The City of Oxnard Recreation and Community Services Department offers thousands of community classes year-round. Offerings include preschool classes, youth classes, adult classes, youth and adult sports, senior programs, adaptive recreation programs and much more. For more information, to download a complete recreation guide and to register, visit www.oxnardrec.org or call 805.385.7995.
Marty's Hobbies is a family owned and operated hobby shop that has operated in the Conejo Valley since 1976. In 2018, the store relocated to a huge new location at 270 Conejo Ridge Avenue, Thousand Oaks.
The new location has all the items it had at the previous location - plastic models, airplanes, slot racing cars, trains, toys and much more.
The store has a huge RC Race Track, RC Crawler Course, Drone Course and Slot Car Track. You can access the tracks on an hourly, daily or monthly membership basis.
Marty's also offers birthday parties now for both kids and adults. Parties include track time, expert staff time to train your attendees, party room use, karaoke machine, gaming system and more.
Visit www.martyshobbies.com or call 805.497.3664 for more information.
Store hours (subject to change) Mon-Fri 10am to 8pm, Sat 10am to 6pm, Sun 10am to 5pm.
Ventura Raceway is a world-famous dirt track located at the Ventura County Fairgrounds. Ventura Raceway became world famous in the early 1990s when it hosted several years of the ESPN Thunder Series on television.
With weekly racing events held on most Saturday nights from March through October, Ventura Raceway has a worldwide following of short track racing fans. Most Saturday nights you can find the powerful VRA 360 Sprint Cars racing at the 1/5 mile oval. These 600+ horsepower, open wheel racers hit speeds in excess of 80 mph on the track that is smaller than a high school oval track.
Beyond the sprint cars, there are classes for seniors (age 45 and up) down to kids as young as 5 years old in a family friendly environment.
Located at 10 West Harbor Blvd, Ventura. Admission (as of January 2019) is $15 for adults, $11 for 60+, military and students with ID and free to 12 and under (with adult). Visit www.venturaraceway.com or call 805.648.RACE for more information.
The Fillmore Historical Museum is located at 340 Main Street. Stroll through the Craftsman-style Hinckley home built in 1905 and filled with antique furniture, kitchen items, pump organ and Dr. Hinckley's dental office. Allow time to tour the 1919 Sespe Bunkhouse, a building full of Fillmore history and originally used as a dormitory by farm workers.
Other history on display includes orange and lemon industry history dating back to 1900, military, police and fire department memorabilia, Native American artifacts, Fillmore insectary, antique clothing and toys and more.
The Southern Pacific Railroad Depot, a functioning depot from 1887 to 1970 is also located on site, located adjacent to the Hinckley house. This Depot was designated Ventura County Historical Landmark #48, designated in May 1979. When the Southern Pacific Railroad finished its line between Ventura and Los Angeles in 1887, Fillmore, named after Southern Pacific's West Coast superintendent, Jerome A. Fillmore, was established at the only train stop in the Santa Clara Valley. The town of Fillmore was subsequently founded in 1888 and incorporated on July 10, 1914.
An original Barksdale post office from the late 1800s is also on the site.
As of May 2013, the Museum is open Tuesday to Friday from 9 am to 4pm and Saturdays 10am to 3pm. Donation is Family $10, Adults $4, Students $2 and Children under 5 years, free. Call 805.524.0948 to confirm hours. Visit www.fillmorehistoricalmuseum.org to learn more.
Long Canyon Trail is an easy to hike trail in the Wood Ranch section of Simi Valley, located at the corner of Wood Ranch Parkway and Long Canyon Road (take Wood Ranch Parkway south until it ends, and turn right into the parking lot). It is quite a peaceful place to do some light hiking with the family. And the views as you can see are beautiful.
About a .7 mile hike to the top of the canyon connects you with the Lang Ranch / Woodridge Open Space in Thousand Oaks. Great views from the top towards Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks and beyond, towards the Channel Islands on clear days.
Technically I believe this bench is in the Lang Ranch/Woodridge Open Space in Thousand Oaks, which connects with the Long Canyon Trail. Nice view here towards Simi Valley.
