Ventu Park Open Space

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Ventu Park Open Space
Hidden-Valley-as-seen-from-Angel-Vista-Point-in-Newbury-Park-California.jpg
View of Hidden Valley and the Santa Monica Mountains from atop Angel Vista.
TypeOpen-space park
Location Newbury Park, CA
Area141 acres (57 ha)
Operated byConejo Open Space Conservation Agency (COSCA)
StatusOpen

Ventu Park Open Space is a 141-acre open space area in Newbury Park, California. Its primary features are the Rosewood Trail leading to Angel Vista, a 1,603 ft peak in the Santa Monica Mountains. [1] [2] Parking for the Rosewood Trail is located at the Stagecoach Inn Park, across Lynn Road from the primary trailhead. The Rosewood Trail begins with oak woodland and crosses a creek at the canyon floor, before climbing up towards the steep Angel Vista Point. [3] There are 360-degree panoramic views of the Conejo Valley, the Oxnard Plain, the California Channel Islands, Pacific Ocean, [4] Point Mugu, [5] Hidden Valley, as well as the Santa Monica-, Santa Susana- [6] and Topa Topa Mountains. [7]

Newbury Park, California Populated place in California, United States of America

Newbury Park is a town located mostly within the western Thousand Oaks city limits in Ventura County, California, United States. It makes up all of ZIP code 91320, and is within area code 805. Lying within the Conejo Valley in the northwestern part of the Greater Los Angeles Area, Newbury Park abuts the Santa Monica Mountains. It is approximately 35 miles (56 km) from Downtown Los Angeles and less than 7 mi (11 km) from the Los Angeles County border in Westlake Village. The closest coastal city is Malibu, 22 mi (35 km) from Newbury Park, which may be reached through winding roads or hiking trails crossing the Santa Monica Mountains. About 28,000 of Thousand Oaks' 110,000 residents reside in Newbury Park. Newbury Park makes up around 40 percent of Thousand Oaks' total land area.

Santa Monica Mountains mountain range in Southern California, United States

The Santa Monica Mountains is a coastal mountain range in Southern California, paralleling the Pacific Ocean. It is part of the Transverse Ranges. Because of its proximity to densely populated regions, it is one of the most visited natural areas in California. Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area is located in this mountain range.

Stagecoach Inn (California)

The Stagecoach Inn in Newbury Park, California, originally known as the Grand Union Hotel, was used as a resting area for people who traveled from Los Angeles to Santa Barbara. Besides a hotel and stagecoach stop, it has also been used as a post office, church, restaurant and military school. It is California Historical Landmark no. 659 and is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. It played a major role in the development of the stage line transportation network in California. The hotel was also the first business venture in the Conejo Valley.

Contents

To get here from the Ventura Freeway, exit on Ventu Park Road in Newbury Park, CA. Continue for 0.6 miles south until reaching Lynn Road. Pass the Stagecoach Inn Museum on the right and turn right for one block before parking at Susan Drive and the Stagecoach Inn Park, located on the right. [6] The Rosewood Trail is located across Lynn Road. The trail was established in the early 1980s and has an elevation gain of 800 feet. [8]

Ventura Freeway freeway in Southern California

The Ventura Freeway is a freeway in southern California, United States, running from the Santa Barbara/Ventura county line to Pasadena in Los Angeles County. It is the principal east-west route through Ventura County and in the southern San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles County. From the Santa Barbara County line to its intersection with the Hollywood Freeway in the southeastern San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles, it is signed as U.S. Route 101, which was built in the late 1950s and opened on April 5, 1960. East of the Hollywood Freeway intersection, it is signed as State Route 134 which was built by 1971. The entire Ventura Freeway is not built to freeway standards, however; the segment that runs through the coastal communities of La Conchita and Mussel Shoals in western Ventura County still remains an expressway.

Rosewood Trail

The Rosewood Trail is the starting point for the Los Robles Trail, the longest trail operated by the Conejo Open Space Conservation Agency (COSCA). It connects to various open space areas and nature preserves in the Greater Thousand Oaks Area, including the Hope Nature Preserve, Los Padres Open Space, Conejo Ridge Open Space, Deer Ridge Open Space, Old Conejo Open Space and Los Vientos Open Space. The 25-mile Los Robles Trail begins by Angel Vista Point and is a 25-mile trail connecting Newbury Park and the City of Westlake Village by crossing Hidden Valley, Thousand Oaks and Lake Sherwood. [9]

Thousand Oaks, California City in California, United States

Thousand Oaks is the second-largest city in Ventura County, California, United States. It is in the northwestern part of Greater Los Angeles, approximately 40 miles (64 km) from Downtown Los Angeles and is less than 15 miles (24 km) from the Los Angeles neighborhood of Woodland Hills. It is named after the many oak trees present in the area, and the city seal is adorned with an oak.

