Aliso & Wood Canyons Wilderness Park...

Aliso & Wood Canyons Wilderness Park

28373 Alicia Parkway, Laguna Niguel

Park Information: 949-831-2790 or www.ocparks.com

The park is open from 7 a.m. to sunset daily, year round, for

hiking, bicycling and equestrian use. Parking $2.

The Orange County Natural History Museum is located at the Park

entrance and open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday

from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Information: (949) 831-3287 or

www.ocnha.mus.ca.us.

Crystal Cove

State Park

8471 Pacific Coast Highway, Laguna Beach

(949) 494-3539 Park Conditions (949) 497-7647 Interpretive Program

www.parks.ca.gov

Visit the new Web site at www.crystalcovestatepark.com

The park is open daily year round, 6 a.m. to sunset, for hiking,

bicycling and equestrian use. The park includes beach, bluff top and

backcountry with access at a number of different points. Parking $3.

Special Activities: Join docent-led Backcountry Hikes on Sept. 28

and 29 and Oct. 5 and 6. Meet at the El Moro Visitor Center promptly

at 9 a.m. Hikes are three to five miles and last about two hours. Be

sure to bring water and wear hiking boots.

The El Moro Visitor Center is open from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesdays

and Sundays and 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday.

Crystal Cove Historic District Visitor Center is open 10 a.m. to 4

p.m. on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Crystal Cove Interpretive Association welcomes new volunteers,

call (949) 497-7648.

The Irvine Ranch

Land Reserve

The Nature Conservancy (714) 832-7478

All participants meet at the Laguna Coast Wilderness Park

headquarters on Laguna Canyon Road just south of the El Toro Road

intersection. All tours are free, but require reservations.

Laguna Coast Wilderness Park Activities: Drop In mountain bike

ride, be ready to ride by 8 a.m. on Sunday, Sept. 29 and Oct. 6.

Saturday, Sept. 28, meet at 4 p.m. for an eight-mile hike to

Emerald Canyon. The moderately strenuous guided hike takes about five

hours and includes scenic ocean vistas and Laurel Canyon.

Laguna Coast Wilderness Park

20101 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach

(949) 494-9352 or www.ocparks.com

Call the rangers and ask about special group hikes for schools,

scouts and other organizations and clubs. Parking fee is $2.

Wilderness Access: from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. every Saturday and Sunday

at Willow Canyon Road staging area on Laguna Canyon Road just south

of El Toro Road intersection. Open for hiker, equestrian and mountain

bicyclist access on specified trails without guides.

Jim Dilley Greenbelt Preserve: from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. every

Saturday and Sunday. Hikers only on specified trails without guides.

Trails include Barbara’s Lake, the largest of the Laguna Lakes and

the only natural lakes in Orange County.

Guided hikes in Laurel Canyon: Every Saturday at 8 a.m., 3.5-mile

guided hike by Laguna Greenbelt, Inc. volunteers. Call for

reservations and there is $2 donation per hiker.

Laguna Heights: Open daily year round, from 7 a.m. to sunset.

Trailhead for West Ridge trail and other trails into Aliso and Wood

Canyons Wilderness Park.

Laguna Greenbelt, Inc. welcomes volunteers to help with wilderness

access. Call 949-497-8190 for more information or go to

www.lagunagreenbelt.org

Interested in becoming a Volunteer Naturalist? The eight-week

course starts Oct. 22. Call Saddleback College for more information,

(949) 582-4555.

* Activities compiled by Mary Fegraus from the Laguna Canyon

Foundation, a nonprofit corporation dedicated to preserving,

enhancing andprotecting Laguna Coast Wilderness Park and the adjacent

coastal canyonparks. For more information check out

www.lagunacanyon.org or call (949) 855-7275 (PARK).