NOTE: Closed due to damage from the Woolsey Fire as of December 2018. Updates at www.nps.gov/samo/planyourvisit/backbonetrail.htm.
You've driven Kanan Road from Agoura Hills towards PCH for decades and have passed by the Backbone Trail trailhead on Kanan and Newton Canyon Road just before Tunnel "T-1" hundreds of times. But you never stopped there to check it out. Well, it's about time to give it a try!
The Backbone Trail stretches 67 miles through the Santa Monica Mountains, from Will Rogers State Park on the east to the Ray Miller Trailhead on the west. There are 12 "official" Backbone Trail trailheads and the Kanan Road Trailhead is one of them. More information on the National Park Service website at www.nps.gov/samo/planyourvisit/backbonetrail.htm.
There are two trailheads to catch here at what is also referred to as the Newton Canyon Trailhead. The Backbone Trail to the Latigo Canyon Trailhead is 2.5 miles one way headed east. The Backbone Trail to the Zuma Ridge Motorway - the one covered here - is also 2.5 miles one way headed west.
The Backbone Trail to Zuma Ridge Motorway is a nice, moderate, winding, mostly single track, well-maintained trail. You'll encounter a creek, a view of the Upper Zuma Falls, a short bridge, some tree-lined canopied sections, wildflowers and moderately rocky sections.
Once you reach Zuma Ridge Motorway, you can continue on the Backbone Trail or turn back for a five mile round trip hike.
Trailhead to the Ranch Overlook Trail starts at the juncture of Sycamore Canyon Fire Road (paved road that runs through Point Mugu State Park) and the access bridge to the Satwiwa Native American Culture Center.
This is the bridge heading the other direction from the Ranch Overlook Trail sign leading to the Satwiwa Native American Indian Culture Center.
The one mile Ranch Overlook Trail is located in Rancho Sierra Vista/Satwiwa in Newbury Park.
The trail extends from just west of the Satwiwa Native American Indian Culture Center to the Palomino Trail in the Rancho Potrero Open Space.
The trail is about two wide and you’ll find hikers, runners, cyclists and equestrians all sharing it. The east portion is moderately flat, leading to a moderate hill. At the peak, you’ll have nice views toward the Rancho Sierra Vista main parking area and adjacent ranch structures as well as towards Boney Mountain.
Continue west down the trail to a juncture where you can either veer right towards the parking area and road into Rancho Sierra Vista, or you can continue straight until the next juncture. At the next juncture, if you take a left, you’ll soon be transitioning from Federal land (Rancho Sierra Vista) to Conejo Open Space land (Rancho Potrero). Though you won’t find a trail sign that indicates this, the trail that continues westward is the Palomino Trail.
Do be mindful of rattlesnakes back here. They want nothing to do with you, so if you come across one crossing the trail, let them make their way across.
The “peak” of the Ranch Overlook Trail, looking southeast towards Satwiwa and Boney.
Peak of Ranch Overlook Trail, looking down towards main Rancho Sierra Vista/Satwiwa parking area and restrooms.
This is west of the peak of the Ranch Overlook Trail, a downhill section that takes you towards Rancho Potrero.
This sign is at the bottom of the west side of the Ranch Overlook Trail, facing east, if you opt to take the trail counter-clockwise from the parking area.
This ancient oak tree is adjacent to the Ranch Overlook Trail sign near the parking lot access. This was taken in September 2018. The large branch broke off earlier that summer. In the background is the parking area.
This is the Palomino Trail in the adjacent Rancho Potrero Open Space, looking east towards Rancho Sierra Vista, in June 2018. These areas do green up after the winter rains in the April/May time frame….but dry up fast.
Channel Islands National Park consists of 5 of the 8 Channel Islands off the Santa Barbara coast. Although the islands are close to the shore, their isolation has left them relatively undeveloped.
