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Crystal Cove State Park: El Moro Canyon
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16 reviews for Crystal Cove State Park: El Moro Canyon
This place is good for trail running just watch your steps so you won't hurt yourself. First quarter mile of my run i tripped and messed up my knees right away but that didn't stop me from running 5 miles more. I don't really do trail running i'm just starting with it so i have to slow down on some parts and there are parts that you really have to walk or else you're gonna hurt yourself. I like the switchbacks the trails are well kept, there are some snakes on the way but its easy to avoid them as long as you keep moving.
I like the scenery here and since its not that high you won't have any problem with altitude compare to running trails up in San Gabriel. Just beware of mountain bikers and stay away. Its not too hot in this place cause you still get the ocean breeze. I remember running here at noon and i didn't even need a drink(it was summer).
I would totally keep running in this place only if i live near. Too bad i don't.
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Me: Excuse me ma'am but I think I'm lost. Can you help me?
Stranger Lady: Sure, where are you trying to get to.
Me: *thinking of saying, 'your heart';" Oh the ranger station.
She was really attractive but the catch was that she was with another man and he was a lot bigger than me therefore I couldn't pull my flirting skills.
However, I was here to hike, not to flirt. The canyon is huge!! I arrived with my friend around 6am and it took us 4.5 hours to do like 13 miles. However there are a variety different trails that you can take. There are trails that are only a few miles. However we decided to take the long one cuz you know, we're fat.
There are lot of hills, flat lands, dirt roads, single roads, etc... The variety is endless. El Moro is good for mountain biking as well so if you're a rider, this place is cool. There is this part called "Poles" where it has crazy slopes so it's pretty challenging if you're hiking or biking.
The scenery is pretty too since you're close to the beach. Depending where you start, there is a part where you can see the ocean from about 500-1000ft above sea level.
The only downside about this place is that if you park at the ranger station, you have to pay $10.00. However, I guess that money is being use to maintain the area. However, if you park on Ridgepark, there is a cul-de-sac in the residential area where you can park for free.
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Crystal Cove State Park's El Moro Canyon is SERIOUS hiking in Laguna Beach!
Most folks don't realize that Laguna and Crystal Cove State Park have elevations that rapidly climb from sea level to about 1,000 feet. Granted, you're never going to snowboard here, but you can get a heck of a workout walking, trail running, mountain biking and horseback riding in El Moro Canyon.
El Moro lies just a quarter mile north of the Laguna Beach welcome sign. Our town's only elementary school resides at the base of this monstrous hill and both sit across from the Crystal Cove State Park - a flat, beachy mecca that attracts thousands of tourists.
To the untrained eye, El Moro looks like a friendly set of rolling hills ... and there are many great trails that accommodate beginner hikers and children, to be sure.
But don't let El Moro fool you. Many of her super-wide "fire trails" accommodate professional football and basketball players in training; cross-country teams; and marathon and triathalon greats. The "park" is a mass of long, steep inclines and rollercoaster hills with names such as "Elevator" (one you definitely want to struggle up instead of down), and "Poles" (a 400-foot vertical hill that some people take to crawling up with absolutely no fear of recrimination).
El Moro also throws down single-track careening challenges to professional BMXers and the internationally known "Radicals" (aka: RADS), a super-competitive mountain bike racing fraternity based in Laguna Beach.
Regular sitings if you were to go 4 weekends in a row for a month:
Other people on the hills (usually panting but all friendly): Every 3 minutes
Bunnies: Every 3 minutes
Slow-moving mountain bikers struggling up a steep hill: Every 10 minutes
Hurtling (but ever-polite) mountain bikers coming down a steep hill: 1 small group every half-hour.
Rattlesnakes: There are warnings posted, but I've only seen a few random track slithers. Rattlesnakes prefer to avoid humans, especially panting ones.
Red fox: 1 a month
Mule deer: 1 a month
Coyotes: 1 every season. They scramble in the opposite direction from humans.
