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Located on the outskirts of Anaheim Hills and Yorba Linda, lies 500-acres of Gypsum Canyon Wilderness located within the OC Parks’ Irvine Ranch Open Space.
After being opened to the public in November 2023, approximately 2,000 people have visited Gypsum Canyon Wilderness. There are seven trails in total ranging from easy to moderate in difficulty allowing options for varying levels of mobility and outdoor experience.
Benjie and Arlene Garcia from Ontario, Calif. said Gypsum Canyon Park is one of their favorite trails to hike, amongst other hikes at the Irvine Ranch Open Space like Red Rock Wilderness and Limestone Canyon Nature Reserve.
“I like it personally because [the hike is] about five and a half miles so with my experience of hiking, it’s doable,” said Arlene Garcia. “It’s not time consuming where you have to spend a full day or half a day hiking.”
Lisa Roxas from Irvine, Calif. also enjoys hiking at OC Parks with Gypsum Canyon due to the less crowded trails, especially in comparison to Crystal Cove.
“There’s a lot more to see here,” said Roxas. “There’s more vegetation and there’s a lot of different trails that you can get on that are not as crowded.”
Roxas hikes at least twice a week and was drawn exploring the new space due to the Wilderness Access Day event through the Let’s Go Outside website.
Featuring rock formations believed to have formed between 16 to 20 million years ago, Gypsum Canyon Wilderness is home to many plants and animals; including coast live oak, western sycamore, mule deer, red-tailed hawks and California gnatcatchers.
With 6 miles of trails for hiking, biking and horseback riding, visitors can take in the expansive views of the surrounding landscape and colorful rock formations from two scenic overlooks.
Gypsum Canyon Wilderness is accessible through scheduled guided and self-guided activities and programs including Wilderness Access Days and scheduled early morning hikes. While registration for Wilderness Access Day is not required, access is first come, first served until parking capacity is reached.
There are approximately 100 parking spaces within the parking lot, which includes space for horse trailer parking. OC Parks also provides picnic tables and portable restrooms that are accessible to visitors.
Visit ocparks.com/events for a full list of upcoming activities and programs.
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