Midweek Mountaineers 2021
DECEMBER
December 22nd – Sage Ranch Loop
[Best_Wordpress_Gallery id=”384″ gal_title=”MWM Sage Ranch Loop 12-22-2021″]
After successfully navigating Black Canyon Road, 5 hikers arrived at the lower parking lot in Sage Ranch Park in the Simi Hills on a chilly winter morning. The 625-acre park is located just north of the Santa Susana Field Laboratory (SSFL) (aka Rocketdyne/Boeing) at an elevation of 2,000’. It is chock-full of world-class sandstone rock formations and has lots of picnic tables shaded by large oak trees. Shortly after we began our counterclockwise loop hike, we followed a side trail to a nice overlook with sweeping views of Simi Valley, the Santa Susana Mountains, and a view down into a seldom-hiked “hidden” valley spread out at our feet [there’s no parking near the hard-to-see trailhead along Black Canyon Road]. After hiking along the main Loop Trail and various somewhat overgrown “use” trails for a while including a trail over to the imposing Turtle Rock, we climbed up on Sandstone Ridge (aka “Sugarloaf”), a long, steep rock formation rising alongside the trail near the southwest corner of the park; it afforded us with excellent views of the once-bustling SSFL (most of the structures have been removed from the property as the “cleanup” effort continues).
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NOVEMBER
November 24th – MWM Canyon View Trail, Coyote Hills Park, Creekside Trail, Oak Canyon, and Long Canyon Trail Loop
[Best_Wordpress_Gallery id=”376″ gal_title=”MWM Canyon View Trail, Coyote Hills Park, Creekside Trail, Oak Canyon, and Long Canyon Trail Loop 11-24-2021″]
5 hikers gathered at the Long Canyon Trail trailhead parking lot at Wood Ranch in Simi Valley on a chilly late fall morning with a clear sky. We left the parking lot and headed east along Long Canyon Road to the southwest end of the Canyon View Trail. We began hiking uphill on the trail, enjoying ever-improving views of the surrounding area including the Bard Reservoir. We hiked along the ridgeline until we reached a junction with a trail leading down to Coyote Hills Park. After our descent we hiked through the park and then crossed Long Canyon Road and followed the Creekside Trail to the mouth of Montgomery Canyon. We passed by it, hiked south through Oak Canyon, and eventually reached the signed upper end of the Long Canyon Trail which we descended into the parking lot from which we started our hike, thus completing a 6.5-mile loop hike with about 1,300’ of elevation gain/loss on a pleasant morning for hiking. We encountered very few other people during our hike and spotted only a few wildflowers including purple nightshade and tree tobacco; we also spotted a few rabbits. The hillsides reflected the ongoing drought.
November 17th – Devil Canyon toward Browns Canyon Road
[Best_Wordpress_Gallery id=”370″ gal_title=”MWM Devil Canyon toward Browns Canyon Road 11-18-2021″]
7 hikers met at 7:00 AM at the starting point of our hike on Poema Place in Chatsworth on a chilly autumn morning. We began our hike by descending into the heavily shaded bottom of Devil Canyon where we followed the remnants of the Devil Canyon Motorway upstream as it frequently crisscrossed the mostly dry streambed. Despite the ongoing drought there were a few wildflowers and quite a bit of bright green new grass (thanks to a fairly recent rainfall). Eventually we reached the large check dam at the junction with the mouth of Ybarra Canyon (which extends north to the Regional Park at Joughin Ranch). This first part of our hike led through a mostly heavily shaded environment bordered with interesting rock formations.
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November 10th – Santa Susana Pass State Historic Park Loop
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7 hikers met at 7:00 AM at the Stagecoach Trail trailhead on Lilac Lane in southeast Simi Valley on a cool somewhat foggy autumn morning. The group began its clockwise-loop hike by heading eastward on the Mattingly Trail to an overlook of Chatsworth Park South, then continued along the Mattingly Trail to its junction with the Williams Trail which they carefully followed as it descended to Chatsworth Park South, crossing above the railroad tunnel on the way down. They then skirted Chatsworth Park South and made their way via a couple of trails to the Old Santa Susana Stagecoach Road (OSSSR) which they followed as it climbed fairly steeply up the boulder-strewn mountain to the starting point of the hike, passing the plaque installed by the Native Daughters of the Golden West along the way. They eventually arrived at their vehicles having completed an estimated 5-mile hike with around 1,100’ of elevation gain/loss on a nice day for hiking. NOTE: The author of this report confused a hike scheduled to start at 8 AM on Saturday with this hike so by the time he realized his mistake, he missed this hike.