Mountain lions: Never. (Though you can never say "never," most state parks representatives will tell you that there's simply not enough food on the hills for these buggers.)
Insider Tips:
* There are no bathroom or drinking water facilities on El Moro. Go prepared.
* Absolutely no dogs are allowed anywhere on this hill. Sorry. Leave the pooch at home. Horses are allowed on the trails.
* Campsites are available and can be arranged in advance by calling 949-494-3539
* If you park at the PCH side, you're usually charged $10 to park UNLESS you arrive before or after the Visitor Center's official hours ...then it's free! Plan your schedule accordingly
(El Moro) Park Hours:
Mon - Fri 8 a.m. - 5:30 p.m.
Sat, Sun - 6 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.
How to Find El Moro:
There are many entries to El Moro from the top of Newport Coast Drive by the 73 toll road, from Laguna Canyon (the 133) and from PCH just north of the city limits. The Visitor Welcome Center (with park guides, bathrooms and maps) is on the PCH side, so I'll direct you here first:
From the Laguna Beach Welcome sign on the north side of town, travel just mile to the El Moro School and Park exit to your right (a stoplight). Drive straight through the school lot to the park's inland-bound road and follow the signs to the parking lot.
From my blog, http://HotSpotsInLagun...
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Park at the school (if you can) as there is a fee to park at the parking lot.
Considering this was my first time actually taking on this path, and it didn't end up killing me, I will give it five stars. Now, for the following people, you will probably not be as generous.
If you smoke (as I do)
If you are uber out of shape/overweight (as I am)
If you've NEVER hiked (as I)
You will not like this path. Why?
Some of the inclines were sloped at an angle that you will stop and catch your breath more than once going up the SAME hill.
You will stop and slow down on the declines as well as it's some of the rockiest declines. I could not for the life of me tell if it was worse going up or down the hills.
Once you're on the path, you're on the path! You seriously are out in the middle of the mountains and you better have some energy to either walk your way back or just finish the darn thing because there are no roads here and I don't want to even imagine what will happen if you can't make your way out. I also did see some elderly people who were hiking around like it was nothing to them. Major props to them.
Now, for you enthusiasts, hard core hikers, this is the spot because of said things. There were people who were mountain biking and I really think that would have been a lot harder than taking the hike on just using your legs. Hardcore! The hike is beautiful with hardly man made interruptions (besides the huge telephone poles you'll see them a couple of times along the route and houses in the distance).
You can see the ocean from some of the paths and it's just serene. Some of the paths are surrounded by yellow flowers that look like it was taken straight from a Windows background. I can see myself coming up here and just get myself lost in thought and just let all the distractions of the world, life in general, disappear.
Half way through our trek we did stop at a "rest stop" (my first rest stop actually walking, instead of driving some where). It had a nice shade and gave me a little time to finally somewhat catch my breath (not really, lol).
Just a little over the halfway mark we reached some peak and decided to take a picture. I was told that it's all down hill from here. Lies! It was not, but the inclines were not as bad as it was earlier on the hike.
The ocean breeze feels wonderful as you do make your way back to the main parking area/school.
About 3/4 through the hike (I was a whiny little b*tch), I even joked to my friends about this trail should be used by the military to train. It wasn't even ten minutes after that that two soldiers in full gear passed us going through the experience that we just had. Ha-ha? :x
I was proud of myself for making it, without having someone carry me back down, or have a helicopter pick us up (the thought crossed my mind numerous times). The endorphin high was nice, and that bottle of water was the most refreshing thing I had in my possession. Holls did say, hey, now that you finished the hardest hike, you can take on other hikes with ease. I guess that's true. Even though in the parking lot, it looks like someone lost their lunch. The next couple of days, my legs, thighs, calves, and feet were not happy campers. I walked like an old man, but I can't wait for my next hiking experience.
I wouldn't mind trying it again, but not the same 6-8 mile trail/path. Thanks to Holls, Dave, Lils, Mama~Mia, Teem, and K-Fed for joining me.
