While running the Phantom Trail a couple weeks ago, it occurred to me that the Grassland, Talepop, Liberty Canyon and Phantom Trails could be combined with the Bulldog Loop to create a challenging — and very scenic — twenty-something mile trail run.
Just how much longer than twenty depends on which trails you use to connect the Phantom Trail to Crags Rd. I opted to use the Cistern, Lookout, Yearling, and Deer Leg Trails. This variation works out to a little more than 24 miles. Tack on an out and back to the Mesa Peak overlook and you have a marathon length scenic tour of Malibu Creek State Park!
One of about a dozen vernal pools in the Rocky Peak area. More than just a puddle, these rainy season pools form as a result of the area’s unique geology.
In my experience, excessive rainfall is not necessary for the pools to form. Normal month-to-month seasonal precipitation is usually sufficient. Their persistence depends on several factors, but in a season with normal to above average precipitation, the pools can last for several months.
There’s snow in just about every mountain range of Southern California following last week’s series of storms. This subdued sunset view is of the Simi Valley and the Topatopa Mountains.
Six days of rain had finally come to an end. Soaked hillsides steamed in the morning sun; but still in shadow, tussocks of grass along the dirt road wore a thick coat of frost. Running west on the main drag in Ahmanson Ranch, we were working our way over to Cheeseboro Canyon.
Whether the conditions were imperfect or perfect was a matter of perspective. Yes, it had been a little muddy and wet, but that was part of the experience, and part of the morning.
In some places droplets of water refracted and reflected tiny spectra of color, while in others flat plates of frost glittered in the sun. Running along a rejuvenated creek, the smell of wet earth mixed with the rich organic odors of old willow leaves and other vegetation.
Away from the trailhead there was not a hiker, runner, rider or mountain biker to be seen. Remarkably, even in Cheeseboro Canyon no one was on the trail.
Sometimes I’m asked,”What are you training for?” Being able to enjoy a run like today’s is my reply.
Today I did the kind of running I most enjoy — the “not sure which trails I’m going to run; I’ll figure it out when I get there” kind.
Starting at Malibu & Mulholland in Malibu Creek State Park, I headed north on the Grassland Trail, and then ad-libbed from there. The result was a meandering route involving the Grassland, Talepop, Liberty Canyon, Phantom, Cistern, Lookout, Yearling, Deer Leg, and Cage Creek Trails, as well as Crags Rd.
It had been at least a couple of years since I was on these trails, and I’d forgotten just how varied and scenic they are.
