Explore the best rated trails in Lake Forest, CA. Whether you're looking for an easy walking trail or a bike trail like the Santa Gertrudis Creek Trail and Coastal Rail Trail. With more than 65 trails covering 406 miles you’re bound to find a perfect trail for you. Click on any trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
The scenic Huntington Beach Bicycle Trail runs along the Pacific Ocean waterfront of the most populous beach city in Orange County. Paved over its entire length and remarkably wide at some points, the...
The Compton Creek Bike Path crosses Compton along the east bank of its namesake creek, offering access to precious open space for the urban neighborhoods along the way. Compton Creek itself is a...
The Bonita Canyon Trail is a sidepath along Culver Drive and Bonita Canyon Drive linking the Orange County cities of Irvine and Newport Beach. Near the trail's midpoint, pick up the Shady Canyon Trail...
To the trail user, the West Irvine Trail and Peters Canyon Bikeway are one continuous trail with two names in three cities. The northern component of the Peters Canyon Regional Trail, both paths...
The Woodbridge Trail, while short, is one of the most scenic in Irvine's extensive trail network. Views of two lakes and surrounding mountains unfold around each bend. It's a great route for families...
The Aliso Creek Riding and Hiking Trail passes through the heart of Mission Viejo from South Laguna to Rancho Santa Margarita along an 18.5-mile corridor. The trail features many parks in Orange...
Note: Escondido Creek Bike Path has closed from Hickory to East of Date due to the installation of new recycled water pipes. Please contact Mark Lewis, city of Escondido Field Engineering Inspector...
Running through large Los Angeles suburbs in both Los Angeles County and Orange County, the Coyote Creek Bikeway follows the channelized bank of the creek through residential and industrial...
The Venta Spur Trail travels along the narrow corridor of a former rail spur that began serving the Frances Packing House—a major citrus processing facility—in 1916. Today, the popular trail serves...
The short Castaways Trail has expansive views of the mountains, ocean, Upper Newport Bay and Newport Harbor. Much of the 1-mile path runs along the bluffs in Castaways Park and the trail offers...
This urban trail travels along the side of North Colton Avenue and South Inland Center Drive, connecting San Bernadino and Colton. The corridor is an abandoned Southern Pacific rail line and will...
The Culver Boulevard Bike Path is a short rail-trail located in a nicely landscaped median park in Culver City and Los Angeles. The trail was built on a former Pacific Electric interurban...
The Juanita Moe Trail—formerly known as the Quail Hill Trail—is a short path along Interstate 405 south of downtown Irvine. Forming a link between the University Trail and Jeffrey Open Space Trail in...
The North Redondo Beach Bikeway is a signed bike route that links Torrance to the Los Angeles Metro's Redondo Beach station (Green Line). Portions of the bikeway feature designated bike lanes, while...
The San Gabriel River Trail extends from the base of the San Gabriel Mountains all the way to the Pacific Ocean. A key component of Los Angeles County's transportation infrastructure, the trail...
The San Luis Rey River Trail runs for 9 miles along the course of the San Luis Rey River in Oceanside. The trail, which is smooth and mostly flat, is a local favorite among cyclists, walkers and...
The San Juan Creek Trail starts where the creek meets the Pacific Ocean at Doheny State Beach in scenic Dana Point. From there, it runs on the levee along the western bank of San Juan Creek to its...
The Duarte Recreational Trail is made up of paved and parallel dirt trails. Located in Southern California's San Gabriel Valley, Duarte is named for Andres Duarte, a Mexican soldier who was granted...
The Santa Gertrudis Creek Trail is a 3-mile paved trail that serves as both a recreational amenity and an active transportation alternative for locals looking to get to nearby locations without...
The Arroyo Seco Bike Path runs about 2 miles between South Pasadena and northeast Los Angeles, offering views of the LA skyline and the distant mountains. It begins south of Pasadena Avenue and...
The Oceanfront Boardwalk begins in West Newport Beach at the end of 36th Street and runs nearly 3 miles down the Balboa Peninsula. Along the way, trail-goers will find restaurants, dory fishermen,...
The Freeway Trail, as its name implies, parallels the San Diego Freeway (Interstate 405) on its brief route through Irvine. With power lines overhead and neighborhoods blocked by sound walls to the...
Hugging one of the most picturesque shorelines in Southern California, the San Clemente Beach Trail is one of the premier rail-trails in the area. The trail itself is technically a rail-with-trail, as...
On the southwestern outskirts of Los Angeles, the Laguna Dominguez Trail spans just shy of 3 miles, connecting the cities of Lawndale and Hawthorne (named for famed American author Nathaniel...
