Peters Canyon Regional Park: First Hike, 2010

Okay, I'm finally getting the chance to sit down for a while and put up the post I promised last night. I went out for a hike yesterday at Peters Canyon Regional Park, in the hills of North Orange. Below is my basic gear. I picked up a new pair of Hi-Tec hiking boots (the tag's still on the right boot there). You might notice as well that little locking-blade pocket knife I carry, along with the hiking pole and traffic cop's whistle. Both for safety. Peter's Canyon is a wilderness area with mountain lions and other wildlife. I'm not carrying a gun, so between the knife and the hiking pole perhaps I'll be able to fight off a lion's attack. A mountain lion killed a cyclist in 2004, about 10 miles south of Peters Canyon, at Whiting Ranch in Trabuco Canyon.

I like walking with the hiking pole, in any case. I've got the whistle mainly so I can call for help if I become injured in a fall, or if some damned posse of local illegal immigrant vatos happens to come along (probably not up here at the park, but this is outback, so every little bit helps). I've got the phone too. I normally will take along some GORP instead of the Nature Valley bars, just in case I get little weak for energy. I stuff everything in the fanny pack. Not shown are sunscreen and sunglasses. And I'll start taking the camera with me on all hikes, since there's lots to see, and this is a horse trail as well has hiking, running, and cycling.

Here's the sign at the park entrance. Check the map at the second image down. I'm standing at the top of the red "parking" icon:

This shot is looking south along the start of the blue line to the left of the parking icon at the map. I'll meet up at the Lakeview Trail in five minutes or so:

Okay, here I'm turning back right on the map, heading east. There are a couple of inclines. This is the first one. That's actually a pair of park rangers hiking around the park, checking out fencing and other things. The hills are moderately strenuous:

Here's the scenic view resting area at the top of the two hills I just climbed. I'm taking the picture at the "photograph" icon at the map. Looking north or a bit northeast, you can see Mt. Baldy in the distance - hard to tell here, but it's still snowcapped from the late December storm we had. I stop to rest for a few minutes and drink water. My favorite time to hike Peters Canyon is in November after the Santa Ana winds have swept away all the clouds and smog, the earlier in the morning the better. It's a heavenly peak. Interestingly, the reservior is the lowest I've seen it. But we haven't had our normal rain cycle yet, and I expect it will fill back up to the higher shoreline levels you can see at left. Lots of birds come to feed and rest along the waterfront. It's quiet nature here:

Starting back up again, I'm now descending down the back side of the peak. There's a cactus trail here and you have to listen for the mountain bikers, 'cause they like to whip down this trail at full speed:

Now I'm hiking the long stretch heading to the south of the park, at Lower Canyon Trail on the map. It's probably just over a mile to the south entrance. I stopped to take a photo of some guys installing solar panels on a new ranch house just on the other side of the creek that runs alongside:

Okay, I'm at the south entrance. I use the restroom here and take a break for a couple of minutes. While resting I read the information billboards posted at the shade-stand. You can see the trail here in the background looking north. Lots of warning signs for dangers from wild animals. We have rattlers in the woods here:

If you check the map back up top, I'm now heading up the trail at the blue line at bottom. See the trees here? There's a brief hike through a thick eucalyptus grove, and here's some more warning signs:

About fifteen minutes later I come to a rest stop at the top of one of the larger inclines. (This is about halfway back up the East Ridge View Trail on the map.) These rests are the biggest payoffs of the hike. I'm looking southwest, out over the Irvine Valley toward Newport Beach and the Pacific Ocean. It's about 4:30pm. With the clouds last night we had a dramatic reddish-purple sunset. We can see the beginning of it here. I did some pushups and replenished fluids. I dwell for a while to take in all the views, saying hello to passing hikers, bikers, and runners:

I didn't tackle the steepest hill at the park yesterday. You can see a picture here. In one or two more hikes, I'll start also taking the last peak trail, and my rests will be much shorter. I was fairly winded on a couple of the steeper inclines yesterday. And I'm sore. My lower back area, gluteous maximus, and inner quadriceps got big workouts. Calves are a little sore as well, but not bad. Plus, my pecs and lats feel like I was benchpressing yesterday, so I'm out of shape on the pushups.

Ideally, I'll have time to go on this hike once a week. On top of that I can walk my neighborhood on most days. When I'm in good shape I walk for hours if I have time. It's the best stressbuster. Later, I'll do some running and more weigthtraining. I weighed 209 after my doctor's appointment in December. My ideal weight is 185. But for now I'm more interested in the cardiovascular workouts and restoring my overall body strength. I'll also post photos of myself. Didn't feel like it yesterday, but tune in for some DD hotness shots throughout the year!

I'll update with more information on this hike, as well as some additional hikes in the Southern California area. 2010's going to be a big year for my American Power workouts!