Hope Nature Preserve is a 360-acre (150 ha) nature preserve in Newbury Park, California. It was a gift to the city from its owner, actor Bob Hope, whom it is named for. It is located by the Newbury Park-Thousand Oaks “border” in southern Conejo Valley. It is home to a variety of wildlife, including mountain lions, gray fox, bobcats, coyotes, deer, rabbits, and more. The Los Robles Trail provides the principal access, but it can also be visited from a trailhead in Lynn Oaks Park. It connects to a variety of protected open-space areas, including Ventu Park, Deer Ridge, Los Vientos, Los Padres, and many more.

Deer Ridge Open Space

Deer Ridge Open Space is a 188-acre public-owned open-space area in the southwest portion of the town of Newbury Park, California. It contains a series of north-facing mountainous ridges and canyons, dominated by chaparral and oak trees. It shares borders with the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area to the south, and the Los Robles Trail traverses the length of Deer Ridge Open Space. Its main trailhead is located on Potrero Road, while a smaller access point is located at the southern end of Felton Street. The Los Robles Trail is the Conejo Open Space Conservation Agency’s longest trail, and connects to open-space areas and parks such as the Los Padres Open Space, Conejo Ridge Open Space, Hope Nature Preserve, Old Conejo Open Space, and the Los Vientos Open Space. The trail in Newbury Park provides panoramic views of the Conejo Valley and Santa Monica Mountains, before entering the Hope Nature Preserve. The Los Robles Trail provides more than 25 miles of contiguous trails connecting Newbury Park to Westlake Village in Los Angeles County. Immediately south of the Deer Ridge Open Space in Newbury Park are the Hidden Valley and Rancho Sierra Vista Satwiwa.

Alternatively, hikers can cross the Potrero Ridge and join the trail leading to Satwiwa, which again connects to Point Mugu through trails crossing the Santa Monica Mountains through the Big Sycamore Canyon. [3] [10] The trails here are used by equestrians, mountain bikers as well as hikers. [11] The Rosewood Trail is a 5-mile roundtrip hike from the Stagecoach Inn Park to the top of Angel Vista. [12]

The Potrero Ridge Open Space is a passive recreation area in the southwestern portion of Newbury Park, CA and the Conejo Valley that encompasses eastern parts of the Potrero Ridge. The open-space area contains a total of 203 acres (82 ha), and is owned and operated by the Conejo Open Space Conservation Agency (COSCA). It is adjacent to the Dos Vientos Open Space in the west, which provides further access to the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area by Satwiwa, as well as the Alta Vista Open Space, Los Vientos Open Space, and Los Robles Trail which leads to Los Robles Open Space in Thousand Oaks, CA and further into Westlake Village.

Satwiwa was a former Chumash village in the Santa Monica Mountains of Newbury Park, California. The current Satwiwa Native American Indian Culture Center is operated by the National Park Service in cooperation with the Friends of Satwiwa. Satwiwa has been inhabited by Chumash Indians for over 10,000 years. It is situated at the foothills of Boney Mountain, a sacred mountain for the Chumash.

Point Mugu, California Unincorporated community in California, United States

Point Mugu, California is a cape or promontory within Point Mugu State Park on the Pacific Coast in Ventura County, near the city of Port Hueneme and the city of Oxnard. The park has 5 miles (8 km) of shoreline and more than 70 miles (110 km) of hiking trails. The name is believed to be derived from the Chumash Indian term "Muwu", meaning "beach", which was first mentioned by Cabrillo in his journals in 1542. It is also a name applied to the nearby NAS Point Mugu, a test range facility known by various names over the years, including Pacific Missile Test Center and Naval Air Missile Test Center.

Related Research Articles

Conejo Valley region in Southern California, United States

The Conejo Valley is a region spanning both southeastern Ventura County and northwestern Los Angeles County in Southern California, United States. It is located in the northwestern part of the Greater Los Angeles Area.

Santa Rosa Valley, California census-designated place in California, United States

Santa Rosa Valley is a rural unincorporated community, named after the eponymous valley in which it lies, located in Ventura County, California, United States. For statistical purposes, the United States Census Bureau has defined Santa Rosa Valley as a census-designated place (CDP). The census definition of the area may not precisely correspond to local understanding of the area with the same name. The 2010 United States census reported Santa Rosa Valley's population was 3,334. Santa Rosa Valley sits at an elevation of 433 feet (132 m).

