Around Mt. Helix

By: James D. Newland

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Synopsis: Every year, the morning of Easter Sunday, thousands of intrepid souls trek to the summit of San Diego County's Mt. Helix. Once there, they experience the nearly century-old tradition of a community-based sunrise service held at the historic Mt. Helix Nature Theater. Constructed for that purpose in 1925, and located in a unique, privately-owned "public" park, the landmark serves as just one of the reasons this conically shaped peak has become a regional, cultural, and natural icon. Named for a rare gastropod, the 1,375-foot-high pinnacle also serves as a geographic beacon for the mostly unincorporated surrounding communities of Mt. Helix, Grossmont, Calavo Gardens, Casa de Oro, Spring Valley, and the adjacent, historically related municipalities of El Cajon, Lemon Grove, and La Mesa. Today, these semirural communities are renowned for their idyllic, family-friendly neighborhoods; classic early-20th-century Revival-style and custom midcentury Modern architecture; and long-standing commercial and civic institutions.