Notes about your surroundings

Seeing Daylight--Take advantage of the extra hour of light after work on a mountain bike or in hiking boots. Where to explore:

Aliso-Wood Canyons: Start in Alta Laguna Park, where the terrain is barren but the view is great. After about 1 1/2 miles, the trail heads into Aliso Canyon. This portion can be hilly, but the hard work pays off as the trail crosses a creek and heads along shady sycamore stands and oak woodlands. For a side trip, explore the Dripping Cave trail and Cave Rock. Wood Canyon loops back to the trail head. The loop is 5 1/2 miles. If hiking, plan on taking about four hours with some strenuous uphill sections.

To get there, take Park Avenue, in downtown Laguna Beach, two miles to Alta Laguna Park.

El Moro Canyon: Great mountain biking here. The first mile is uphill to about 800 feet. Admire the ocean views and inland panorama. The ridges ride like a roller coaster for a couple of miles, then dive down into Moro Canyon. Interesting landmarks include bright yellow hills of mustard, oak woodland and sycamore groves.

To get there, take Pacific Coast Highway to Crystal Cove State Park. Access to Moro Canyon is easiest from the inland parking lot.

Jim Dilley Preserve: This Laguna Beach trail leads to the county’s only natural lake. Hikers and bikers should be ready for some moderate climbs and easy downhill stretches. Plentiful shade along the trail seems to be helping the plant life reestablish after the fires of 1994. The loop is four miles and takes about two hours on foot. To get there, take Laguna Canyon Road to the corridor construction area and park near the big sycamore tree. The trail head is marked.