Wildwood Regional Park

Wildwood Regional Park is a suburban regional park in the western Simi Hills and Conejo Valley, in Ventura County, California. It is located in western Thousand Oaks, northern Newbury Park, and southern Moorpark.

Rancho Conejo Playfields

Rancho Conejo Playfields is a 13 acres (5.3 ha) multi-use community park in Newbury Park, California, adjacent to Conejo Canyons Open Space and the Arroyo Conejo Nature Preserve which includes 302 acres (122 ha) of public open-space land and numerous trails in the western Simi Hills.

Walnut Grove Park

Walnut Grove Park is a 6.5 acre community park in Newbury Park, California, United States, situated immediately south of the U.S. 101 Ventura Freeway on Newbury Road. Named for its many walnut trees, the park land was acquired in 1981 and ultimately developed into a community park in 1994. It contains a playground, an outdoor handball court, three BBQ grills, basketball courts, numerous picnic tables, trails, and open-space. It is operated by the Conejo Recreation & Park District (CRPD), and it is adjacent to the Walnut Grove Equestrian Center and its 14 acres of trails, horse arenas, stalls, picnic tables, and various trails for hikers and equestrians. The park is relatively close to the Arroyo Conejo Open Space and its many trails leading for instance to Wildwood Regional Park, which is accessible from its closest trailhead between 507 Kalinda Pl. and 504 Paseo Grande on West Hillcrest Drive. Walnut Grove Park is located along a smaller offspring from the Arroyo Conejo, and is one of only three off-leash dog parks in the Conejo Valley.

Rabbit Hill (Newbury Park)

Rabbit Hill, also referred to as Knoll Hill, is a 797-foot high hill (243 m) located in Knoll Park, which is among the highest peaks in Newbury Park, California that are not parts of the Santa Monica Mountains. It is reached from a trailhead on North Reino Road, just across the road from the Pepper Tree Playfields, which provides hikers to Rabbit Hill with parking spaces. The sloping Knoll Trail goes from N. Reino Rd. to the top of the knoll, which offers panoramic views of Newbury Park, Casa Conejo, Boney Mountain, Thousand Oaks and Conejo Mountain. The total park area is 21 acres (8.5 ha) including the hill, which is covered with coastal sage scrub and grassland.

Hill Canyon

Hill Canyon is a deep canyon in the western Simi Hills and within northern Newbury Park and Thousand Oaks, in Ventura County, southern California.

Conejo Canyons Open Space

The Conejo Canyons Open Space consists of 1,628 acres (659 ha) of open-space areas in northernmost Newbury Park, Ventura County, California. It consists of deeply eroded canyons, numerous ridgelines and plateaus in the northwestern portion of the Conejo Valley. The area consists of diverse natural features such as deep canyons with perennial streams, prominent ridgelines, volcanic mountains, and a variety of natural habitats. While some of the flora includes chaparral, riparian habitats, oak woodlands and coastal sage, fauna includes mountain lions, coyotes, mule deer, and bobcats.

Dos Vientos Community Park

Dos Vientos Community Park in southwestern Newbury Park, CA is the largest of Conejo Recreation & Park District’s public parks in the Conejo Valley. It is adjacent to the Dos Vientos Community Center, which offers a preschool, sports, and other activities. The park contains sand volleyball courts, baseball-, basketball- and tennis courts, soccer fields, playground areas, and picnic tables and barbecue grills. It is adjacent to the Dos Vientos Open Space through the Park View Trail, which is a 1,216 acre natural open-space, bordering an additional 16,000 acres of open space stretching over the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area to the Pacific Ocean. The Park View Trail ends at Via Ricardo, directly across the road from the Powerline Trail and Dos Vientos Open Space.

Conejo Mountain 1,814-foot-high extinct volcano (553 m) in Ventura County, California adjacent to the Santa Monica Mountains.

Conejo Mountain is a 1,814-foot-high mountain (553 m) in Ventura County, California near Camarillo on the eastern boundary of the Oxnard Plain. At the western edge of the Conejo Valley, it is adjacent to the Santa Monica Mountains. Crossing what was once a formidable barrier for travelers, U.S. Route 101 passes through the area on the steep Conejo Grade.

