Sandstone Peak — Attraction in Rolling Oaks Ranch

I went on a hike here for the first time recently, and it wasn't too bad! We hit the trail early to avoid congestion on the trail, which is a little bit narrow in some parts. We also wanted to beat the heat. The trail itself is well maintained and easy enough to follow, the route we hiked was about 6 miles 'round trip. This is a dog friendly area, so we brought the pups along as well. Some sections were a little steep but nothing crazy. Bring plenty of water and snacks, take your time, and you'll have no problem hiking this trail. Once you reach the peak, you get to enjoy some breathtaking views of the area. After enjoying our views, we headed back, and when we reached the bottom there were people waiting on parking spots to open up. It gets kind of crazy, it's a very popular spot. They also have 1 pit toilet and a few trash containers in the parking lot which is nice, especially after downing a liter or two of water on your hike! I'd go back, but to be honest due to the crowds and relatively short length it wouldn't typically be my...

Great place to view the sunset and be above the clouds. I was able to see the peaks of the Channel Islands breaking through the cloud coverage. Had the peak all to myself on a lonely Tuesday evening. Even with some steep sections, it wasn't very hard hike. Extremely beautiful.

Update: I came out at night to try some astro photography and while coming around a corner saw two sets of large eyes staring back at me. They were further up the trail but close enough for me to see that they were rather large animals and that they were definitely predator eyes. I am not familiar with this mountain range but I've ran into mountain lions in the dark before and those eyes were similar. Come to find out, there was a cougar attack in these ranges last year. Cougars most likely will run away but...

Relatively easy 6 miles hike. Not too much elevation gain and being near the ocean keeps the temperatures from getting too high. However, this means it’s much more desirable for the weekend crowd. So be sure to get there earlier than later. Our troop arrived by 7:30am and finished around 11:30am. All in all fantastic hike. Not too crowded and so refreshing to hike before it got into the 80s. It was really great to see how much vegetation is growing back after al the fires, even some of the oak trees are making a full come back. The contrast of the new growth and the charred landscape really made for a one of...