local gem // La Mesa's hidden stairs

Not long after the mister and I moved into our house, we met this cute old lady on our street one day while she was out for a walk. We started chatting about how great the neighborhood is, and she told us about these "walking stairs" just up the hill a bit, and that we should definitely check it out. The stairways were installed several years ago to help facilitate foot traffic through the different neighborhoods. I was intrigued, but it wasn't until yesterday that I decided to grab my camera and check it out for myself.

Okay. So I already knew that this would be a bit of a workout; lots of locals use the stairs for exercise, and I had read somewhere that there were 248 or so steps to the very top. So I was prepared to sweat. What I was not prepared for: HOW OUT OF SHAPE I AM. No joke. My thighs burned. I wasn't even walking at a brisk pace, and I had to take a break halfway up the second set of steps to catch my breath. Obviously, I could use a little more exercise in my life.

So I took my sweet time, but I made it to the top. Which is just another residential street, but happens to be one of the highest points in La Mesa. I walked down the street a bit, and found another set of stairs going down. So I decided to take this way back to my house.

Don't be fooled by these charming-looking steps. They're steep, they seem to go on forever, and your legs will hate you if you're out of shape like me.

But the walk down? Oh so sweet.