The northern Channel Islands are Anacapa (1.1 sq mi), San Miguel (14.6 sq mi), Santa Cruz (96.5 sq mi) and Santa Rosa (83 sq mi) and the southern islands are San Clemente (57 sq mi), San Nicolas (23 sq mi), Santa Barbara (1 sq mi) and Santa Catalina (75 sq mi).
Channel Islands National Park includes the islands of San Miguel, Santa Rosa, Santa Cruz, Anacapa and Santa Barbara. Anacapa is located in Ventura County while the other four are in Santa Barbara County. San Clemente Island, the southernmost Channel Island, is owned and operated by the U.S. Navy. Catalina Island as we know with its population of 3,700 is a popular tourist destination. San Nicolas Island in Ventura County is also controlled by the U.S. Navy. On a clear day you can see two of the five islands, Anacapa and Santa Cruz.
Visitors to the islands may swim, snorkel, hike, camp, watch wildlife, sail and explore tidepools, beaches and canyons. There is no food service on the islands, so bring what you need. Take a commercial service to the islands like Island Packers, which has been servicing the islands since 1968. Landings at Anacapa and Santa Cruz islands are year-round while the more remote outer islands, Santa Barbara, Santa Rosa and San Miguel are scheduled late spring through early fall.
Visit the National Park Service website at www.nps.gov/chis to learn more about visiting Channel Islands National Park. The park is open year-round.
The Robert J. Lagomarsino Visitor Center at Channel Islands National Park is located in the Ventura Harbor at 1901 Spinnaker Drive (805.658.5730) and the Outdoors Santa Barbara Visitor Center is located at the Santa Barbara Harbor at 113 Harbor Way, 4th Floor.
On a clear day you can see two of the Channel Islands from Newbury Park and other Ventura County spots. Here's a view from the Rancho Potrero Open Space in Newbury Park.
Anacapa Island seen from a whale watching boat.
If you're looking for a hike of about 10 miles in the Rancho Sierra Vista/Boney Mountain Wilderness area, consider the Old Boney Trail loop from Newbury Park. You can park either in the National Park Service parking lot or at Wendy Drive where it meets Potrero Road.
You can do the hike clockwise or counter-clockwise since it is a loop course. I prefer clockwise, which starts by trekking through Rancho Sierra Vista to Danielson Road. Details of this path are at THIS LINK. This path gets you to a juncture where you can continue another 3/10ths of a mile to the Danielson Monument (which you definitely should do if you've never been there) or veer a sharp right up the Old Boney Trail.
Sign at juncture of Danielson Road trail and Old Boney Trail in Pt. Mugu State Park
I love the Old Boney Trail. It is narrow and covered with growth on both sides. Kind of like running through a chaparral jungle. This makes the trail mostly shade covered for the first couple miles of this 3.5 mile stretch of trail. You'll be treated to some nice views of Boney Mountain along the way.
Although the Old Boney Trail does not reach a peak for panoramic views, you'll still find several spots that reward you with views towards the Channel Islands and west Ventura County.
About a mile or mile and a half into Old Boney Trail from Danielson Road, you'll see a turnoff sign to the right that takes you to the Fossil Trail, a mile or so drop back down to the bottom of Sycamore Canyon. The drop is about 1300 ft to 500 ft with plenty of rocky surfaces, so you'll have some fun going back down this way, for a shorter route. And of course, look closely and you'll be treated to surfaces covered with sea fossil imprints from millions of years ago.
From the Old Boney Trail/Fossil Trail juncture, you have another 2.1 fun miles to the next juncture at Blue Canyon Trail at the bottom of the canyon. You'll get some more neat views of Boney Mountain during this stretch. At the juncture is the following sign on Blue Canyon Trail.
Sign on Blue Canyon Trail at the Old Boney Trail juncture in Pt. Mugu State Park.
You will turn right on Blue Canyon Trail, which will take you to the Danielson Multi-Use area and the paved Sycamore Canyon Fire Road. A left-hand turn will get you lots of fun for another day, onward to Chamberlain Trail that gets you up to some might nice peaks, and Serrano Valley.
Sign at entrance to Blue Canyon Trail at the Danielson Multi-Use area (you of course will be looking at the back side of this sign if you're coming from the Old Boney Trail).
