Moments in Dirt and Ink

Rocky Peak Park Indian Springs Open Space Click for map. I am not entirely sure how it happened, but we finished planning the outing for yesterday with plans for today as well even though there was never any question as to where or when the other would be. It is a much smaller group today with just Scott, who was generally the instigator of plans, and Linda, who decided to hike just today. Linda brought along Milo, who should be good for sniffing out geocaches and better be a good hiker because we should come out around 10 miles again today. She says that he is. I joined up because this hike swings past Rocky Peak, which is on the Lower Peaks Committee list and has a county line marker up on top. It should be a little harder to get to than the one I nearly tripped over by Random No. 2 , but a bit easier than the one up on top of Dome Mountain . Scott has been before, Linda seems so disinterested that she forgets a peak was mentioned within seconds. Milo seems ready to get to w...

Michael D. Antonovich Regional Park Click for map. A group of geocachers were heading up Oat Mountain via the canyon just east of the one featured in my first, somewhat more elaborate attempt at the peak . This neatly sidesteps the requirement to poke through some private property wandering right past the ranch house. (Well, I could probably have done the cross country on cow paths up the canyon, which does appear to be park.) This is the more usual route. Getting to the parking requires ignoring a few signs that, as far as I know, were really supposed to be taken down when the park opened to the public. One sign demands that only residents are allowed to use a bridge. Beyond that is a ranch that boards horses and is mixed in how welcoming it is about the public using the road past it. At the end is public parking so the public is definitely expected to be allowed to arrive here. A $5 fee is required for parking, but today there is no envelope to use with the iron ranger. We par...

Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve El Escorpion Park Click for map. I expected it to be a little warm today, but there is a thick, grey blanket overhead keeping things cool. Victory Trailhead is not the closest to the cave and is the only one with a parking fee, but it comes with some signs and picnic tables and a truly disgusting bathroom. It claims to be open sunrise to sunset and has sufficient gating to make it difficult to pass should those get closed. I was able to save the $3 by parking along the nearby street which probably added a quarter mile to the start. Most seem to do this while some go ahead and pay the minor fee. The very well used Victory Trailhead. Starting off, there are a lot of trails to choose from, but only one heading north toward the cave. I turn right to follow it up a short way and then down a long and gentle path. There are many small use trails off to the side going up canyons or ridges. The cave comes into view quickly as the larg...

Escondido Canyon Park Seeing the creek that wraps around the north side of Sandstone Peak full of water has me thinking of the local waterfalls. Perhaps they are flowing nicely too. I have gone right for the grandest of them all in the Santa Monica Mountains, but not on a weekend. That would be madness. On a weekday, I can find a parking spot within the little lot although there are very few left. I get my feet into a pair of shoes I do not mind getting muddy and start up the signed trail next to the road. Well used trail beside the road to a few Malibu estates. The islands are out today, even if a little grey with distance. Large Catalina and smaller San Clemente and tiny San Nicolas or Santa Barbara are shapes upon the horizon. The other islands are hiding behind Point Dume. San Clemente Island over a long stable. Finally at the end of the roadside "trail" and ready for some mud.

Corral Canyon Park Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy The whims of a day settled on another peak, but one much closer and lower and probably a bit warmer than the last few. Suspecting Scott, a geocacher, might be happy to go along with that whim, I sent him an email. He sent out another email for two more that might be similarly inclined and we ended up three strong standing at the side of highway 1 ready to climb nearly every foot of Mesa Peak's 1844 foot height. The sign at the trailhead tries to give credit to all the agencies involved. Parking is in a fee lot or one of a few spots beside the highway, but public transportation is convenient. The trail quickly divides, but it just loops around so all trails lead "up". We head left, which is the slightly longer way around. This takes us past some garden variety yucca and then the remains of the home that went with the garden. The foundation is not evident, but the chimney still stands tall. After th...

Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy Locate the trailhead. The Los Angeles group of HIKE the GEEK are trying to get regular hikes together again and decided to hike in Franklin Canyon from a low point to a high point. The canyon is a narrow strip of green with sides sufficient to block out cell signals. At the bottom, the only indication of the vast city nearby are, well, the hoards of people wandering around, generally walking their dogs and a wall or two high on the edge. Oh, and photo enforced stop signs. There really are quite a lot of people. Our initial low point is the parking lot closest to the lower reservoir and we wander across the lawn of a former residence to find the trail heading up. The Conservancy rangers are putting together something to celebrate some sort of graduation for one of their volunteers as we go by. The trail starts in some trees at the edge of the grass and quickly climbs out of them and up the side of the canyon. The houses at the edge o...