The Ruins of Golden Hill

The century-old Golden Hill Fountain Grotto ruins.

Yesterday was too nice of a day to pass up so I walked to Balboa Park to read some Hemingway. On my way there I did a little exploring and happened upon the ruins of the Golden Hill Fountain Grotto. It's easier to spot this landmark from a satellite photo than on foot since it's below ground level. Surprisingly, I've run within feet of the ruins scores of times I but never knew it existed.

Water hasn't flowed from this century old fountain since before World War II. It's highly neglected, but still worthy of spurting water. Its rock and stone construction is the key reason it remains. The accompanying wooden benches, built along with the fountain, have long since crumbled.

The oval shaped ruins, dead center.

The City of San Diego owns the ruins, but they obviously haven't done much upkeep. Nowadays, it's an ideal teenage hangout with its graffiti and cigarette butts. The City has tentative plans to fix up the fountain, but, as of last fall, they haven't pegged a cost for the restoration.

I always find it a bit exciting to discover treasures like this – something that's always been there, but I never knew. History under my nose.