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What if a simple detour could let Pacific Crest Trail hikers walk to the ocean? That’s the idea behind the Coast to Crest Trail, an in-progress path that would provide a path from the PCT to the California coast.
Trail maintainers, and volunteers are diligently working to complete the Coast to Crest, which would be 71 miles long and link the Agua Dulce section (mile 454.4) of the Pacific Crest Trail to the ocean. So far, 49 of those miles have been completed.
“Over the years, we’ve probably had about 500 volunteers or so,” says Jeff Morrison, open space and trails administrator for the city of Santa Clarita, with builders meeting every Wednesday and Saturday.
For several consecutive months, volunteers have been coming together to help locals complete another section of the trail. In November, volunteers from a number of different organizations helped to improve a 1.3-mile section of the Coast to Crest trail in order to prepare it for future connections. In December, 49 volunteers began to blaze the Surf Sports Park section of the trail. The trail’s most recent volunteer session took place in mid-March, when volunteers began to install stakes, chicken wire, and waddles into the trail in order to create support and to prevent erosion between Newhall Pass and Needham Ranch Open Space.
“A lot of the trails are there, and they’re being used right now,” says Morrison. “We just need to make the connections.”
Besides offering days worth of trail to explore, the Coast to Crest Trail’s supporters say that it could act as an alternate southern terminus for the Pacific Crest Trail. At a time when interest in the PCT is exploding, finding ways to alleviate human impacts near the end may come as a great relief to the trail. The highest density of human impact is typically seen in this region, and the Coast to Crest Trail could help spread it out.
“Some people will hike the PCT from the coast,” says Morrison. “I think it may bring tourist money to [the area]. That’ll be a good benefit. There will also be a regional draw.”
As for camping, the nearby open space offers permits to hikers who plan in advance. Morrison hopes that there will be opportunities for dry camping on the ridgeline, as well. And the open space could provide additional camping opportunities for hikers down the line.
The idea of the Coast to Crest Trail was originally born in 1986 when a group of conservationists began thinking about ways to protect some of San Diego’s local trails. Noticing that some of the area’s local ecosystems were being negatively impacted by development, the group began plotting ways to protect them. The group would go on to form the San Dieguito River Valley Conservancy.
A few significant gaps in the trail stand in the way of the completion of the Crest to Coast Trail, today. Lake Sutherland features a 6.3-mile section that has yet to be completed, and studies will be necessary to locate the best and most environmentally friendly path through the region. The proposed route through Mesa Grande would go through a short section of tribal land. And the Santa Ysabel Gorge, which may become home to a 1.78-mile section of trail, needs to be evaluated for environmental impacts as well.
Pending the trail’s completion, the views from the ridgeline over which the trail traverses are reason enough for many hikers to explore this new trail. Those who hike the Coast to Crest Trail may experience San Dieguito Wetlands, sharp peaks, and valleys, reveling in some of the region’s most spectacular views.
Morrison estimates it will take another five years to finish the remaining sections. Hikers antsy to see it finished can sign up to help.
“We’re always looking for new volunteers,” says Morrison. “It’s kind of the way that we get our trails built here in the city.”