November 3rd – Chivo Canyon to Buckhorn Trail to Marr Ranch Road to Cappocchi Trail Lollipop Loop
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8 hikers met at 7:30 AM at the “trailhead” on Cottonwood Drive in the Wild Horse Canyon development on a chilly fall morning with a clear sky (just right for hiking). After we “dropped” into Chivo (goat) Canyon, we hiked northward along a single-track “use” trail and then the old Chivo Canyon (dirt) Road to its junction with the Buckhorn Trail, passing a couple of large oil seeps and a bee apiary along the way. We then continued north on the old road to the marshy area which we crossed and then continued on “upstream” to the seldom-visited Chivo Canyon “Narrows” where a fence prevents further exploration. While there we spotted a deer which began quickly bounding up the nearby mountain face until it disappeared from view.
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Then we headed south along Marr Ranch Road while enjoying views of the surrounding mountains and canyons. Upon reaching the “Four Points” trail junction, we descended the Cappocchi Trail which connects with the Chivo Canyon Road/trail below; we encountered a small snake on the trail. After descending into Chivo Canyon once more we returned southward to where our hike started. The morning had warmed up quite a bit by the time we completed our 6.3-mile hike with about 1,150’ of elevation gain/loss.
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OCTOBER
October 20th – Johnson Motorway to Rocky Peak Fire Road
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Seven hikers met at the trailhead on Iverson Road just outside the gated southern entrance to Indian Springs Estates in Chatsworth on a cold fairly clear autumn morning. We were greeted unexpectedly by road-repair (asphalt patching) equipment and workers in the Hwy 118 underpass. After carefully passing the workers and following the easement through the upscale gated community, we reached the beginning of the unpaved Johnson Motorway (once a toll road). The trail (an old dirt and sandstone roadbed) rose westward until it met a short “driveway” leading north to the ruins of the ranch house that was built by Ann and Neils Johnson who were the first English-speaking homesteaders in the San Fernando Valley; they had built their primary home in “Chatsworth Park” in the 1870’s. After admiring the view to the north of Devil Canyon and Oat Mountain, we followed the Johnson Motorway as it passed through a landscape of dramatic rock formations, climbing steadily, but not steeply, toward the Rocky Peak Fire Road. The sun gently warmed us and we generated heat climbing upward so we soon removed our outer layer of please-keep-us-warm clothing. After 3.5 miles we reached the fire road where we took a short break. We then we retraced our route downhill back to our vehicles and returned home having completed an invigorating 7.25-mile hike with about 1,450’ of elevation gain/loss.
October 13th – Tapo Canyon Open Space Trail to Chivo Canyon + the Secret Trail
[Best_Wordpress_Gallery id=”352″ gal_title=”MWM Tapo Canyon Open Space Trail to Chivo Canyon”]
11 hikers met at 7:30 AM near the dirt trailhead parking area (1,136’) for the Tapo Canyon Open Space Trail (T23) in Simi Valley on a slightly chilly autumn morning with clear skies. As we began our hike we headed northward along the nearly flat dirt road/trail which was bordered by scruffy yellow grass dotted with fairly healthy-looking oak trees, the entire area showing the results of an ongoing drought. We spotted several rabbits which quickly scampered away. After a mile or so the road/trail rose steadily to a narrow pass and a dirt-road junction (1,535’) where we took a short break and enjoyed the views of the “valley” before us and the rows of mountainous ridges to the northeast. Continuing, we turned right and began hiking the T23 loop which took us along a dirt road/trail that led downward through a nice oak woodland toward its eastern junction (1,276’) with itself. We turned right and hiked eastward down to the floor of Chivo Canyon where we observed a nearby apiary which had seen better days.
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October 6th – Santa Rosa Valley Park
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12 hikers met in a dirt parking area on the left (east) side of Hill Canyon Road in Santa Rosa Valley Park (10241 Hill Canyon Rd, Camarillo) on a chilly foggy early fall morning (just right for hiking but not for distance photos). We began our hike into the Conejo Canyons Open Space just west of Wildwood Park by crossing 25-foot-wide Arroyo Conejo Creek via a nice bridge that provided excellent views of the year-round creek which had lots of water. Our route (which we had all to ourselves) then followed the creek upstream to a trail intersection that we’ve named Five Points where we followed the short spur trail down to the creek where we noted that the “temporary” dam was there but there were no waterfowl in evidence upstream.
