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Figure 8 Loop in Schabarum Regional Park

November 10, 2012 By Jeff H 17 Comments

Bloggers, hiking

Trail Details
Distance: 6.5 miles
Time: ~2 hours
Difficulty: Medium
Elevation gain: 1596 ft
Dogs: Yes
When to go: Year-round
Southern California is blessed with an abundance of wonderful trails to explore, and an equal abundance of hikers who share their experiences on a hiking blog. Not only does this make finding new trails easier, but it often gives you better insight on the trails, and sometimes with an entertaining story thrown in, to boot!

Back in 2011, several of us hiking bloggers planned our first-ever get-together. The initial group consisted of Derek of 100 Peaks, Casey from Modern Hiker, Kolby The Hike Guy, Pete of  East-West Hike, Campfire Chic and myself.  In the end it was just Derek, Pete an myself hiking Whale Peak in Anza Borrego. And apple pie. But that’s another story.

For 2012, the group grew and the Southern California Hiker Tweetup–or SCHT— (don’t try to pronounce it) was born.

We are a go! #socalhikingtweetup See ya soon! @greeneadventurs @CampfireChic @zachbehrens @walksimply @jcmcnair @TheSoCalHiker @swiftcinema

— ADKinLA (@ADKinLA) November 10, 2012

Beautiful morning for the #SoCalHikingTweetup with @ADKinLA @WalkSimply @TheSoCalHiker @ZacApplegate @JCMcNair… http://t.co/gK1NQzW4

— Greene Adventures (@greeneadventurs) November 10, 2012

Thanks to Pete’s persistence and Colleen and Jeff Greene’s organization, we finally met — many of us for the first time — today.

Our gathering spot was Schabarum Regional Park, straddling the hills bordering LA and Orange Counties. Starting out of Rowland Heights, we followed a figure-eight loop that took us through over 6 miles with oak shaded canyons and ridge-line vistas.

Our route took us sharply uphill on the Schabarum Trail. At mile 1.3, we veered left under on the Buena Vista Trail–a .2 mile short cut to the top of the ridge, connecting to the Purple Sage Trail. At the top, we soaked in fantastic vistas. The skies were clear, there was snow dusting the top of the San Gabriel Mountains to the east, and we could even see the Pacific Ocean and Catalina Island in the distance.

We headed east and mostly downhill for almost a mile, turning south on the Powder Canyon Trail. This is the crossover for our figure-eight. Turning left at the Black Walnut trail, we headed up a small hill and back down the other side. Watch closely for a marker for the Nogales trail. While most of the trails here are fire breaks, the Nogales Trail is a single-track and easily missed. If you hit Fullerton Road, you’ve gone too far.

Nogales is a short hop that connected us back to the Powder Canyon trail. This is serene and shaded by ancient oaks, with a gentle climb to the saddle (our crossover point) and back north, down towards are trailhead. At the horse stables, we turned left over the bridge to the short Wildcat Loop, and back to where we began our hike.

Meeting the others was a real treat. I love hiking with other people. Hikers are good people, and this group was no exception. It was fascinating to hear about their own hikes, their lives, and what they do when they’re not hiking. Not surprisingly, the second-most discussed topic on the trail? Food.

And food was waiting for us when we returned to our trailhead. We shared a well-earned potluck lunch spread that left everyone satisfied.

Trail Map

© OpenStreetMap contributors
Download file: 11_10_2012-8_34am.gpx

Photo Gallery

Click on a thumbnail to open the slideshow. You can leave comments on any photo in the gallery, too!

Schabarum Trailhead
Heading out on the trail
Prickly pear cactus
IMG_7708
Nearing the top
Great views!
Shady trails
Early views back down the valley and across to the San Gabriel mountains
The hill ahead
Climbing Schabarum trail
IMG_7717
IMG_7721
Open Sky
At the junction of Purple Sage and Powder Canyon trails
IMG_7726
Trail markers
Bloggers, hiking
Wide, smooth trails
Trail Markers
The OC end of Powder Canyon
Ancient oak trees line Powder Canyon
Powder Canyon
Crossing the bridge on the Wildcat Loop
The SoCal Hiking Tweetup
San Gabriel Mountains Panorama

 

@greeneadventurs @adkinla @walksimply @thesocalhiker great to meet everyone thanks for setting it up!

— Josh McNair (@jcmcnair) November 10, 2012

@jcmcnair @greeneadventurs @ADKinLA @WalkSimply @TheSoCalHiker so happy to meet you all! can't wait for this spring!

— David Swift (@SwiftCinema) November 10, 2012

@greeneadventurs @adkinla @thesocalhiker @zacapplegate @jcmcnair #socalhikingtweetup Perfect temps. for #hiking!

