Clearing Chiquita

We are still in prep mode for Chimera (11/17-11/18), hiking out to the trails every weekend to clear fallen trees and stash water. It’s been fun, and at the same time. I’d like to clarify something before continuing though. Is the trail off of San Juan and San Juan Loop in The Ortegas called Chiquito or Chiquita. Well, for years I called it Chiquito Trail because that’s what all the official maps read. But everyone, and I mean everyone, calls it Chiquita Trail. I felt a little foolish being the only person I know who calls it Chiquito Trail. Well, it turns out, and this is pretty funny, that the sign at the San Juan Junction reads: Chiquita Trail. But the sign at The Viejo Tie junction reads Chiquito Trail, and the sign at the San Juan Loop junction, reads Chiquito Trail also. That’s pretty dang hilarious. So, I decided I’m going to call it what everyone else calls it, Chiquita Trail, even though 2 out of 3 of the signs read Chiquito Trail.

Anyway, I ended October (10/27/18) with another trip to the Chimera trails. We stashed water, and did some trail clearing. It’s looking pretty good now, and we have about 72 gallons of water hidden. That is about 70 gallons short of our goal. It’s tough getting volunteers to hike that those technical trails weighed down with water. But thankfully, we have a few hearty souls every weekend. It’s a fun, hard workout, and also thankfully, we have nice breezes being that we are fully into autumn. Gotta love, love, love that autumn.

And so does this baby tarantula:Taking selfies while the boys work :

Total miles: 7

Elevation gain: 1,151

Hike in the Hometown

Last Friday’s hike (10/26/18), I was fortunate to have my husband along. This is the reason I opted for a hike in the hometown – a nice long 5.41 mile walk along Doheny and Capistrano Beach. The tide was high, the breeze was cool. And we were back home in no time, which was important for my husband so that he could get back to work. For me – it was my day off! And what a lovely day off, complete with lovely Pacific Ocean views. We ploughed through the sand for some of the miles. But the beach ended up at such a slant in certain locations, that we opted for boardwalks and parking lots. It’s a strange wonder that I don’t walk much in my hometown anymore. Instead, I’m constantly on the road, driving good distances to hike in locations far away were I can only see the great Pacific from afar. I really do live in a wonderful location, expensive as hell, but we were fortunate enough to get in before we were priced out. The California Riviera, that’s what some people call this place that I have called home for thirty years. I have never been to the Riviera, so I don’t know for sure about the comparison. But I do know that the coastline out here is magnificent! 

Maple Springs Road in the Autumn

Going way back now, to Friday’s Hike on October 19, 2018, I hit Maple Springs Road in the late morning after getting my boys off to school. I got a later start than I wanted, but heck, it was Friday and I was on Maple Springs Road! I have to say that Maple Springs Road in Silverado, California, is one of my favorite places, and if the drive wasn’t so long, I would be there every week. What a wonderful sight to see. The weather was cool, and most importantly, Maple Springs Road is loveliest in the autumn. It is best in the autumn because the Maple leaves have turned yellow, and there’s another lower shrub that turns a lovely red. So for all those people who say that California does not have seasons, we do indeed have seasons, and autumn is probably my favorite!

So, I hiked up Maple Springs Road to Four Corners. From there, I took on The Main Divide, only to find it closed heading toward Modjeska Peak. Mind you, I checked the national forest website, and it indicated that The Main Divide was only closed from Santiago Peak to Ortega Highway. Well, dang it, I moved forward anyway, and hiked to the saddle, which is the portion of trail in between Modjeska and Santiago Peak. I stayed a while, taking in the view of The O.C. before heading back, running some, to complete my 12.81 miles. Fortunately, I was not ticketed for going into a closed area.

I blundered back at home, and accidentally deleted all the photos I took. But I didn’t delete the video clips. Hopefully autumn will still be in the air when I return, because it’s time for some autumn pictures (the video clips don’t do the area justice).