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SEPTEMBER
September 29th – Big Sky Trail
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10 hikers met along Big Sky Place (970’) in Simi Valley on a chilly early autumn morning for a familiar neighborhood hike. After a short walk northward on a sidewalk along Erringer Road where we admired the rose beds and waterfalls at the entrance to the Big Sky neighborhood, we turned east onto the well-signed Big Sky Trail. After crossing a dry streambed, we began the loop portion of the hike as we climbed fairly steeply up to the north-south ridge to the east of the housing development. Upon reaching the ridgetop, we enjoyed unobstructed views of the surrounding area including Whiteface Mountain. The hillsides were “bone dry” due to the ongoing drought. After reaching the highest point (1,463’) in our hike, we took a short break and then continued on to the northernmost point (1,357’) in our hike where the trail turned sharply to the southeast, winding its way along the oak-lined streambed that runs through the Big Sky development. We finished our invigorating outing having completed a 4.6-mile hike with a little over 800’ of elevation gain/loss on a very nice morning for hiking.
September 22nd – Mission Point Loop via Neon Way and O’Melveny Park
[Best_Wordpress_Gallery id=”334″ gal_title=”MWM Mission Point Loop via Neon Way and O’Melveny Park”]
9 hikers gathered in the parking lot at the entrance to O’Melveny Park (the second-largest city park in Los Angeles) in Granada Hills on an already warm early autumn morning with the promise of higher temperatures ahead. We began our hike by walking southwest along the nearby sidewalk on Sesnon Blvd to its junction with Neon Way (enjoying some blooming “domestic” plants along the way). We then followed Neon Way three blocks north to the lower end of the Sulphur Spring Fire Road (aka the Dr. Mario A. De Campos Trail). We began the steady climb along the fire road to Mission Point in the Santa Susana Mountains. As we gained elevation the temperature also rose steadily; there were a surprisingly large number of sun flowers blooming along the trail as well as datura (jimson weed) and a few morning glories and cliff asters. Though smog shrouded distant views, we were able to see the nearby Los Angeles Reservoir (which replaced the Van Norman Reservoir whose dam nearly failed during the 1971 Sylmar earthquake). Eventually we reached two benches beneath a large oak tree; there was a somewhat obscured “million-dollar view” of the San Fernando Valley but, more importantly, there was lots of shade which we really needed as the temperature had continued rising. After taking a short break most of us continued a short distance up to Mission Point with its small, stone monument memorializing Mario De Campos, a lover of the local mountains. The view from the top was fairly good despite the distant smog.
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September 15th – Los Robles Trail via the Los Padres Trail and Oak Creek Canyon
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10 hikers met at the Los Padres Trail trailhead in Thousand Oaks on a chilly ‘foggy’ (marine layer) late-summer morning. We began our hike through a pleasant oak woodland into the hills south of Thousand Oaks. However, many of the oak trees showed the ravages of the ongoing drought (and wildfire). When we reached a dirt access road, we followed it to its junction with the Los Robles Trail, having been shaded (though it was still foggy) all the way up. We headed west on the Los Robles Trail but soon turned right onto the “Scenic Loop” trail which led us to the Conejo Valley Scenic Overlook (where there’s a bench) which provides panoramic views of the surrounding mountains and grasslands (though not today). After stopping to take a short break, we continued on along the Los Robles Trail as it descended to a nice oak-shaded picnic area (with a table and benches) and then to a junction with a connector trail that led us to the upper (south) end of the Oak Creek Canyon Loop Trail.
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September 8th – Las Llajas Canyon to the Abandoned Coquina Mining Operation
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Eight hikers met at the trailhead on Evening Sky Drive on a pleasant late summer morning. We began our hike by descending a short paved section of road into the canyon bottom; from there we followed the wide well-graded dirt road upstream to the north 1.8 miles, crossing the dry streambed three times. We then followed a surprisingly not-at-all-overgrown “use” trail (the remnants of an old mining road) as we climbed up the eastern slope of the mountain, atop which we enjoyed panoramic views of the surrounding area including parts of Chivo Canyon, Las Llajas Canyon, the Santa Susana Mountains, and Simi Valley. We were in shade for much of the trek to the top, but the air was somewhat humid.
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September 1st – Hummingbird Trail to Rocky Peak Fire Road
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4 hikers met at 7:00 AM at the trailhead next to the paved parking area just outside the gated entrance to Hummingbird Ranch at the north end of Kuehner Drive in Simi Valley to hike up the Hummingbird Trail (and back). It was a cool overcast (marine layer) morning as we began our hike along the trail which is on the west side of the mountain [Note: Access to the trail is still easy despite the adjacent housing development activity]. Soon we began our eastward climb up the mountain and it wasn’t long before we were passing through (and on) a variety of imposing sandstone rock formations along the way including very large boulders and giant slabs of sandstone rock, many with small “caves.” Distant views of the Santa Susana Mountains and Simi Hills were hidden by the marine layer during most of the hike but close-up views were fine.
