Week 246: Lower Chesebro Canyon, Agoura Hills

August 08, 2021

 AllTrails Lower Chesebro Canyon, 2.3 miles. 


There were two things Barbara and I didn't know as we drove West on the 101 past Calabasas for our morning hike through Old Agoura horse country. First, the Liberty Canyon exit, a mile before our exit at Chesebro, is the planned location for the world's largest wildlife crossing, an attempt to open new land to local lions in danger of extinction. Second, Fran Pavley, namesake of the Fran Pavley Meadow trailhead, our destination on Chesebro Road, is an environmental rock star who did pioneering work on environmental and climate change legislation in California as a state senator and legislator, was the first mayor of Agoura Hills and is currently the Environmental Policy Director of the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. On the board of the Wildlife Conservation and Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, Pavley fought development of the area and is a champion of the wildlife passage over the 101. Both explain a lot about why the area surrounding our hike has been tenderly nurtured. Barbara and I missed AllTrails' suggested starting point—a pair of coyotes dashing across Chesebro Road distracted our attention away from the trailhead—but this hike is a simple loop, easy to pick up and follow at any point. We parked in a small lot, and now that we've discovered the handy-dandy AllTrails app, the our phones helped us find and follow the trail counterclockwise. As most of our post-Woolsey Fire hikes in the Santa Monica Mountains, burnt trees, dried chaparral, and fresh new flora painted a gorgeous landscape. A popular trail but not crowded, we met hikers, bikers, and dog walkers along the way, and hoof prints and road apples (watch where you step!) proved the trail's popularity for horseback riding, too. Along with the coyotes, we spotted bunnies, lizards, and hawks, and a large descent of woodpeckers feasting on burnt oaks or pecking new holes in the trunks to hide acorns. One of the most interesting features of this hike, marked by small flags peppered along both sides of the trail, was the number of plantings done by the Conservancy to replace trees lost to in the 2018 wildfire. Two-thirds of the way around we took a break at a picnic area by the parking lot, then continued south to a bridle path. An old rutted trail let us out on Chesebro Road and the Pavley trailhead and we walked back to the car from there. Aided by CalTrans, donors, the Conservancy, and Mother Nature, one day the 101 wildlife crossing will open this area to a new wildlife population surrounded by a new generation of oaks and other fauna. Can't wait to see it.




   




   


   



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