AGOURA HILLS : Santa Monicas Hit Springtime Peak

Spring birds and blossoms have brought abundant reasons to escape the urban grid, if only for a few hours, into the Santa Monica Mountains for hikes and seminars coordinated by the National Park Service.

Dozens of free nature walks, birding expeditions and other events are offered in the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area between April 1 and June 30, in the National Park Service’s most activity-packed calendar ever.

The pamphlet lists a hike or event nearly every day, with as many as 10 activities offered some Sundays. Many hikes are led by park rangers, while other events are put on by organizations such as the Sierra Club, TreePeople and the California Native Plant Society.

Some of the most popular, said Ranger Ted Stout, are the tours of Paramount Ranch--where the “Adventures of Marco Polo,” “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer,” “The Cisco Kid” and other movies were filmed--and the hike to Sandstone Peak, the highest spot in the Santa Monicas.

On a clear day, Stout said, the view from Sandstone Peak takes in Santa Catalina Island and the San Gabriel Mountains.

One of the favorite hikes added this year is called “Life After Fire,” a trek through areas recovering from the ravages of the wildfires last fall.

“The blackened oaks that you would have thought were dead are now blooming with brilliant foliage,” Stout said. “There are all kinds of rebirth and wildflowers sticking out of the ground too. It’s really quite heartening.”

Other events include a banjo and fiddle contest, a search for edible and poisonous plants and a geology field trip.

The National Park Service has published the free listing of events quarterly for about 10 years, during which time the number of participating organizations has grown to 31, said spokeswoman Catherine Saunders.

The pamphlets, entitled OUTDOORS, come with maps and directions to park sites. They are available from the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area headquarters, 30401 Agoura Road, Suite 100, Agoura Hills, Calif., 91301; or by calling (818) 597-9192.