The Inland Rail Trail runs alongside the Sprinter light rail service connecting Escondido to Oceanside. The 6.5-mile section in Escondido and San Marcos is the first segment complete, with a 7-mile...
The Peters Canyon Trail, currently open in two disconnected segments, runs northeast from Bill Barber Community Park to Portola Parkway, with a small gap from Warner Avenue to an active rail line that...
The Tracks at Brea Trail provides a 4-mile route across the city of Brea, which lies about 30 miles southeast of Los Angeles. The trail consists of a two-lane paved bikeway for wheeled users and a...
The Woodbridge Trail, while short, is one of the most scenic in Irvine's extensive trail network. Views of two lakes and surrounding mountains unfold around each bend. It's a great route for families...
The Mount Lowe Railway was created as a scenic tourist line to bring visitors to see Mount Lowe and Echo Mountain. The railway opened in 1893 and stopped services in 1938. Interestingly, the railway...
The short Upper Bay Trail arcs around the northern edge of the Upper Newport Bay Nature Preserve near the Newport Beach–Irvine city line. The protected estuary, home to six rare avian species, is...
If you believe the setting makes the trail, you won't quibble with the brevity of the path through Seal Beach's Electric Avenue Median Park. Ensconced in a beautifully maintained linear park, the...
Yorba Linda's El Cajon Trail courses through the city on a former irrigation canal that was abandoned and filled in after a flood made it impractical to use. Paved with a parallel equestrian and...
If you are looking for a quick escape from the smog and traffic of Southern California, take a trip along the Tustin Branch Trail. Currently open in two disconnected segments, the trail runs on the...
Note: Escondido Creek Bike Path has closed from Hickory to East of Date due to the installation of new recycled water pipes. Please contact Mark Lewis, city of Escondido Field Engineering Inspector...
The Coastal Rail Trail will one day run 44 miles from Oceanside to San Diego along the Coaster commuter rail. Short sections of the developing trail are currently open in Oceanside, Carlsbad, Solana...
The North Redondo Beach Bikeway is a signed bike route that links Torrance to the Los Angeles Metro's Redondo Beach station (Green Line). Portions of the bikeway feature designated bike lanes, while...
Experience the easy life of the West Coast on Orange County's Bud Turner Trail. Set in a quiet neighborhood in the city of Fullerton, the trail is ideal for all types of trail use and uniquely caters...
The Santa Ana River Trail is a 12-foot wide path following the Santa Ana River, a waterway that is cement-lined through much of Orange County but free flowing in Riverside and San Bernardino counties....
The Exposition Line, running from Downtown Los Angeles to Santa Monica, carefully integrates light rail, bikeway and pedestrian facilities. The second phase of the light rail line opened in 2017,...
The Culver Boulevard Bike Path is a short rail-trail located in a nicely landscaped median park in Culver City and Los Angeles. The trail was built on a former Pacific Electric interurban...
The Pacific Electric Inland Empire Trail is a great commuter and recreation trail in western San Bernadino valley, with expansive views and connections to community centers and parks. The trail...
To the trail user, the West Irvine Trail and Peters Canyon Bikeway are one continuous trail with two names in three cities. The northern component of the Peters Canyon Regional Trail, both paths...
If you believe the setting makes the trail, you won't quibble with the brevity of the path through Seal Beach's Electric Avenue Median Park. Ensconced in a beautifully maintained linear park, the...
The Culver Boulevard Bike Path is a short rail-trail located in a nicely landscaped median park in Culver City and Los Angeles. The trail was built on a former Pacific Electric interurban...
The short Castaways Trail has expansive views of the mountains, ocean, Upper Newport Bay and Newport Harbor. Much of the 1-mile path runs along the bluffs in Castaways Park and the trail offers...
On the southwestern outskirts of Los Angeles, the Laguna Dominguez Trail spans just shy of 3 miles, connecting the cities of Lawndale and Hawthorne (named for famed American author Nathaniel...
The Bellflower Bike Trail runs for more than 2 miles on the right-of-way of the old Pacific Electric transit system—also known as the Red Cars—across Bellflower. At its zenith in the 1920s, Pacific...
The Freeway Trail, as its name implies, parallels the San Diego Freeway (Interstate 405) on its brief route through Irvine. With power lines overhead and neighborhoods blocked by sound walls to the...
The Coastal Rail Trail will one day run 44 miles from Oceanside to San Diego along the Coaster commuter rail. Short sections of the developing trail are currently open in Oceanside, Carlsbad, Solana...
The Santiago Creek Trail is a scenic urban ride up a portion of Santiago Creek northeast from the Westfield MainPlace Mall to Collins Avenue in Orange. From Collins Avenue, the trail heads south to...
The Watts Towers Crescent Greenway is a short but pleasant rail-trail in the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles. The trail's central attraction is the Watts Towers Art Center, home of the striking and...
