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Directions to Park There are 2 park entrances both off of Laguna Canyon; one north and the other south of the 73. See map on the right. There are 3 corresponding parking areas. By expanding the Google Trail map on the right you can easily ascertain the best way depending on your location. Parking The parking fee is a reasonable $3. There are 3 parking lots (see map on right). Note: the parking lots close at 5:00. Unless you want to park on Laguna Canyon ... there is no readily available free parking. Park Hours 7:00 am to sunset. NOTE: the parking lots close at 5:00. Dogs Dogs are NOT allowed in the the park. Facilities There are 2 restrooms and water fountains at the 2 Ranger Stations. Newsletter Click here to sign-up for our free monthly newsletter. It's filled with all sorts of cool info including upcoming events and the latest in running/biking/hiking news. Help Support Us By clicking on our sponsor sites you will help support the maintenance of this site. Thank you.  |
Laguna Coast Wilderness ParkLaguna Coast Wilderness Park is a smaller cousin to the neighboring Crystal Cove and Aliso/Wood Canyon parks. Laguna Coast Wilderness Park and its corresponding trails are best suited to trail runners and hikers since many of the better, more interesting trails are closed to bikes.Laguna Coast Wilderness Park is really 3 smaller interconnecting parks: the James Dilley Greenbelt Preserve, the Nix Nature Center and the Willow/Laurel Canyons. The Willow/Laurel Canyon area borders up against Crystal Cove State Park and you can easily continue a run/bike/hike in that direction. The 3 most interesting trails are: Laurel Canyon, Little Sycamore and Serrano Ridge. A visit to the seldom seen Barbara's Lake is worth a trip. The following map is provided by OC Parks:
I've noted three trails which I think are noteworthy and which cover the majority of the park ... Willow and Laurel Canyon Loop, the James Dilley Greenbelt Preserve Loop w/Barbara's Lake and the Nix Nature Center Loop:
Running This park offers runners several varied options. If you prefer a generally 
flat course try the James Dilley Greenbelt Preserve trails (2.6
miles). This course if almost entirely flat with the exception of the relatively
short climb at the end of the Canyon Trail. The climb can
be a bit steep but there's nobody on this course anyway so if you walk a
portion of it nobody's going to know. On the other hand if you
want some serious work try the Willow/Laurel Canyon course. 
It appears most runners prefer going up Laurel Canyon and
coming down Willow. It is just a matter of
preference/comfort regarding running down a steep rocky trail (Laurel
Canyon). For a bit more distance try the Nix Nature
Center Loop (4.8 miles). This trail has some serious climbs
interspersed with many flat sections and with the exception of
Stagecoach you
aren't likely to share the trail much with bikers.Biking A lot of the trails in the Laguna Coast Wilderness Park are closed to bikers. The entire James Dilley Nature Preserve  is off-limits as well as
Laurel
Canyon and Little Sycamore Trails. But even so
Willow/Laurel Canyon and the Nix Nature Center are good
staging areas to some outstanding biking. Stagecoach,
Camarillo, Serrano Ridge, and Willow are all worthwhile and
give you access to Bommer Ridge and the endless opportunities
with the inter-connecting trail system including the adjacent
Crystal Cove State Park.Hiking There's a lot of variety here...a good place for a 1 to 3 hour hike with trails from easy to fairly strenuous.  The
easiest and shortest hikes can be found in the James Dilley
Greenbelt Preserve. The climbs are modest and short; the
view of Barbara's Lake is the highpoint. Conversely,
Willow/Laurel Canyon offer more strenuous hikes with more
interesting surroundings. In addition, at the top of Willow you
have the option of easily extending your hike in a number of directions.
