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Alpine, California
This section of Old Highway 80 follows Alpine Boulevard through the town of Alpine. The highway then transitions to Willows Road as it progresses through the Viejas Indian Reservation. Old Highway 80 then follows a segment along Wildwood Glen Lane north of Interstate 8. The Western portion of Wildwood Glen Lane is decommissioned and is now a United States Forest Service trail.
Broken Alpine Segments
The Interstate 8 interchange with Willows Road cuts through the original highway. Thus, Willows Road today appears to head due East, then abruptly turn 45 degrees from there. The original highway was more or less a straight segment.
As Willows Road heads Eastbound, the road is again broken along existing Interstate 8. The far West end of Wildwood Glen Lane picks back up as Interstate 8 heads South of the original alignment. This section of Old Highway 80 is a Forest Service trail for approximately 1.5 miles. The next section of Wildwood Glen Lane past the Western gate is still a public road.
From there, the highway links up with present day State Highway 79. There are several original concrete sections North of the existing asphalt grade.
Wildwood Glen Lane
Broken Segment (Alpine Blvd., Willows Road, and Interstate 8 interchange):
From Wildwood Glen Lane, Old Highway 80 meets present-day Highway 79. At another intersection near Descanso, Highway 79 veers north and the road’s name is back to Old Highway 80 through the town of Pine Valley. This was the original terminus of Highway 79, you will see the highway mileage markers on Highway 79 wind down to 0 at this junction.
At the junction with Sunrise Highway, Old Highway 80 crosses Interstate 8 and closely follows the freeway under the Eastbound side.
The area of Buckman Springs includes the Buckman Springs Bottling Plant building ruins, and what is left of the Buckman home. From there, Old Highway 80 continues to follow close to Interstate 8 until it reaches Crestwood.
This section of Wildwood Glen Lane dates back to 1931. In present day, it is a side road from State Highway 79. Here, the road ends and is blocked. The remaining concrete is now considered a trail of the Cleveland National Forest.
Los Terrinitos Historic Section
The Los Terrinitos Bridge bridges the Sweetwater River near present-day State Highway 79. It is one of the oldest intact bridges in San Diego County.
Before the highway was rerouted along present-day Wildwood Glen Lane, the road was continous to the original Old Highway 80. Here, you can see the spur that was created along Los Terrinitos Drive. Utility lines still run along the old route. The old road is mostly dirt except the concrete in the foreground and appears to run through private property.
1917 Bridge
Pine Valley
Old Highway 80 through Pine Valley is intact, albeit with some sections having asphalt over the originally laid concrete. One area of interest is the original bridge over Pine Valley Creek. The bridge on both sides is now considered private property, so the only way to view without trespassing is from the new bridge that was built in modern times.
Crestwood Turnoff
The Crestwood section was reconfigured with the advent of Interstate 8. The original Highway 80 continued due South towards Live Oak Springs. Some original concrete can be seen at the Stop Sign near present-day Golden Acorn Casino.