trailhead | Orange County Hiking

CRYSTAL COVE STATE PARK

Activity: Day Hike

7 miles, 1,115’ elevation change, 3.5 hours duration, rated Difficult

Date: 7-21-20

As I have mentioned in previous posts regarding Crystal Cove State Park this is my local hike, a great training area for upcoming adventures, but it is more than that as it is a stand alone great place to hike. It has so many positives: Pacific Ocean views, Catalina views, even San Clemente Island can be spotted on a clear day. Then there are the mountain ranges inland including nice views of Saddle Back.

The Park’s strength is there are lots of trails to mix and match. I invite you to browse through my Crystal Cove State Park hikes because they are all wonderful with subtle changes in views, and terrain so checkout the difficulty and length of the hike which will help you choose what is right for you on any given day.

Crystal Peak Park Loop has some good distance and elevation changes and is rated difficult. It starts at the top of the park and I decided to do the loop clockwise, be forewarned this puts the steepest section of the hike downhill which although this makes it easier cardio wise it can be tricky maneuvering steep slippery sections.

The trek starts on “Bommer Ridge Trail” which runs the length of the upper portion of Crystal Cove State Park. From there you will take “Slow n’ Easy.” Don’t be fooled by the name, while you certainly should take it slow, because of the footing, there is nothing Easy about it. This portion puts the Difficult in this hike. Slow n Easy will dump you out on “Morro Canyon Trail” which is, besides the fantastic vistas looking out to sea and towards the mountains, my favorite part of the park. A stroll through the shady oak grove is a welcome respite from the beating sun during the summer. Take a turn on to “Poles” it will transfer you up to “Pacific Ridge Trail” which has fabulous views looking out over the canyon and the ocean blue beyond. This trail will take you back up the Westside of Crystal Cove State Park back to beginning. Great hike!

**Besides the beautiful vistas of the ocean, canyon and distant mountains- the bottom of the canyon is my favorite featuring a delightful and cooling stroll through a lovely oak grove.**

Nature is the answer… it doesn’t matter what the question is. Nature can bring peace of mind, make you forget your woes, provide a needed break, reduce the stress and anxiety of our crazy work a day schedule, and bring some meaning into an otherwise mundane boring week. We all need to rebalance from time to time and what a great way to do it in the pursuit, and it is a pursuit… a journey if you will… towards balance. Perfect balance is unattainable, but we can certainly strive towards that Shangri-La. Get out into nature! Get out there and adventure! ‘Pursing Balance Through Adventure’ is good for what ails you, it cleanses the soul. Let’s stay in touch on this trek toward balance: LIKE, COMMENT, FOLLOW and SHARE. Like my hat? It’s yours. Want the shirt off my back? Done. Just go to SHOP APPAREL and lay your money down and you will be sporting top quality adventure wear with the theme we need to shout from the mountain tops “Pursuing Balance Through Adventure!” Need help finding a mountain top? Go to the Menu above for all of the special places that PBTA travels to. Each location is a separate website and thus needs to be FOLLOWED independently.

Happy Trails-

Roger Jenkins

Pursuing Balance Through Adventure

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

Orange County Hiking

Tag Archives: trailhead

CRYSTAL PEAK PARK LOOP

Las Ramblas Trail

Pursuing Balance Thru Adventure