I've never actually seen anyone using the Danielson Multi-Use area but here's the picnic area.
So you run through the Danielson area to the main paved road to the right (turning left of course will take you to PCH in about 4-5 miles). In another 3 miles you'll be back in civilization; these miles include the 800 foot, 3/4 mile ascent into Rancho Sierra Vista, which can be a bit brutal...perhaps my (and maybe your) least favorite section of this course. But once you're up the hill, you're home free! Time for breakfast, lunch, dinner or all of the above!
Sycamore Canyon Fire Road sign at the top of the hill in Rancho Sierra Vista/Satwiwa.
Of course, you can easily reverse this course and make your way DOWN Sycamore Canyon Fire Road, turn left onto Blue Canyon Trail, left on Old Boney Trail for 3.5 miles and then left on Danielson Road, back down into the canyon and up towards Satwiwa.
Located at 901 Quimisa Drive in Simi Valley, the Oak Park Campground is a rustic 100.5 acre open space park that is surrounded by gentle, rolling hills and an abundance of coastal sage scrub brush. This natural environment supports a multitude of California native wildlife species, such as a raptors, roadrunners, sagebrush lizards, and alligator lizards. The park is ideal for group RV camping in a secluded setting.
Day use is $2 per day ($4 on weekends) (as of July 2018). Camping is $32 per day.
Plenty of things to explore in this 100 acre space! Learn more or make reservations at www.ventura.org/inland-parks/oak-park-simi-valley or call 805.654.3951.
The video shot below was on a Sunday night around 7 p.m. in July 2010. There was for the most part nobody there! What a great opportunity to camp with your kids locally! I guess my only concerns about the location would be that the park is sandwiched between the 118 freeway and the railroad tracks...though I did not encounter any noise issues in my brief drive-by.
The Santa Paula Canyon Trail takes you to the "The Punch Bowls" in the Los Padres National Forest. This is a fairly challenging hike that is definitely not for everyone. But for many, it is quite an interesting, roughly 7 mile round trip exploration. Plan on at least a 4 to 6 hour excursion.
The trail begins in the hills behind Thomas Aquinas College at 10000 Ojai Road, Santa Paula. This is a private college and thus the public is not allowed access to parking on the campus. There is a small amount of street parking and several dirt lots nearby. Make sure though not to leave any valuables in your car.
Access to the trail takes a bit of a walk on the paved road that swings to the right of the college. There are signs that point the way to the trailhead and that asks hikers to stay on the paved roadway.
The winding road to the trailhead
You will be entering private property (continue following the signs), so be mindful of that as you veer left, then past an oil rig through an avocado farm. You will be walking past a large red gate, then continue on, until you reach another oil pumping rig. Go left along the path around the rig to the trailhead, where you will be greeted by the sounds of the Santa Paula Creek.
You will be veering left after walking through this gate, into private property. You will be walking past an oil pump then into an avocado orchard, then past another oil rig (veer left) to the trailhead.
Cross the creek (there are strategically placed stones) and you are on your way.
Veer right around this., which would seem obvious but to me it wasn't.
From here, there are no signs that clearly say "trail this way." Perhaps the main thing to keep in mind is that for the most part, you will be following the creek to the area known as the Punch Bowls. But the exact path is not always clear, especially when you are like me and have a tendency of picking the wrong path at each fork.
Some sections of the trail are perfectly flat and scenic. Most of the trail you will hear the Santa Paula Creek.
But one thing we generally found is that someone has sprayed orange arrows in the direction you need to go. That said, it is still not always clear. Unfortunately, there is graffiti and markings of various sorts much of the way up the trail. In fact this is probably the worst example of defacing of a public trail that I've ever seen. I will not post the images here.
In any case, we didn't let the graffiti bother us too much as the trails were so beautiful, interesting and challenging. In fact, aside from hiking up Boney Mountain, this is probably the most challenging trail I've tried in the local area. There are some "perfectly flat" sections but many sections of the trail are quite rocky, narrow, lined with poison oak and challenging.
