Touring * Fitness * Artistic *

From Interstate 5 in Laguna Hills, take the El Toro exit and drive a mile and a half northeast to Jeronimo Road. Turn right at Jeronimo and after you pass the Cherry Avenue intersection, enter Heroes Park (formerly El Toro Community Park) on the right side of Jeronimo. Free parking is available down the driveway to the left. The creek trail can be seen to the right as you enter the driveway.

Map: Orange County Bikeway Map, available free by calling the County of Orange, EMA/Transportation Planning office at (714) 834-3111.

The Aliso Creek Trail is a wonderful nature roll that flows more than five miles northwest through a wide creekside easement, with only one very minor street crossing! The pavement is rough on some stretches and there are some steep dips. Starting from Heroes Park, the trail is enveloped in the sights and sounds of urban life: a golf course, ranch-style homes, noisy multilane expressways, and power lines. Just up the way, however, where the trail passes through acres of hilly grassland, one starts to heed the posted warnings of recent rattlesnake and mountain lion sightings.

Depart from Heroes Park on the steep dip that crosses under Jeronimo Road. Stay to the right to leave room for those who may be approaching from the other side. A wooden bridge with loose boards crosses the creek after the first block. Skate assertively and the boards won't rattle quite so much. As you start out, you may think that you need to clean your bearings, but this is only an effect caused by the constant, though gentle, upward climb of the Aliso Creek Trail.

The eight-foot-wide asphalt trail meanders quietly along the overgrown creek bed, passing homes that are set back behind trees on either side of the wide easement. Nearly a mile up the creek, it makes another dip under Trabuco Road, though this one is not quite as steep as the first. After another pleasant mile in dappled sun alternating with shade, the trail passes under and then parallels six-lane El Toro Road, a constant companion for the next four miles. Homes are perched on an overlook above the creek, visible from the concrete sidewalk next to the grassy easement. Surprisingly, the path transforms into a smooth, full-width service road that continues for a mile or more up to Santa Margarita Parkway.

Here, a stand of eucalyptus trees makes a good spot to rest a while and admire the view of the grassy hills all around. Gradually, the neighborhoods drop behind as the creek trail continues up into the north county countryside. The last 2.5 miles on the route pass through such wildly natural surroundings that some folks might feel compelled to whisper, "Lions and tigers and bears--oh my!"

The trail ends a quarter mile beyond the headquarters of Whiting Ranch Wilderness Park, which is located off to the left and up a steep side trail. If you have the energy, climb up to the well-preserved white ranch house, where you can get a drink of cold water and relax in the shade before turning back. Free copies of the Orange County Bikeway Map are given away there, too. Once you feel refreshed, return to the path and polish off the north portion of the Aliso Creek Trail by skating that last quarter mile up to Ridgeline Road. Congratulate yourself, and then turn around and get ready for a swift cruise all the way down to Heroes Park. The path may not be steep, but the pitch is just enough to make the trip back virtually effortless.