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***Parking is no longer "free." They now enforce the $10 day rate to park at the El Moro Canyon trailhead!!!***
In the past few months, each time I go hiking at El Moro Canyon, I've seen more and more of the borders of the park fall prey to the surrounding development. I've no clue what their building plans are, but I've noticed an additional parking lot and space carved out for an inlet road. On my hikes, seeing all this develop over time kind of makes me sad, but then I'm reminded that no good thing lasts forever. Like the eroding Laguna Beach cliffs below, I suppose it was just a matter of time since the state of CA caught wind of the "Free Parking" aspect.
Although it sits right below a neighborhood of million-dollar Newport Beach homes, El Moro truly has a lot of semi-untouched nature to offer. A fifteen minute hike inbound allows you to spot wild cactus, sage, rosemary and pumpkins along the trail.
http://www.yelp.com/bi...
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You can occasionally spot some friendly critters darting across your upcoming path. http://www.yelp.com/bi...
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Keeping your voices low, you can hear the occasional thrush flitter about the tall growing chaparral reeds, and if you tread lightly, that movement amongst the brush could be a deer and her fawn. On a good day, some movement in the air could be a massive red tail hawk swooping down, crossing low above the trail. I've been fortunate enough to see all of these things at El Moro Canyon!
Though all good things have their price, I think $10 is just too much, and now I think I might start biking to the trailhead. Yes, I know the economy is poor and luxuries like State Parks are the first to be cut off, but $10 is just too much to pay for a 2-3 hour hike, especially if you really like hiking alone.
However, I guess $10 can get you this, on a nice hiking day in the sun:
http://www.yelp.com/bi...
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And then you get to end your night with skies like this one:
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1 Previous Review: Show all »
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9/9/2008
Hiking around El Moro Canyon is my favorite thing to do on the weekend. See, I don't spend all my… Read more »
These parks are so confusing!! Which do I review??? Is it Crystal Cove State Park? Or Laguna Coast Wilderness Park? Or El Moro Canyon Trail? There are just too many trails! So many different options!
Any way, so trying to makeup for last weekend's laziness at CC State Beach, my friends and I decided to finally take on this trail. We opted for the short loop (for beginners) which was about 2.4 miles total. There were a bunch of nice views of the green valleys below...I saw a bunch of wildlife such as : flowers, cacti, rabbits, beetles, hawk, road runner, squirrels, and NO SNAKES! I was looking forward to seeing or hearing something rattle, but no dice :[
+many trail maps along the trail and available maps in outside box
+free parking beyond 4 on Sat
+clean bathrooms
+animal life
-few piles of dung to watch out for
-kind of bare and boring
-lots of bikers heading toward you downhill at full speed
I shall try the harder trails hopefully soon. update then :]
Somewhat hidden, but a quiet beauty to explore...
El Moro is a great place to hike, mountain bike, and run. Wait, did I say run? Oy vey! Somehow I was talked into running the eight-and-a-half mile loop around the perimeter of El Moro Canyon yesterday afternoon, and although I was unsure I'd make it out of there at times, I survived to tell about it.
I was told it would be hilly, but I never imagined how hilly it could be. Hill after hill after hill. My friend who was experienced at running here kept telling me we had run the last hill, and then a few minutes later there would be yet another hill up ahead. I couldn't believe it! Some of the inclines were so steep I had to walk up, which was fine since I wouldn't have been able to run them any faster. Let's just say it was the longest and slowest eight and a half miles of my life.
If you want a challenging place to work out, El Moro is definitely for you. It also offers great scenery and wildlife. We saw a deer last night. When is the last time you saw a deer in Orange County?
My group were the only runners out there (imagine that!) but we saw lots of mountain bikers and hikers. Parking is $10, but yesterday the parking attendant's office was closed, so everyone got to park for free. I wouldn't mind paying the $10 though since it goes to maintain the park, which is one of the last remaining undeveloped canyons in the area that I know of.
