The Conejo Valley Guide "Welcome" blog covers a wide range of topics, local information, highlights of local things to do, compilations and other items. Focus is on information relevant to Ventura County and surrounding areas, including Thousand Oaks, Westlake Village, Newbury Park, Agoura Hills, Calabasas, Malibu, Simi Valley, Camarillo, Moorpark, Somis, Fillmore, Santa Paula, Ojai, Oxnard, Port Hueneme, Santa Barbara and Moorpark.
The Conejo Valley Guide® "Welcome" blog covers a wide range of topics, local information, local things to do, holiday event compilations, announcements and more.
The Ventura Botanical Gardens Demonstration Trail is a nearly 1 mile trail between Ventura City Hall and Grant Park. The trail offers awesome views of Downtown Ventura and the coastline. And this time of year is a great time to go as there are still plenty of beautiful colors on the trail. More on the Gardens at www.venturabotanicalgardens.com.
Steve Dibblee provided this shot taken by his father, Walt Dibblee, from the mountain ridge at the northwest corner of what is now Lynn Road and Gainsborough Road in Thousand Oaks sometime in the year 1957, seven years before the city was incorporated. This ridge is just southwest of nearby Tarantula Hill and the shot is facing east. So how about comparing it to a few recent shots looking east from Tarantula Hill.
I see a lot of oak trees and clouds in all of the photos but...just a wee bit more other things, like houses, roads, cars and such in the more recent pictures. :)
See more of Dibblee's photographs from the mid 1950s to the late 1960s at VenturaViews.com where you also have the option of acquiring high-resolution prints of these blasts to the past. Thanks to Steve Dibblee for sharing some of his late father's work with us here on Conejo Valley Guide and at www.facebook.com/ConejoValleyGuide.
If you have two to three hours to spare and are looking to do about six miles of strenuous local hiking, consider trying the Fossil Trail loop in Point Mugu State Park, starting at the adjacent Rancho Sierra Vista/Satwiwa managed by the National Park Service in Newbury Park . If you're looking for a FLAT hike, this one isn't for you! (But do check out these other great local trails.)
Find your way to the main parking lot at Via Goleta off of Lynn Road (or alternatively park at the Wendy/Potrero Trailhead for an extra few miles of hiking). From there, hike towards the Satwiwa Native American Indian
Read MoreHere is an updated compilation of scenes around the Conejo Valley from before and after the 2017 winter rainstorms. More on local hikes and trails throughout Thousand Oaks, Westlake Village, Newbury Park and Greater Ventura County at THIS LINK.
Here are the scenes in this compilation:
The La Jolla Valley Natural Preserve is located in Point Mugu State Park, in the west end of the Santa Monica Mountains. The La Jolla Valley was acquired by the State of California in 1966 and was established as a Natural Preserve in 1972.
The area can be accessed via the .7 mile, but very steep Chumash Trail in Point Mugu (strenuous but the quickest approach), via the La Jolla Canyon Trail (which has been closed since January 2015 due to mudslides), or in a roundabout way, via the Ray Miller Trail. Or you can hike there from Rancho Sierra Vista in Newbury Park, which would be something in the neighborhood of 6 to 8 miles, depending on route.
In any case, the area is spectacularly beautiful right now in March 2017 after the winter rainstorms. If you are looking for peace and quiet, green hills and wildflowers, this is the place for you right now.
View of Zuma Beach to Point Dume State Beach from Charmlee Wilderness Park.
Charmlee Wilderness Park, a 532 acre park at 2577 Encinal Canyon Road in Malibu, is a "must visit" for anyone who lives in the local area. Located in the Santa Monica Mountains, its eight miles of trails dispersed through 532 acres of land provide unbelievable spectacular views of Zuma Beach to Point Dume in particular.
The Park is also blossoming with wildflowers and is green as can be in March 2017 after our significant winter rainstorms.
Park hours are 8 a.m. to sunset and the nature center is open on weekends from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. (or dark, whichever comes first). Parking is $4.
Green envelopes the trains here in early March 2017.
From Charmlee, I noticed this beautiful flower display on a hilltop home and had to take a pic and post it to Instagram. Little did I know that this is apparently Caitlyn Jenner's hilltop home.
Note: This was posted in March 2017. We stopped by in 2018 and 2019 and there was not an abundance of flowers on the trail these years.
We knew this was coming. A sea of orange and purple wildflowers in La Jolla Canyon at Pt. Mugu State Park in northwest of Malibu. It may take you about a half an hour to get there from Thousand Oaks, but it is well worth stopping by the Ray Miller Trail in La Jolla Canyon to catch a glimpse of these colors. More on the Ray Miller Trail at THIS LINK. Directions from Thousand Oaks at THIS LINK.
Conejo Valley Guide covers events, activities and things to do throughout Ventura County and surrounding areas.
Conejo Valley Guide® covers thousands of events, activities and things to do throughout Ventura County, California and surrounding areas.
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