Lakeside Linkage County Preserve off Los Coches Road in Lakeside safeguards 100 acres of coastal sage scrub habitat, linking open space corridors west of Lake Jennings Reservoir to the historic Whitaker House hilltop. The preserve's 1.3-mile multi-use trail terminates at a native stone residence built by hand between 1935 and 1940 in National Park Service rustic style — a landmark documented by Lakeside Historical Society on Maine Avenue. Hale Whitaker constructed the hilltop house using stones gathered on the property, sledgehammering them into building blocks that expose millions of years of crystallization and petrified moss faces in the cut surfaces. The trail gains 403 feet of elevation across rolling sage-covered hills, with summit views stretching east to El Cajon Mountain and the Cuyamacas — terrain also visible from the grounds of Skyline Church Lakeside on Los Coches Road at the preserve's southern boundary. The Whitaker property encompasses 7.5 donated acres maintained by an on-site caretaker, with the stone house itself available for public viewing only during scheduled special events.