Ho Ho Outside You'll Go!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! After some cheers and beers, or in between both, head out on an adventure the whole gang can enjoy. From hot springs to a hellhole you'll actually love, here are a bunch of good ways to explore outdoors this season.

Week: 12.20.2018
Regions: Southern CA

Heavenly Hellhole

Hiking Hellhole Canyon Country Preserve in Pauma Valley

Rounding up some friends to go to a hellhole? Maybe it doesn't sound appealing, unless you're talking about Hellhole Canyon County Preserve. Its 1,907 hilly acres are home to a strenuous 4.9-mile trek with 750 feet of gain (and opportunities to extend for those who want to test t
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Arboretum Season

Holiday Escape to Fullerton Arboretum

All is not always calm this time of year, but peace reigns at Fullerton Arboretum, a quiet 26-acre oasis in the middle of urban Orange County. It’s on the campus of Cal State Fullerton, and with most of the campus closed for the holidays, this is the perfect time to take a stroll
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Yosemite Discounted Winter Stay

Yosemite Discounted Winter Stay

1) Stay More, Save More Holiday season, weekend escape, a place to take your Valentine: Enjoy a winter getaway to Yosemite Valley Lodge, complete with spectacular views and delightfully good rates. Save up to 40% on the “Stay More, Save More” promotion. 2) Thunder Wonder The tall
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Multiple Choice Hot Springs

Hike and Soak at Travertine Hot Springs

Travertine Hot Springs stands apart from other Eastern Sierra soaking sites for the astounding way that rock formations convey water to its primitive pools. Craggy ridges of travertine, 10 to 20 feet high, rise from salt-caked meadows and pinyon pine–covered hills. Climb up on on
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A Valido Point of View

Hiking Valido Trail to Aliso Peak in Laguna Beach

When you reach Aliso Peak via Valido Trail in Laguna Beach, you’ll be close enough to the blue Pacific to see the detail of the waves crashing upon the shore, but high enough for a sweeping perspective on the grandeur of the SoCal coastline. This lightly trafficked, 1.1-mile (one
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Verdugos on Draft

Hiking Wildwood Canyon Park in the Verdugo Mountains and Beer Tasting at Brewyard Beer Co.

Hiker on a trail at Wildwood Canyon Park in Burbank
Test your vitality and revive your energy via a 3-mile (round-trip) out-and-back trek in the Verdugo Mountains and a hoppy reward at nearby Brewyard Beer Company or at a tasty
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Trending Stories NorCal

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  1. Aloha from California

    Say Aloha without leaving California with a 7-mile out-and-back hiking adventure to Lake Aloha in El Dorado National Forest. You can also camp here, a premier place for stargazing.

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  2. Sequoia Re-opens Crystal Cave

    Step inside Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park's hidden world by visiting the newly re-opened Crystal Cave—the only cave in the parks open to the public. Closed for four years, this rare marble karst cavern is welcoming visitors once again, but only through the summer season!

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  3. Easiest Best Hike in the World

    Choose the easiest and most view-rewarding hike in Yosemite. Okay, we’ll go first: the combination of hiking to Sentinel Dome and Taft Point. Both of these lookouts are within a couple miles of each other on Glacier Point Road

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  4. Hiker in the forest at Mount Sutro in San Francisco

    San Francisco's Middle Earth

    No need to travel to New Zealand to visit Middle Earth. San Francisco’s Mount Sutro Open Space is practically Hobbiton—a hidden “shire” in the middle of the city. Okay, maybe not quite as magical, but still an incredible place to take a hike in city limits.

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Trending Stories SoCal

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  1. Can't Top This

    San Francisco’s Presidio was already a fantastic place to hang out for the afternoon, a beautiful site within the largest urban national park in the United States (the Golden Gate National Recreation Area). And Presidio Tunnel Tops is like a cherry on top. Make that two cherries on top, with the newly opened (July 2025) Outpost Meadow, a 1.5-acre green space located at Old Mason Street across from the Crissy Field Marsh in the Presidio.

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  2. Underground Garden

    Looking to escape the summer heat? Head to Fresno and discover its cool secret: the Forestiere Underground Gardens–an enchanting garden and architecture oasis like no other.

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  3. Volcanic Activity

    Northern California is home to one of the most unique ecosystems in the country: Lassen Volcanic National Park. The region features geothermal areas, including the largest dome volcano in the world, Lassen Peak. Hike to the top of this active volcano on a 5-mile out-and-back.  

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  4. Oh Ryan

    Sure, it’s those whimsical trees that give Joshua Tree National Park its marquee billing; but this beautiful landscape also has surrounding mountains and its night sky—one of the darkest in Southern California and designated an International Dark Sky Park. Joshua Tree has four allowable stargazing parking lots, and a newly opened haven for spending the night nearby...

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