable organizations of every description abound, and scarcely a month passes unmarked by some event aimed at bettering the community.

Visit Julian, meet its neighborly people and share in the feelings of small-town America.

"This is the most beautiful place I have ever seen," Drew Bailey said. "Let's each one locate a home here in this beautiful country. See the open valleys, the creeks of water, the fine pine, cedar, and oak timber on the hills in abundance."

"But no," the other boys replied, "we must go to San Diego where we can find work aplenty. " Drew said, "I can't give this up, it looks too good to me. If you are bound to go, stay awhile and help me build a log house. Winter will soon be here."

This was 1869 and Drury Bailey was talking with his brothers Frank and James, and his cousins, Michael and Webb Julian. They were veterans of the Confedarate army and had left their Georgia homes after the war to seek their fortunes in the west. After the vicissitudes of mining and prospecting, Drew was ready to settle down.

Placer gold had been found nearby, but the discovery of hard rock gold in February 1870 changed everything. The news was out. The rush was on. "One scarcely knows if he is on his head or heels," a miner wrote to the San Diego Union on March 15, 1870. 'Imagine 800 men turned loose in the mountains with as little sense and as much 'friskiness' as many wild horses. People don't sleep here at all, or if they do, they are more lucky than I..."

Drew Bailey laid out a town on his land and called it Julian City, in honor of his cousin Mike. Within a month, Julian City had 50 tents and brush shanties, log cabins under construction, four general stores and a dozen saloons. The gold rush days did not last long, though mining continued sporadically until World War II.

Julian was a family town from the beginning. The first school had 65 students in 1870 and there were 20 schools in the high school district between 1870 and 1931. Orchards were planted, sawmills established, and cattle covered the hills. Telephones started ringing in 1896, the first Apple Days was celebrated in 1909, the concrete road from Ramona reached town in 1926, electricity came in 1931, the water company formed in 1951, and it turned into the Julian Community Service District in 1965.

Julian has always been a recreational area set in a saddle of the mountains between the coast and desert. There have been summer homes and camps since the turn of the century. Wildlife abound, the air fresh, the stars bright, and the seasons bring variety. In his reminiscence James Jasper (who owned the first newspaper in 1887) wrote: "Paved roads and the speed wagons have eliminated time and space, and the hundreds of cottages today will multiply into thousands..."

His crystal ball was clear. The future is on us.

Volcan Mountain Nature Preserve
(760) 765-2300 Call for hikes and educational walks throughout the year.

William Heise County Park
Information (760) 694-3049, Reservations (760) 565-3600, Camping with interpretive trails within the county park.

Los Caballos Horse Camp
(760) 765-0755 Horse Camp within Cuyamaca State Park 11 miles south of Julian off SR 79. Open June through October.

Julian Historical Town Hall
Call the Julian Chamber of Commerce (760) 765-1857 for art and craft shows and other events scheduled throughout the year at the historic town hall.

Julian Stables
Call for reservations (760) 765-1598 for guided 1 hour tour, lessons, youth day camp and much more.

Country Carriages
Call (760) 765-1471 Horse drawn carriage rides through Main Street and scenic Julian. Available for weddings & parties.

Santa Ysabel Indian Mission
Call (760) 765-0810 for events throughout the year, including mass, craft shows and historical points of interest.

Menghini Winery
1150 Julian Orchards Dr. (760) 765-2072 Wine tasting 7 days a week. Take Farmers Rd. to Wynola Rd.

Santa Ysabel Gallery
30352 Hwy 78, (760) 765-1676, in Santa Ysabel, local Native American and contemporary painters, sculpture, visual arts.

Julian Tea & Cottage Arts
2124 Third Street (760) 765-OTEA Arts & crafts classes available by individual arrangement featuring spinning, weaving, pine needle baskets, cooking demonstrations, painting, dried/silk flower arranging, children's art, tea etiquette.

Cuyamaca Rancho State Park, Lake Cuyamaca
15027 Highway 79 (760) 765-0515 Information 765-0755, reservations 800-444-7275, Year round trout fishing, seasonal duck hunting, free fishing lessons every Saturday.

LeeLin Llama Treks
1-800-LAMAPAK Half day walking treks in Julian areas with llamas and lunch, overnight wilderness trekking available by appointment.