Dos Vientos Open Space 1,216 acres (492 ha) parkland in Ventura County, California with more than 41 miles of trails

Dos Vientos Open Space is a 1,216 acres (492 ha) open space area in western Newbury Park, California. It contains more than 41 miles (66 km) of trails used for cycling, hiking and equestrians. Originally a part of the Rancho Guadalasca Spanish Land Grant of 1836, the area is now an important wildlife movement corridor into the Santa Monica Mountains through the Point Mugu State Park. It provides a habitat for a variety of wildlife, including bobcats, mule deer, coyotes, eagles, hawks, barn owls, mountain lions, and more. It provides regional and internal trail connections, many trails offering panoramic views of the Conejo Valley, Oxnard Plain, Topatopa Mountains, Channel Islands, and the Pacific Ocean. Some of the endangered plant species found here include Conejo Buckwheat, Verity's liveforever, and Conejo Dudleya. The landscape is undeveloped, and dominated by coastal sage scrub, grassy hillsides, oak woodlands, and chaparral habitats.

Tarantula Hill

Tarantula Hill, also known as Dawn’s Peak, is a 1,057-foot-high (322 m) peak that is the highest point in Thousand Oaks, California. It is located on a 45-acre (18 ha) open space and is operated by the Conejo Open Space Conservation Agency (COSCA). Climbing Tarantula Hill is a steep 0.5-mile (0.80 km) trail; the trailhead is located at 287 West Gainsborough Road, across the road from the main entrance to Conejo Valley Botanic Garden. Atop the mountain there is a 360-degree panoramic view of the Conejo Valley, the Simi Hills and the Santa Monica Mountains. There is also a fenced-in water reservoir located on top. It was once a popular hang-gliding site.

Mount Clef Ridge

Mount Clef Ridge is a 1,076 ft volcanic mountain in Thousand Oaks, California. It is a volcanic outcrop that resulted from lava eruptions 30 million year ago. The ridge was formerly under ownership by the Janss Corporation, but was acquired by the Conejo Recreation and Park District (CRPD) in 1967. Trails here are available from Santa Rosa Valley, Newbury Park and Wildwood Regional Park. Although being a major feature of Wildwood, it occupies its own open-space area bordering Wildwood’s northern boundaries. Mount Clef Ridge Open Space Area occupies 212 acres. From the ridge are great panoramic views of Santa Rosa Valley, Conejo Valley, Hill Canyon, as well as the Santa Susana-, Santa Monica- and Topatopa Mountains. The open-space area is home to plants such as coastal sage scrub, chaparral, Lyon's Pentachaeta and Conejo dudleya. The fauna includes mountain lions, deer, coyotes, gray foxes, and more.

Bard Lake

Bard Lake, also known as Wood Ranch Reservoir, is a 231 acres (93 ha) reservoir which is the largest lake in Simi Valley, California. It is situated near the intersection of Olsen Road and Moorpark Freeway, near the border between Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks. Built in 1965, Bard Lake is a 146-feet high reservoir with a capacity of 11,000 acre-feet. It is an earth dam which is owned by the Calleguas Water District.

References

  1. ↑ "Ring of Open Space". Conejo-openspace.org. Retrieved 2016-09-10.
  2. ↑ Stone, Robert (2011). Day Hikes Around Ventura County. Day Hike Books. Pages 190-191. ISBN   9781573420624.
  3. 1 2 JOHN McKINNEY (2002-03-31). "A Stroll Into Conejo Valley History - latimes". Articles.latimes.com. Retrieved 2016-09-10.
  4. ↑ McKinney, John (2013). HIKE Ventura County: Best Day Hikes Around Ventura, Ojai and the Simi Hills. The Trailmaster, Inc. Page 79. ISBN   9780934161534.
  5. ↑ Murphy, Kelly (2012). Local Multi-Use Trails. Kelly Murphy. Page 190. ISBN   9781479165599.
  6. 1 2 Stone, Robert (2011). Day Hikes Around Ventura County. Day Hike Books. Page 190. ISBN   9781573420624.
  7. ↑ "Los Robles Trail: Moorpark Gate to Angel Vista | Newbury Park California Hikes". Trails.com. Retrieved 2016-09-10.
  8. ↑ Sumell, Stephanie (2013-09-05). "It's the people, not just the parks, who make CRPD shine | Thousand Oaks Acorn". Toacorn.com. Retrieved 2016-09-10.
  9. ↑ Riedel, Allen (2011). Best Easy Day Hikes Conejo Valley. Rowman & Littlefield. Pages 60-61. ISBN   9780762765812.
  10. ↑ "Los Robles Trail System in Thousand Oaks — Conejo Valley Guide". Conejovalleyguide.com. 2015-07-18. Retrieved 2016-09-10.
  11. ↑ "CONEJO OPEN SPACE FOUNDATION: to promote and maintain the multi-use trail and open space systems of the Conejo Valley". Cosf.org. Retrieved 2016-09-10.
  12. ↑ Murphy, Kelly (2012). Local Multi-Use Trails. Kelly Murphy. Pages 195-196. ISBN   9781479165599.

See also

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