Nature walks are aimed to keep residents in step with bid to preserve open space.

The iron fences and manicured lawns of sumptuous homes stretch along one side of McBride Trail atop the Palos Verdes Peninsula.

But on the other side, the land falls away into the kind of view that winds up on picture postcards.

The rolling hills of Portuguese Bend stretch below, abundant trees sheltering houses and horse stables. To the south, the terrain is barren--marking the broad path of the Portuguese Bend Landslide.

The coastal bluffs and the rugged, rocky shoreline disappear into the distance. And out to sea, the mountaintops of Santa Catalina Island jut through the marine layer.

McBride “is a nice, easy level trail with panoramic views of the whole south side of the peninsula,” said Barbara Dye, chairwoman of the Rancho Palos Verdes Trails Committee. An hour or two walking the trail lets people see “the majority of scenery available” on the hill, she said.

Dye will share the secrets of McBride on Saturday when she leads a nature walk along the trail to kick off a series of walks sponsored by the Palos Verdes Peninsula Land Conservancy, a nonprofit group that works to preserve open space. Led by naturalists associated with the conservancy, the walks will be given monthly through April.

The McBride walk will leave at 9 a.m. from the corner of Crest and Highridge roads. As people take in the views along the trail, Dye will provide information about peninsula history, as well as discuss recent controversies over hotel and golf course developments.

Conservancy President Bill Ailor said the areas for the walking series were chosen to illustrate the variety of terrain and plant and animal life on the southern side of the peninsula.

If the McBride walk is focused on viewing spectacular scenery, later walks will take people to the area of several old gravel quarries where natural plant and animal life has been undisturbed, and to the South Bay’s largest natural area, Peacock Flats, where wildflowers will be blooming. There will also be a visit to coastal tide pools.

The walks, which last from 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 hours, are conducted on established trails so families and children can enjoy them. “We intend them to be nature walks, not hikes competing with the Sierra Club,” Ailor said. “They’re for people who want to get out and learn a little bit about the natural features of the peninsula.”

Walkers should wear sturdy shoes because some of the trails are rocky. Binoculars and nature guidebooks may add to the experience.

The second walk in the series, on Feb. 23, will travel the Forrestal Trails south of Portuguese Bend. People will explore an area near old quarries that has escaped the development that has overtaken much of the peninsula, said Jess Morton, president of the Palos Verdes Peninsula Audubon Society, who will lead the walk.

Landslide problems have kept builders away, and the old gravel quarries have not been mined since the 1940s, he said. “This is a chance to see open space,” he said. The quarries themselves are rich in fossils.

Visitors will be able to see several kinds of plants, including some of the best coastal sage scrub on the peninsula. They may also catch sight of the California gnatcatcher, a small gray bird that nests in the area. “Most people have never seen it because you need to get into its habitat,” Morton said.

Don Gales, author of a guide to the peninsula’s plants, animals and weather, will lead the March 16 walk to Peacock Flats. Located above the landslide area, it is the South Bay’s largest natural area and “is pretty much in the wild state it was in a long, long time ago,” Gales said.

He said that by March, rains should have produced grass and wildflowers, including the blue lupine, Mariposa lily and the Indian paintbrush, with its red leaves and little white flowers.

Wildlife also may be visible. “We should see some cottontail rabbits that have pretty much disappeared from other areas,” Gales said.

A visit to the Halfway Point tide pools, west of San Pedro, will end the series of walks on April 20. Tide-pool expert and walk leader Mike Kilroy said the area is isolated enough to provide a variety of sea life, including sea anemone, chitons, some fish and sea slugs. “Sometimes we find an octopus,” he said, adding that the trip has been timed for low tide so a large portion of the tide pools will be exposed.

Although most of the walk will focus on the tide pools, people also will be able to explore gullies and washes of the bluffs that Kilroy says make you feel “very far away from everything.” There also are some old bunkers in the area left over from the World War II coastal defense system.

Land conservancy leaders who are conducting the walks hope they will not only give people a jaunt in the fresh air but will get them involved in working to preserve open space.

“They give everyone a chance to learn something about the heritage they in fact have but are unaware of,” Morton said.

What: Peninsula Nature Walks.

When and Where: Saturday, 9 a.m.; McBride Trail; leaves from Crest and Highridge roads.

Feb. 23, Forrestal Trails, 9 a.m.; leaves from Ladera Linda Community Center, north end of Forrestal Road.

March 16, Peacock Flats, 9 a.m.; leaves from Del Cerro Park, end of Crenshaw Boulevard.

April 20, Halfway Point tide pools, 9 a.m.; leave from Paseo del Mar, just south of Paseo del Mar-Palos Verdes Drive South intersection.

Admission: Free, except for the Forrestal Trails walk, which costs 50 cents.

Information: 541-6440.