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AUGUST
August 26th – Wildwood Park: Mesa Trail, Stagecoach Bluff Trail, Lizard Rock Trail, Paradise Falls, Wildwood Canyon, Indian Creek Trail Loop
[Best_Wordpress_Gallery id=”318″ gal_title=”MWM Wildwood Park: Mesa Trail to Lizard Rock to Wildwood Canyon (Paradise Falls) to Indian Creek Trail”]
7 hikers met at 7:00 AM at the dirt parking lot at Wildwood Park at the west end of Avenida de los Arboles in Thousand Oaks on a cool late summer morning. We began our counterclockwise loop hike by heading west on the Mesa Trail as we enjoyed the company of good friends. We soon turned left, hiked a short distance south on the Tepee Trail, and then took the Stagecoach Bluffs Trail westward which provided views down into Wildwood Canyon as we hiked through a display of prickly pear cactus and a few cholla cactus; we also spotted several “conejos” (rabbits) for which the Conejo Valley is named. Upon rejoining the Mesa Trail, we hiked westward up to a trail junction just below Lizard Rock.
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August 18th – Canyon View Trail, Oak Canyon, and Long Canyon Trail Loop
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10 hikers gathered at the Long Canyon Trail trailhead parking lot at Wood Ranch in Simi Valley on a cool summer morning with an overcast sky which threatened some light rain. We left the parking lot and headed east on an equestrian trail beside Long Canyon Road. We soon crossed the road and proceeded up the southwest end of the Canyon View Trail, enjoying ever-improving views of the surrounding area including the Bard Reservoir. We followed the trail as it undulated along a ridgeline until it finally dropped to Long Canyon Road, between Old Windmill Park and Challenger Park. We turned right and headed over to the “Long Canyon Trail East” trailhead which also provides access to Montgomery Canyon. NOTE: Apparently the eastern section of the “Long Canyon East Trail” (formerly known as Oak Canyon) has been renamed AND a flat stretch of dull dirt road that connects Long Canyon Road to Coyote Hills Park is now named “Oak Canyon” [or perhaps there’s an error on Google Maps].
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August 11th – Devil Canyon to the large check dam, then up Ybarra Canyon
[Best_Wordpress_Gallery id=”310″ gal_title=”MWM Devil Canyon to the large check dam, then up Ybarra Canyon”]
5 hikers met at 6:45 AM at the starting point of our hike on Poema Place in Chatsworth on a cool overcast summer morning. We began our hike by descending into the heavily shaded bottom of Devil Canyon where we followed the remnants of the Devil Canyon Motorway upstream as it frequently crisscrossed the presently dry streambed. Notwithstanding the absence of almost any wildflowers, the trail was still pleasant to walk along thanks to lots of shade, steep canyon walls with interesting rock formations, and lots of oak trees and non-blooming plants including quite a bit of red-and-green poison oak. When we reached the large check dam near the trail junction with Ybarra Canyon (“ybarra” is a basque name derived from ‘ibar’ meaning meadow) we decided to take the Ybarra Canyon trail as it headed northward toward its junction with Joughin Ranch Park along Brown’s Canyon Road).
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August 4th – Santa Susana Pass State Historic Park Counterclockwise Loop
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7 hikers met at 6:45 AM in the dirt parking area along Lilac Lane at the upper end of the Chatsworth portion of the Stagecoach Trail in the Santa Susana Pass State Historic Park on a pleasant summer morning (which promised to heat up as the day progressed). We began our hike by heading northeast into the park via the Mattingly Trail which we followed to the Upper Meadow Trail which led us to a rocky overlook of Chatsworth Park South and the surrounding area. We then followed a short connector-trail northward to “Five Points” and a short fairly steep trail leading up to a hilltop viewpoint with a 360-degree view in all directions.Returning to Five Points we continued following the Mattingly Trail to the northeast to the Williams Trail which led downhill toward the Spahn Ranch [there’s little to see there now] and the El Camino Nuevo Trail which headed west and connected to the Sanchez Trail which we followed to the paved Santa Susana Pass Road (SSPR). A short distance westward along SSPR brought us to the northern end of a nameless dirt trail that we followed southward to our vehicles.
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July
July 28th – Chivo Canyon to the Narrows to the Buckhorn Trail to the Cappocchi Trail Lollipop Loop
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9 hikers met at 7:00 AM at the “trailhead” on Cottonwood Drive in the Wild Horse Canyon development on a pleasant summer morning for our first group hike since the Covid-19 “lockdown” in March, 2020. After we “dropped” into Chivo Canyon, we hiked northward along a single-track “use” trail and then the old Chivo Canyon (dirt) Road to its junction with the Buckhorn Trail (named by Joe Beautz after finding a set of deer antlers), passing a couple of large oil seeps along the way.
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