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San Juan Capistrano Recreational Trail System

Las Ramblas Trail

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San Juan Capistrano Recreational Trail System

San Juan Capistrano

San Clemente

North Los Mares, Prima Desecha, and Ramblas Trail 

Activity: Day Hike

5.3 Miles, 885’ elevation gain, 2.25 hours duration, Rated Moderate.  

Date: 5-12-20

There were 180 degree panoramic views from the top featuring visual candy from Dana Point Headlands to the North and Oceanside to the South including white water views of San Clemente Beach and Doheny Beach.  I traveled through the green rambling hills of San Clemente enjoying a variety of wildflowers and the Blue Pacific.  

This hike goes into my urban hike category which to me doesn’t mean hiking through downtown LA, but the point of view that anytime you are in view and sound of urban sprawl than it is of the urban variety.  If you follow my blog then you know that I am all about the wilderness, but the reality is you can’t always be in the wilderness, away from it all enjoying the solitude and the solace of nature.  So hikes like Las Ramblas in San Clemente are the next best thing, because even as I looked down at homes instead of fir trees it was at least fascinating because the homes that butt up against nature are usually pretty darn nice and that was indeed the case in San Clemente, highlighting everything from fairly normal nice homes, all the way up to mini mansion and even a few of the full on variety of Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous.  

But the ocean views it afforded certainly put it in another category all together, so Las Ramblas was indeed a special hike and I look forward to hiking some of the other trails in the area.  Speaking of which: San Juan Capistrano Recreational Trail System.

Oceanside to the South, San Clemente in the center, and Dana Point Harbor to the North.
Hiking and outdoor activities is Mother Nature’s Gym. So I say, “Corona Virus Take a Hike”! – Pursuing Balance Through Adventure
It’s not hiking, it’s life (Transposed from it’s not fitness, it’s life)

Thanks for joining me ‘Pursuing Balance Through Adventure’ along the rambling hills of San Juan Capistrano above San Clemente on Las Ramblas Trail. Even urbanish hikes are good as long as you stretch the legs, fill the lungs, get outdoors and let your mind ramble, giving yourself a respite from the busy hectic, frantic, lives below. Keep in mind that person with the beautiful mansion, isn’t truly happy because they are rushing around like crazy paying for all of that lol. They probably wish they had more free time to hike and take care of their ulcer. So don’t fret about all of that because if you have your health in body, mind, and soul then you got quite a lot. If you enjoy PBTA then please show me by leaving a LIKE, COMMENT, FOLLOW and SHARE. Go to the menu and find some more location where you can become inspired and hike, enjoy nature and adventure. Keep in mind that each location is a separate website and thus needs to be FOLLOWED independently. Keep the sun out of your eyes with a hat from SHOP APPAREL which not only looks great, carries the mantra, but helps support this endeavor.

Happy Trails-

Roger Jenkins

Pursuing Balance Through Adventure

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San Juan Capistrano Recreational Trail System

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LAS RAMBLAS, PRIMA DESECHA, ENTRADA, CERRO REBAL, FOSTER CANYON, AND DELGADO CANYON LOOP

6.5 miles, 1,105’ elevation change, 3 hour duration, rated Hard

August 21, 2020

This hike is part of the San Juan Capistrano Recreational Trail System.  The area has a lot of up and down hills above some very nice homes.  It is a good workout with views of the Pacific, Dana Point Harbor and Doheny Beach.  

In the later part of the Summer the hills are brown and there are few wild flowers, but some.  This is particular hike is what I would describe as eclectic.  You really have a little bit of everything thrown together, most of the trail is double track or fire road, some portions are single track, but on this particular hike there is some asphalt and even some sidewalk hiking in a neighborhood and along a busy street.  

I call this type of hike an urban hike.  The reason isn’t that you aren’t hiking in some wilderness type of hills because you are, but I call it an urban hike because seldom are you out of view of the urban sprawl.  The houses down below are exceptional, however when I go out into nature I want to get away from that.  Delgado Canyon Trail was the only section going up a ravine that you don’t have views of houses and cars, that section of course was my favorite.  My next favorite section was Patriot Trail and seeing the Stars and Stripes flying high on a proper flag pole.  

I appreciate that this hike was a loop because it is alway more fun to be discovering new places, but now that I have done that and seen multiple different trails in the San Juan Capistrano Recreational Trail System I don’t need to go all the way down into the neighborhood below, and would rather do some out and back and stay a little more into nature.  

This is a good place for the residences of San Juan Capistrano and area to get some hiking in.   

  • Sidewalk hiking, is better than no hiking.
  • Some of this hike is actually on a busy road.
  • Re-entering hiking area after a going through a neighborhood below.
Patriot Trail
  • There are nice leading by example gestures made by the Boy Scouts in these hills.
  • Cactus Flower Starring Goldie Hawn, Ingrid Bergman and Walter Matthau.
Delgado Canyon
I added Harbor View Trail onto my hike, it added a little over 1/2 mile and a little additional elevation change.

“Hiking is the best workout! You can hike for three hours and not even realize you’re working out, and hiking alone lets me have some time to myself.” – Jamie Luner

Thanks for joining me as I hiked up and down hills in San Juan Capistrano, not quite the nature experience that I thrive on, but still pretty nice hike, and great training for my up coming Summit attempt at Mount Langley. I am really excited to be climbing to a much higher altitude than I have in the past, so this hike today with the temperature in the 80’s with good up and down elevation change is just what I need to prepare, and was a great test for my line of Adventure wear. My PBTA Logo Cap kept the sun off my face. My PBTA Logo Neck/Face Gaiter kept my neck from burning and it doubled as a Covid-19 Mask when passing fellow hikers on tight trails. And my PBTA Logo High Performance Moisture Wicking Tee kept me comfortable and not wringing wet. Get yours today at SHOP APPAREL. ‘Pursuing Balance Through Adventure’ travels to a lot of great places in the West. Checkout the menu above for some ideas. Each is a separate website and thus needs to be FOLLOWED separately. They are categorized for the most part by area. Please take a moment and COMMENT, LIKE, SHARE, and FOLLOW.

Happy Trails-

Roger Jenkins

Pursuing Balance Through Adventure