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

* 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 daily all year, 7 a.m. to sunset, 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 Jan. 25 and 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 located at the park entrance.

Crystal Cove State Park

8471 Pacific Coast Highway, Laguna Beach

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

497-7647

www.crystalcovestate park.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 Jan. 17,

18 and 25. Hikes are 3 to 5 miles and last about 2 hours. Be sure to

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

(Coast Highway, School-State Park stoplight).

Jan. 18 is the first of three monthly Gray Whale Sundays.

Volunteers will help park visitors spot whales on their annual

Baja-to-Alaska migration from 9 a.m. to 1 p.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

Association 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: Two upcoming hikes meet Saturday, at 9 a.m.:

On Jan. 17, challenge yourself with a strenuous, five-hour, 11-mile

hike to the Serano ridgeline overlooking Shady and Bommer Canyons. On

Jan. 24 take a two-mile, two-hour easy walk through Laguna Laurel.

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 every

Saturday and Sunday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. for hikers, equestrians and

mountain bicyclists on specified trails without guides.

Jim Dilley Staging Area, on Laguna Canyon Road (just north of the

73 Tollroad), 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 daily all

year, 7 a.m. to sunset.

Special Activities: Laguna Greenbelt, Inc. docent volunteers lead

a Laurel Loop hike Jan. 17, 24 and every Saturday at 8 a.m.

Information and reservations: (949) 923-2235.

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).