Great Hike. 7.7 miles if you go to the top bowl. Watch out for snakes! Follow a creek bed up to rocky cliffs, rope swings, rock slide and cold, clear water. Expect wet feet if you want to make it up to the top bowl. Highly recommend this day hike. Lots of boulders, trees and creek crossings 😎
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Short portion after climb out from RT1 overgrown but passable. Buggy during day but not the worst; staying at Villa Camp. Plenty of running water in stream.
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Amazing views from the top! Great place for a quick day hike.
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easy trail. well maintained. not as crowded as other local hikes near downtown SLO. good wind on the high parts and decent shade in the valleys.
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A nice coastal hike with great views of the Santa Barbara channel. But go early as there is not much shade so it gets hot.
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Great technical hike, lots of sandstone rock hopping. View from the top is well worth the effort. There are only 1 or 2 very small sections that feel exposed and where you will want to watch your step. I brought a half full camelbak and one cliff bar and that worked fine for me, I did have a large breakfast a few hours prior. Did the 10.5 mile loop in 3.5 hours at a brisk walking pace, with a tiny bit of jogging on the descent. You will have a much better time if you wear some quality jogging/trail shoes. My La Sportiva Bushido’s were just the ticket.
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Pretty sweet off road trail. Took my 97 4Runner on it stock, except 31” all terrains. Clearance was good except for the trailer hitch. I probably hit that every other bump lol. Good views and trail kept well
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This was a road drive from pavement to gravel to dirt to 4WD Low in the National Frost and Nat Park. Beautiful day from <500ft elevation to >8000ft with large snow patches and lots of redwoods.
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Great trail, will get feet wet crossing over the creek on several crossings.
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This was hard at times but so worth it. incredible views. Changing vistas from forest to crest to wildflower scrub. It felt like three hikes in one.
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Flat wide trail for causal walk great views if your in area away from city.
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Amazing flowy mountain bike ride. A hump to the top with plenty of walk a bike, but worth it for the views (ridge both directions at the top) and the ride down... beautiful spring flowers and smells. Get some!
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Started at highway 1, camped at Vicente and made that our base camp. As of 5/14, Vicente had plenty of water and the trail from H1 to camp was littered with wildflowers. Goat camp, Espinosa and Trail Spring all had water nearby or through camp. The Stone Ridge Loop counter-clockwise from Vicente was amazing. Covered so many different types of terrain ad ecosystems. One of the most diverse I've ever done. It started to get pretty overgrown after we got past Goat Camp, but it was far from un-manageable; a lot of poison oak, so be wary. For us, the overgrown trail made it more fun and unique and interesting but it also slowed down our pace quite a bit. Add at least an hour, more likely two to your normal pace to account for overgrown trail, epic views, and caution for poison oak.
Highly suggest doing the trail the same direction we did...I can't imagine going up that section near Goat. BRING BUG SPRAY.
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I did this trip for the first time to complete the 3-2-1 Challenge (Piños, Sawmill, & Grousse in one day). To me I wouldn’t rate this as difficult...maybe moderate... although altitude did make it a little harder needing a few rest stops in between peaks. My app shows over 2000 feet elevation gain due to climbing up one mountain to going down then up the down then up again. It was a beautiful hike with no one on the trail when we started (7:30 am) but on the way back we ran into a couple of Boy Scout troops and some solo hikers coming in. Even though it was May, there were still some patches of snow/ice to hike through and if I didn’t have this app, I would not have known where the trail was. I recommend having poles and maybe even micro spikes as a precaution. We didn’t bring our spikes but did have poles which kept us from slipping a few times in the icy trails.
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My family and I help clean up the area of some non-native plants with #servevisalia and #forvisalia.
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Great in the spring with the wildflowers. Steep up and needed trekking poles or sticks on the descent. Combine it with the 'Lovers Loop' for a 10 mile day.
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The trail is very well covered by oak woodlands in the canyon and the road going around is very open still from the Thomas fire, but it makes for good ocean views.
The trail itself is in great shape thanks to the local volunteers.
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Add 2.5 miles or so to the hike because the access road may be closed getting to the trailhead. This hike is very difficult. I had to turn back about 6 miles in, as there was a very long narrow ledge with a steep drop I didn’t think my pup and I would be able to make. Just wasn’t worth the risk to me. It rained often and was chilly in March when I went through in the upper 40’s 😭.
I’ll be back and will take the other trail in instead.
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It had just rained a few days before-hand, so the trail was in great condition with little to no dust. The hike was easy, mostly on wider fire roads until the end when there are a few switch backs that lead you to the top. Great view, and easy enough for beginning hikers. Would be hot on a warm day, lots of exposure.
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The weather was perfect just a little windy in the morning. 2 hours drive from Los Angeles but worth the drive to conquer 3 peaks. The hike isn't easy but I also wouldn't rate it as difficult. Moderate declines and moderate inclines. The toughest incline is up to Grouse Mountain. Bring all the water you need there are no water sources on the trail. When I was there NO restrooms at the trailhead so bring a trowel and some TP or stop at a gas station before you head up.
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