As noted above, the Nix Nature Center is the most interesting
place to hike. You'll love the Little Sycamore Trail and
appreciate the views along Serrano Ridge. The hike down
Camarillo
is fun.Photo Gallery Willow and Laurel Canyons Loop... Click on the lower portion of the photo to start slideshow Dilley Greenbelt Preserve... Click on the lower portion of the photo to start slideshow Nix Loop... Click on the lower portion of the photo to start slideshow Willow and Laurel Canyon with Emerald Canyon Extension... Click on the lower portion of the photo to start slideshow More Info For more information about this park... Laguna Coast Wilderness Park Tell Us What You Think |
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short
course is popular with bikers, hikers and trail runners
it just takes a while to get to the top. After one
mile you'll get to an intersection with several options.
If you go straight you can follow Bommer Ridge west
into Crystal Cove State Park or take Bommer Ridge
south towards Laguna Beach. For our purposes we're going
to turn right on Laurel Spur; it's all downhill from
here. Laurel Spur is a short
trail; pretty steep
but wide open. After a half mile you'll get to another
intersection; left is Upper Laurel and right is
Laurel
Canyon. Laurel Canyon is closed to bikes.
This stretch is the most scenic part of the park (see photos). The trail is single-track meandering
right and proceeding down Laurel
Spur continue moving along Willow Canyon for
another short 0.13 miles. Here you'll reach Bommer
Ridge Trail; turn right and proceed another short
0.11
miles to Emerald Canyon Trail which will be on your
left. Emerald Canyon Trail is fairly wide open
and for the next mile drops gradually down to the canyon
floor. Most bikers use this trail on the way up from
Emerald Canyon. Once at the bottom...the trail narrows and
you enter the thick wooded area of Emerald Canyon.
Unfortunately,
the trail only continues for a few hundred feet at which point
you'll be greeted by a "Trail Closed" sign; apparently
the result of trail damage (washed out). A re-opening date
of the trail is not available. But all is not lost; at
this point you can proceed up Old Emerald Canyon Trail,
a single-track popular with bikers (most use it to go down into
the canyon). Old Emerald Trail is a consistent
climb, which after 0.7 mile merges with Bommer Ridge Trail.
Turning left on Bommer Ridge, it's another mile back to Willow
Canyon Trail and the return trip.
That
said...I'm surprised there aren't more runners out here.
This course is mostly flat with an interesting climb at the end
of the Canyon Trail. The course starts in the
parking lot and proceeds north along Canyon Trail. The
scenery is pretty good though you can hear the constant hum of
traffic from the nearby toll-way. At the end of
the canyon you proceed upwards to the top of the ridge.
The climb is moderately steep and loose stones/gravel make the
climb interesting.
At the top the trail merges with the Edison Road which
doubles as a utility and fire-road. From here you get your
first glimpses of Barbara's Lake which is one of the
only natural lakes in Orange County. The slow descent
along Edison takes about half a mile and the trail
turns into the Lake Trail. The trail hugs the
lake along the eastern/southern shores and this is certainly the
most rewarding section of the trail (see photo). From here it's
mostly flat and back to the parking lot.
The
trail (Little Sycamore) starts at the Nix Nature
Center and proceeds immediately with a moderate climb.
Note: Little Sycamore is closed to bikes. The
trail flattens out and proceeds, via single-track, through the
canyon. The look and feel reminds one of being out
west (see photo); thick,
dry
chaparral, and rocky canyon walls, especially on the right.
At the end of the canyon you climb again until you reach the
Serrano Ridge Trail. From here turn left. This ridge
route is typical fire-road except the views are exceptional.
Over the course of the next 1.5 miles you'll get great views of
Irvine, Little Sycamore Canyon, Shady
Canyon,
Camarillo Canyon and the surrounding hillsides. As you
approach the toll-way you'll turn left on Camarillo Canyon
Trail. This single-track looks as if it was cut out
of the shrub with a chainsaw; a tight, windy and fairly steep trail that
proceeds down to the canyon floor (see photo). This trail
is surprisingly well
maintained
and is popular with mountain bikers. After a mile you'll merge
with Stagecoach Trail which takes you back to
the parking lot. Note: when you reach Stagecoach you're
likely assume it's flat all the way back...its not! Back
up the mountain you go and this stretch is likely to see a
variety of traffic: runners, bikers and hikers. Have fun.