— Traci Lehman (@WalkSimply) November 10, 2012

@TheSoCalHiker @WalkSimply @greeneadventurs @ADKinLA @jcmcnair Here ya go GPX http://t.co/Kow6aP3j & EveryTrail Map http://t.co/x2GO22zl

— Zac Applegate (@ZacApplegate) November 11, 2012

Who’s Who?

Here’s who attended this 2nd Tweetup. Show them some love! Check out their hiking blog, and follow them on Twitter.

  • Pete: East-West Hike | @adkinla
  • Jeff & Colleen: GreeneAdventures | @greeneadventurs
  • Traci: Walk Simply | @WalkSimply
  • David: Red Tail Trails | @redtailtrails
  • Josh & Amie: California Through My Lens | @CaliFromMyLens
  • Zac: RansomedMan | @ZacApplegate
  • Jeff & Joan: SoCalHiker.net | @TheSoCalHiker

Special thanks to Pete, Jeff & Colleen for bringing us all together. To those who couldn’t make it this time, hopefully we’ll see you at the next Tweetup in the Spring!

Related

Filed Under: Hiking News, Trail Guides Tagged With: 6-8 miles, dog-friendly, hiking, moderate, SoCalHikingTweetup, trail, vista

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Jeff H

About Jeff H

I'm an avid hiker and backpacker. My wife Joan and I are on the trails every weekend. I started SoCal Hiker to share my passion for outdoor adventure.

Comments

  1. Josh says

    November 10, 2012 at 11:10 pm

    Great write up and pictures! I was working on my own but you are def faster! Nice to meet you guys today and I really echo the statement that our group was a great selection of people. Can’t wait for round 2, or I guess round 3 based on what you said about the first group (I headed over to the link, that is a funny story).

    Reply
  2. ADKinLA says

    November 11, 2012 at 8:26 am

    Great trip report buddy! Can’t wait for the next Tweetup and the next hikes with y’all!

    Reply
  3. Colleen @ GreeneAdventures.com says

    November 11, 2012 at 9:57 am

    Again, great to meet everyone! We’re finally getting around to posting our full write-up on Powder Canyon today. Figured coordinating it with all of your posts about the TweetUp would make us seem less like blogging slackers.

    Reply
  4. Traci L. says

    November 11, 2012 at 10:14 am

    Hi Jeff! So wonderful to have met you and Joan. You two are a wealth of knowledge and I loved hearing your Catalina and JMT stories! Nice writeup! I was so busy chit-chatting yesterday I barely paid attention to the details. HA!

    Reply
  5. David says

    November 11, 2012 at 11:10 am

    Jeff, thanks for putting this post together so quickly and a big thanks to the Greenes and Pete for organizing! I know I’ll be bugging a few of you for more info on the JMT, wilderness travel, and CMS stuff. I learned a ton talking with people yesterday! Can’t wait to see other write-ups. Do we have to wait for spring???

    Reply
  6. Zac Applegate (@ZacApplegate) says

    November 11, 2012 at 11:46 am

    Nice post! Thanks for posting a recap, Josh and I will have one up soon @ http://opadventureteam.com/ and it will have the group picture everyone can score.

    Reply
    • Zac Applegate (@ZacApplegate) says

      November 11, 2012 at 5:13 pm

      Here it is: http://opadventureteam.com/2012/11/11/socal-hikers-meet-up-schabarum-regional-park/

      Reply
  7. Oscar Gonzalez aka @notagrouch says

    November 15, 2012 at 7:09 am

    I’m always amazed at how you find all these cool trails. I would have never thought that this cool place is here in OC. I have to get my butt in gear and make it out to a hike with you guys. Although I don’t know if I could hang for 7 miles.

    Reply
  8. dlockeretz says

    February 5, 2013 at 10:17 pm

    I gotta get off my butt and join up with you guys next time! Seems like too much fun to miss.

    Reply
    • Jeff Hester says

      February 6, 2013 at 1:39 pm

      That would be awesome! We have to get to work on the next SoCal Hiking Blogger Tweetup. Either way, I’m sure we’ll cross trails at some point.

      Reply
  9. bigmac989 says

    March 24, 2013 at 6:57 pm

    This is actually only a portion (a very beautiful portion) of the whole trail system extending all the way from hellman all the way across to fullerton road. That trail system takes you under two tunnels (under hacienda and colima streets) with an elevation gain of 2500 feet. It is approximately 11 miles so a little long for walking but for a trail run it is great! Hellman however lives up to its name. Here is a hyperlink to the a map of the whole trail system. all trails/fire roads are legal for hikers. http://connect.garmin.com/player/252321341

    This is my hometown trailsystem (two miles from my house) and i love them and appreciate all the work the various cities do to maintain them. Enjoy!

    Reply

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