Also, be prepared to cross the creek in various sections. It wasn't always clear if we should be on the left or right side of the creek. Make sure to wear good hiking shoes as you will be making some creek crossings, which can be slippery.
I don't usually hike with a walking stick, but it definitely came in handy on this trail. The higher up we got, the rockier and more "bouldery" the trail became.
The boulders get larger and there are more areas with loose rocks the higher you get up the trail. I don't usually use a walking stick, but it definitely came in handy for this hike.
In any case, after some crazy sections of rocks that, when we went (mid-June 2016), included sections of significant piles of rocks (including some fairly recent looking rock slide areas), you will reach the first of the Punch Bowls. This was our final destination, but there are additional pools of water higher up, on trails that appear increasingly challenging.
This punch bowl was our final destination before heading back down. Beautiful to see, though the water was not particularly deep (blame it on the drought) or clean looking. But quite a great destination to hike to nonetheless and enjoyable to relax and take it in.
I took 4th and 7th graders with me and they did fine. It was a lot of fun. Definitely not stroller friendly. Dogs are ok on leash, though I wouldn't bring my dog due to the proliferation of rocks.
Learn more about the Santa Paula Canyon Trail at www.hikelospadres.com/santa-paula-canyon-trail.html.
We love driving down to Will Rogers State Beach from time to time, bring the bikes and enjoy the Marvin Braude Coastal Bicycle Path along the Pacific Ocean.
This fun 22 mile path takes you from Pacific Palisades as far as Torrance. Depending on how far you want to go and if you have kids with you, there are so many spots to stop along the way.
To get to Will Rogers State Beach from the Conejo Valley, take the 101 to Las Virgenes/Malibu Canyon Road south to PCH, then about 9 miles down PCH to Will Rogers (17000 PCH), just east of Gladstones and Sunset Boulevard. Parking at Will Rogers varies based on when you go; I last recall paying $10.
The path doesn't actually start at Will Rogers Beach as it is a walking path only at this point. Ride the bike through the parking lot to the start of the bike path at Temescal Canyon Road. And, you're off!
From the start of the path, here are some approximate distances to destinations:
With younger kids, the Santa Monica Pier makes a perfect 6 1/2 mile round trip destination as you can stop, eat lunch and have some fun at Pacific Park, then ride back. Or kick it a few notches and ride to/through Venice Beach for all the action.
Pacific Park up ahead
There are plenty of restrooms water stops and of course non-stop BEACH to enjoy here, making this one of my favorite destination for bicycling with the family. And of course, you don't have to park at Will Rogers...you can park anywhere on PCH in and around the bike path to enjoy it.
Of course you do have to be careful of sand on the path, pedestrians/beach goers crossing and walking on the path, other cyclists, runners, roller bladers and crowds.
Detailed map at file.lacounty.gov/SDSInter/dbh/docs/189949_2013-BIKEMAP85x11Web-Ready(highres).pdf
CLICK HERE FOR DOZENS OF FAMILY-FRIENDLY BIKE PATHS BACK UP IN THE VENTURA COUNTY AREA!
Perhaps the most popular destination in Wildwood Park in Thousand Oaks is Paradise Falls. There are a variety of trails and ways to get to Paradise Falls. Here's a quick and easy 1 mile route.
Park in the main trailhead at the west end of Avenida de los Arboles. Take the Mesa Trail about a 3rd of a mile until you see the sign below, where you'll turn left.
Another third of a mile and you're at the teepee, where you'll find another clearly marked sign pointing you in the direction of Paradise Falls.
You turn right down the hill and take a short walk to the following sign.
Hike down some switchbacks and stairs and you're almost there.
And wallah! You're at the following sign, where you'll be reminded that these year-round falls are partially fed by urban run-off, making them something you may not want to jump into.
But Paradise Falls is fun to get to and see. A full-on roughly 40 foot waterfall a mile away from civilization in Thousand Oaks.
You can walk back the way you came or hike back up the trail above the falls and loop back up to the teepee via the Wildwood Canyon Trail.
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