By Gloria GlasserSpecial to the Acorn
The Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve—formerly known as the Ahmanson
Ranch propertand now owneby the SantMonica Mountains Conservancy and managed by the Mountains Recreation
and Conservation Authority—offers residents many opportunities
to discover this parkland through
guided hikes and interpretive programs throughout the summer
months.
There are now three ways to
access the property: the recentlyopened Victory Trailhead, the Las
Virgenes Trailhead and Lasky
Mesa. Among the varied programs offered are the “Take a
Closer Look” series, which delves
more deeply into the wildlife of
the parkland in such programs as
“A Frog Went A-Courting,”
“Winged Things,” “Raptors,” and
“Night Creatures.” These programs are available at the Las
Virgenes as well as Victory
trailheads. Among currently
scheduled programs are “Winged
Things” from 8:30 to 10 a.m. Sat.,
July 30 at the Las Virgenes
trailhead and “Raptors” from 8:30
to 10 a.m. Sat., Aug. 20 at the Victory trailhead.
Family campfire programs
will feature marshmallow roasting, stories and songs at Lasky
Mesa. Participation is by reservation only. Upcoming dates
are from 7:30 to
9 p.m. Fri., July
16, 8 to 9 p.m. Sat., Aug. 13 and
from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Sat., Sept. 24.
Park visitors can explore Native American culture when Mati
Waiya, a Chumash ceremonial
leader from the Wishtoyo Foundation, leads “A Moment of Twilight” featuring Native American
stories from 8 to 9:30 p.m. Fri.,
July 29 at Lasky Mesa. Waiya will
present more Native American
stories in “A Cultural Path” from
7:30 to 9 p.m. Sat., Sept. 3 at
Lasky Mesa. These events require
reservations.
Those unafraid of the dark will
want to join a “By the Light of
the Silvery Moon Hike,” offered
from 8 to 9:30 p.m. Tues., July 19,
Thurs., Aug. 18 and Sat., Sept. 17
at the Victory trailhead. While
moonlight can be very illuminating, it is never a bad idea to pack
a flashlight with fresh batteries
when venturing on trails in the
dark, and to dress warmly even
during summer months when
mountain evenings can be quite
cool.
Also meeting at the Victory
trailhead, rangers will conduct special programs from 8 to 9:30 a.m.
Sat., Aug. 6 (the topic will be
Search and Rescue: Basic Tracking) and from 9 to 11 a.m. Sun.,
Sept. 4 (Mountain Bike with a
Ranger). The former program
should provide insight on how
Search and Rescue workers perform their challenging work,
while the latter program should
serve to enlighten veteran and
novice riders alike on how to
share multi-use parkland trails
safely and responsibly.
Mountains Recreation and
Conservation Authority has provided directions to reach the
preserve’s three trailheads:
Victory Trailhead: 101 freeway in Calabasas, travel
north on Valley Circle Boulevard,
turning west on Victory Boulevard. Visitors will pass through
the park gates to reach the parking lot. The parking fee is $3.
Las Virgenes Trailhead:
Calabasas, travel north on Las
Virgenes Canyon Road about two
miles until the road ends. Parking is permitted along the street.
Lasky Mesa: freeway in Calabasas, travel north
on Las Virgenes Canyon Road,
turning right at Mureau and then
proceeding past Mountain View
Drive. Visitors should turn left
onto Crummer Canyon Road. The
gate is normally locked. For “byreservation-only” events, the gate
will be open; from there, visitors
will gather and caravan up to
Lasky Mesa.
For information and reservations, call (310) 858-7272, ext.
116. Information on the
Preserve’s history and activities,
as well as details on many other
park sites, is available by visiting
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