Note: Escondido Creek Bike Path has closed from Hickory to East of Date due to the installation of new recycled water pipes. Please contact Mark Lewis, city of Escondido Field Engineering Inspector...
The San Juan Creek Trail starts where the creek meets the Pacific Ocean at Doheny State Beach in scenic Dana Point. From there, it runs on the levee along the western bank of San Juan Creek to its...
The Hoover Bike and Walking Trail is a utilitarian path adjacent to an active rail line in the western Orange County city of Westminster. Also paralleling Hoover Street for its entire distance, the...
The Shoreline Pedestrian/Bicycle Path is a scenic multipurpose trail that runs from the tip of the breakwater opposite Island Grissom at the Long Beach Shoreline Marina to Long Beach's Belmont Shore...
If you are looking for a quick escape from the smog and traffic of Southern California, take a trip along the Tustin Branch Trail. Currently open in two disconnected segments, the trail runs on the...
The Oceanfront Boardwalk begins in West Newport Beach at the end of 36th Street and runs nearly 3 miles down the Balboa Peninsula. Along the way, trail-goers will find restaurants, dory fishermen,...
To the trail user, the West Irvine Trail and Peters Canyon Bikeway are one continuous trail with two names in three cities. The northern component of the Peters Canyon Regional Trail, both paths...
The Whittier Greenway Trail occupies part of an abandoned railroad right-of-way in its namesake town, running parallel to Whittier Boulevard and Lambert Road between Mills Avenue and Pioneer Boulevard...
A neighborhood trail of the first order, the Pacific Electric Bike Trail links well-kept middle class neighborhoods on either side of tree-lined Maple Street near downtown Santa Ana. The trail runs on...
This was a really nice ride I went from the coast up and back. It's mostly flat and not too busy. I did this one on a single speed cruiser. Had a lot of fun.
Great trail to ride to the beach. I only rode on the 14 mile stretch from Amtrak Anaheim station to the beach but the trail was awesome Great surface to ride, parks and brides along the way many on and off access . but continuing trail with no autos to worry about.
Great beautiful trail to ride It can get difficult if the beach is very busy. You may have to ride around and through crowds but it is part of the fun a bit. Bathrooms and food is available all along the trail. Great scenery and mostly flat.
You can park for free in the lot next to the bus roundabout. If you come in at the north end of the trail (off of Warner) and turn right after the jack in the box you'll see a parking lot on the left. There's no fee to park there! 😉
Nice route to log in miles, pretty flat with some mild inclines. Great clean ride
A friend and I both have new e-Bikes. Both are city urban commuter type bikes and both of us over sixty-five. We used to ride years ago but for various reasons we stopped. Now we’re back on the road enjoying a lovely trail with wonderful sights. There are little parks and kiddy play areas along the way. We only managed nearly half this time around with a plan to finish the second half in the near future.
Breath taking - separate pedestrian and bike paths - Queen Mary, Marina, and an island with a bunch of man made waterfalls that turn into a light show at night
It's been a few years since my wife and I biked this path, but I always think about it this time of year whenever I smell the orange blossoms in my southern California neighborhood.
This is most certainly a slow, easy, ideal ride for a spring day. It's not too hot yet, the narrow path passes by some stately historic homes, and the aroma of the orange blossoms are absolutely intoxicating!
Consider leaving the path on the way back and riding up one of the side streets through the groves.
I suspect this trail is especially popular with the surrounding community. I know if I lived there I'd be cruising down to the beach every day on it! For a couple of out of towners, it was well worth the time we put into exploring it.
After spending the night in Dana Point's bluff hugging Blue Lantern Inn, we parked the car and unloaded the bikes in Dana Point Marina's Baby Beach parking lot so we could enjoy pedaling around the quiet marina streets as well as the San Juan Creek Trail.
After cruising over to Doheny State Beach to the trailhead, we began our trek along the bank of the creek. For the most part it's a nice, fairly quiet ride. On the way up, we took a detour and explored the Trabuco Creek Trail as well as Old Historic San Juan Capistrano.
The San Juan Creek Trail eventually concluded in a somewhat rural area of ranches and equestrian centers. After cruising back down to the trailhead, I must say it's pretty cool to relax on the beach in the cool, salty air and to bask in the sun.
I first rode this trail over forty years ago when it was one of the first Class I trails in southern California, and I must say it was so cool to go from the Inland Empire all the way to the OC beaches! In recent years I've also ridden the upper portion which is a completely different experience but still worthwhile. The lower portion is nice and flat with cool ocean breezes, while the upper portion is hilly in places and much warmer in the summer. Lower: 5 stars. Upper: 3 stars.
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