11 Reasons to Drive to Julian, CA This Weekend Thrillist 2/22/2021 © Brandi Lyon Photography/Shutterstock Nestled in the Cuyamaca Mountains about an hour northeast of San Diego and two-and-a-half hours southeast of Los Angeles is the tiny town of Julian, California, population 1,502 (2010 census). Julian was formed in 1869, when Confederate soldiers and cousins Mike Julian and Drury Bailey settled in the area, hoping to strike gold. Named in honor of Mike Julian, the town experienced an almost immediate increase in population with the discovery of gold in a nearby stream by former enslave...