Even though the run was extremely strenuous, and my legs are pretty sore today, it was worth it to see the spectacular sunset over the ocean. I had been dreading the run all day, but when I was done, I was glad that I accomplished something I know was really good for me. Plus I saw a deer. I can't forget the deer.
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SUPER fun.. i definitely would like to come back here. Came here for mountain biking and the place is filled with all sorts of trails for different levels. would like to come here for hiking in the future as well. and will definitely be back for more mountain biking!! exhilarating, strenuous and relaxing all in one package.
parking is $10.00 per car.
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Hey, I'm all for getting lost and adding to the fun of a hiking trip, but it's just hilarious that they have maps marked frequently on the trail with YOU ARE HERE with no star marking where you're at. WHAT THE HELL! Who in their sick mind would do that?? hahahhaah Oh Crystal Cove, you're too silly.
So, we ended up not finishing the loop back using moro ridge and instead taking a trail that ended up being a part of laguna coast wilderness park and spitting us back on PCH. We had to go about 2 miles on PCH to get back to our cars at the elementary school (free parking hehe). Thankfully, we were able to hitch a ride haha
The hike wasn't too bad, and was kind of weird seeing the toll roads during the hike. I would come back though to do the trails for mountain biking.
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On Sunday, my cousin and I hiked here for the first time. The following trails were ~ 9 mi long and took us about five hours due to frequent rests, but would've taken me no more than four hours: No Dogs, No Name, Deer Canyon, Fence Line, Missing Link, Moro Ridge, I think I Can, El Moro Canyon.
Getting Lost: Despite the nice maps we got from the visitor's center, we got lost a few times, adding ~2 mi to our hike. Luckily, every time we wanted to ask someone a question, a biker would come out of nowhere and would stop when we hailed them for directions.
(Near the "Missing Link" trail, when you see a picture of the park on an easel, you must take a sharp right, or you will walk off the boundary of the park.)
The People: Everybody we met on the trails here was extremely friendly and followed the hiker's etiquette of waving or saying "Hi" unlike, say, the folks on the Temescal Canyon trail in Pacific Palisades (LA County). I don't know why OC people are so much friendlier than LA people. Perhaps it's the lower sales tax in OC, or the clean, well-maintained streets and the faster street traffic.
Food & Water: We brought a picnic lunch, which we ate at one of the shady campgrounds under a large oak tree. Although we didn't bring enough water, the bikers we stopped were kind enough to offer us some, but we didn't take any.
BIKING: This park is especially popular with bikers, because the trails are slightly inclined and not too steep. Unlike Griffith Park (another LA park), there is not a whit of graffiti here anywhere, the park feels very safe, and the ranger's station is very clean and nicely maintained.
VIEWS: The El Moro Ridge trail also has some nice views of the ocean. The No Name trail and other more inland trails have views of the dry scrub vegetation and the cookie-cutter community of Italianate homes overlooking the ocean.
PARKING: the $10 parking fee is the only thing stopping my cousin from coming every weekend. However, if you become a member, the yearly parking fee is $125, not bad if you come often.
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This is another popular fire road trail for the Sierra Club 20&30s hikers.
Why describe with words when you can enjoy this beauty with local photos :)
This is what happens when you let Mother Nature be Mother Nature.
If you're bored, in Laguna Beach, and looking to commune with wildlife... This is the place to go. I saw a total of four squirrels (one even looked up at me), a non-threatening looking snake of some sort and three baby deer. And the best part? There are no pesky bugs here and so you can hop out of your SUV and enjoy everything sans bug spray.
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all i have to say is, watch out for rattlesnakes!! saw one on my run today.
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I like hiking up in LA (Griffith Pk or Pacific Palisades) more bc it's more green. But this places offers amazing views of the Pacific ocean! Agree with previous post that maps didn't highlight "dirt paths that take you nowhere" so I also got lost as well- but in broad daylight - and a bicyclist also helped me back on track. Still a nice scenic 2 hr hike, great for some alone time to think.
worth the time
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