Please note: Winter’s cool days make ideal...

Please note: Winter’s cool days make ideal hiking weather, but

rainfall can cause closures. Please call each park for access and

special program information.

Aliso & Wood Canyons Wilderness Park

28373 Alicia Parkway, Laguna Niguel

Park Information: (949) 923-2200 or www.ocparks.com

The park is open 7 a.m. to sunset daily all year, for hiking,

bicycling and equestrian use. Parking is $2. No pets.

Special hiking programs can be arranged by calling Ranger Carroll

at (949) 923-2299. On each second and fourth Saturday of the month

the ranger gives a free 30- to 45-minute Discovery Nature Talk

suitable for all ages. Meet at noon at the park entrance.

The Orange County Natural History Museum, open Wednesday through

Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., is at the park entrance. At 7 p.m.,

Jan. 14 attend a lecture by Bob Allen on monarch butterflies.

Lectures are held the second Wednesday of each month at Acorn

Naturalists, 155 El Camino Real, Tustin. Information: 1-800-422-8886.

Crystal Cove State Park

8471 Pacific Coast Highway, Laguna Beach

Park Conditions: (949) 494-3539; Interpretive Programs: (949)

497-7647

www.crystalcovestatepark.com

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

bicycling and horseback riding. The park includes backcountry, bluff

top and beach areas, with access at different points. Parking $5.

Dogs are allowed only on paved paths above the beach.

Special Activities: Docent-led backcountry hikes are scheduled for

most Saturdays and Sundays at 9 a.m. Upcoming dates include Saturday

and Sunday. Hikes are 3 to 5 miles and last about two hours. Be sure

to bring water and wear hiking boots. Meet at El Moro Visitors Center

(Coast Highway / School-State Park stoplight). A special docent-led

hike around the entire 11-mile perimeter of the park will be offered

on Sunday at 9 a.m.

El Moro Visitors Center is open Tuesday and Sunday, 9 a.m. to 1

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

Crystal Cove Historic District Visitors Center is open Friday,

Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Crystal Cove Interpretive

Assn. welcomes new volunteers. Call (949) 497-7648.

Crystal Cove’s Resource Management Team is seeking volunteers

interested in gardening to assist in a native plant propagation

project. Information: (949) 497-7645.

Irvine Ranch Land Reserve

The Nature Conservancy (714) 832-7478 or irvineranch@tnc.org

Participants meet at Laguna Coast Wilderness Park Headquarters on

Laguna Canyon Road, just south of the El Toro Road intersection. All

tours are free, but require reservations.

Special Activities: At 9 a.m., Jan. 15 and every third Thursday of

the month mountain bikers meet for a 6- to 10-mile, 2-hour ride in

Laguna Coast Wilderness Park.

Laguna Coast Wilderness Park

20101 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach

(949) 923-2235 or www.ocparks.com and nonprofit support group Web

sites, www.lagunacanyon.org and www.lagunagreenbelt.org

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

scouts and other organizations and clubs. Parking is $2. No dogs.

Wilderness Access: Willow Canyon Staging Area, at 20101 Laguna

Canyon Road (just south of El Toro Road intersection), is open 8 a.m.

to 4 p.m. every Saturday and Sunday for hikers, equestrians and

mountain bicyclists on specified trails without guides.

Jim Dilley Staging Area, on Laguna Canyon Road, is open every

Saturday and Sunday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., for hikers only on specified

trails without guides. Among area trails is one that skirts Barbara’s

Lake, one of Orange County’s only natural lakes.

Laguna Heights, the trailhead for West Ridge trail and other

trails into Aliso and Wood Canyons Wilderness Park, is open 7 a.m. to

sunset daily all year.

Special Activities: Laguna Greenbelt, Inc. docent volunteers lead

a Laurel Loop hike every Saturday at 8 a.m. Information and

reservations: (949) 923-2235. Mark your calendar now to help with

restoration projects on Jan. 17 and every third Saturday of the month

from 8 to 11 a.m. All volunteers receive free “Keep It Wild” T-shirts

provided by the Laguna Canyon Foundation. Hikers meet at Willow

Canyon Staging Area. $2 donation per hiker. Laguna Greenbelt, Inc.

welcomes volunteers. Call (949) 497-8190 for information.

* Activities compiled by Ellen Girardeau Kempler, LAGUNA CANYON

FOUNDATION, a nonprofit corporation dedicated to preserving,

enhancing and protecting Laguna Coast Wilderness Park and the

adjacent coastal canyon parks. For more information, visit

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