Walk on the Wild Side

For most people in the San Fernando Valley or in the southwestern end of Ventura County, going to the beach involves getting into a car or truck, or jumping on a motorcycle and driving on a freeway or road that cuts through the Santa Monica Mountains.

However, there is a less conventional--and definitely more invigorating--way to reach the Pacific.

One can hike, bike or run there by taking the eight-mile Big Sycamore Canyon trail that begins in the Rancho Sierra Vista-Satwiwa portion of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area near Newbury Park and winds through Pt. Mugu State Park to the ocean.

To reach the trail head, take the 101 freeway to Wendy Drive. Go west on Wendy until you reach Lynn Road. Make a right on Lynn and then a left on Via Goleta and proceed to a dirt parking lot. Bathrooms, a drinking fountain and an informational display are nearby.

You will pass the Satwiwa Native American Indian Culture Center on your left in the first half-mile before veering south (right) onto Big Sycamore Canyon trail.

Boney Mountain, a rocky, 2,800-foot peak, looms off to the left at that point while a sign on the right warns visitors they are entering mountain lion country as they cross into Pt. Mugu State Park.

The trail, an old asphalt fire road at this point, drops sharply for the next three-quarters of a mile before leveling off to a very gradual descent the rest of the way.

Stands of oak and sycamore trees shade the trail from time to time, but most of the vegetation is of the low-lying chaparral variety found in the foothills of Southern California.

Mountain lions--which are rarely seen--bobcats, deer, coyotes, opossums, raccoons, rabbits and squirrels are inhabitants of the local ecosystem, according to Judy Lamothe, a ranger at the National Parks Service visitor center in Thousand Oaks. But the melodic singing of birds is what is most noticeable along most of the trail.

Although many birds dart about so swiftly it’s difficult to distinguish their species, California quail and towhee, house finch, acorn woodpecker, Western tanager, bewick’s wren, bullock’s oriole and Western scrub jay were spotted on a recent hike.

The male acorn woodpecker, which can reach 10 inches in length, is quite colorful with a bright red crown, a white forehead and a black back, but it can’t rival the Western tanager for sheer brilliance.

The Western tanager, typically 6-7 inches long, is common in Los Angeles and Ventura County during the spring, summer and fall, and has a red head mixed with yellow, a yellow underside and black wings with yellow wing bars.

When it comes to plant life, the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area website (Internet address: www.nps.gov/samo) reports 33 flower species--including the purple sage, golden yarrow and scarlet monkey flower--were in bloom during a summer hike along the trail.

It notes, however, that the flowers were most prevalent during the first 3 1/2 miles of the hike between the trail head and Danielson Ranch, a private residence that marks the end of the asphalt section of the trail.

The trail veers right at Danielson Ranch and crosses an open area that is home to a colony of ground squirrels before heading into denser vegetation.

The next two to three miles of the trail seem to be in the most natural state because you’re no longer on asphalt and the dominant noise is leaves rustling from the wind, birds singing or crickets chirping.

A picnic area--unfortunately marred by graffiti on a large oak tree--is located about 2 1/2 miles from the end of the trail, which concludes at Sycamore Canyon campground.

The entrance to the campground is on the east side of Pacific Coast Highway and fewer than 100 yards from the beach, where hikers, bikers and runners can cool off with a dip in the ocean and see an array of shore birds, including brown pelicans, Western gulls and Western sandpipers.