Outdoor Calendar

CRYSTAL COVE STATE PARK

Crystal Cove State Park, 8471 N. Coast Hwy, has 3.5 miles of beach and 2,000 acres of undeveloped woodland. $15 day-use parking fee.

The park is open 6 a.m. to sunset daily. Docent-led backcountry hikes are scheduled for 9 a.m. most Saturdays and Sundays. Hikes are three to five miles, and last about two hours.

For more information, call (949) 497-7647 or e-mail wbonnin@parks.ca.gov.

Great Plein Air Art Experience: 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday. Pre-registration required at https://www.crystalcovealliance.org or call (949) 376-6200. Spend a day capturing the beauty of Crystal Cove on canvas and experience what it was like to be a plein air artist in Crystal Cove during the heyday of the movement in the 1920s.

LAGUNA COAST WILDERNESS PARK

Laguna Coast Wilderness Park, 20101 Laguna Canyon Road; reservations and information, (949) 923-2235; https://www.ocparks.com.

Rangers staff the park daily. Open daily, 7 a.m. to sunset, including holidays. Parking lot hours: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

To learn more about volunteering or helping Laguna Canyon Foundation to preserve, protect and enhance the South Coast Wilderness, visit https://www.lagunacanyon.org or call (949) 497-8324.

Little Sycamore Canyon on Laguna Canyon Road, just south of the 405 Freeway interchange: The James and Rosemary Nix Nature Center hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.; parking $3; lot open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Laguna Heights, the trail head for West Ridge trail and routes into Aliso and Wood Canyons Wilderness Park, at Top of the World on Alta Laguna Boulevard, is open daily, 7 a.m. to sunset.

Elder Trek: 8 to 10 a.m. today . Enjoy the outdoors and learn about diverse plant life on this easy, level, 2-mile hike with Laguna Canyon Foundation volunteer naturalists. Laguna Coast Wilderness Park, Little Sycamore Canyon Staging Area/Nix Nature Center (west side of Laguna Canyon Rd/SR-133, approximately 3.5 miles south of I-5/405). Reservations required, call (949) 923-2235. Parking: $3. Donation: $2/person.

Fitness Hike: 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. Saturday. Raise your heart rate and your spirits on this difficult, strenuous and fast-paced, 3.5-mile hike (700-ft. elevation gain) over very steep, uneven terrain with Laguna Canyon Foundation volunteers. Not for beginners. Hiking poles suggested. Laguna Coast Wilderness Park, Big Bend Staging Area (ask for directions when making reservations). Reservations required, call (949) 923-2235. Parking: $3. Donation: $2/person.

Fitness Hike: 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. Thursday. Raise your heart rate and your spirits on this strenuous, fast-paced, 4.8-mile hike (400-ft. elevation gain) over steep, uneven terrain with Laguna Canyon Foundation volunteers. Laguna Coast Wilderness Park, Little Sycamore Canyon Staging Area/Nix Nature Center (west side of Laguna Canyon Road/SR-133, approximately 3.5 miles south of I-5/405). Reservations required, call (949) 923-2235. Parking: $3. Donation: $2/person.