This can
be a very deceptive hike so after searching on the Internet for some time
and having hiked there around 3 times now, I think you and other visitors
need some reliable information about the Boney Mountain hike in Santa Monica
mountains.
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Boney Peak is a peak of the sandstone Boney Mountain formation, in Circle X Ranch Park of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area in Southern California.[4] It is one of the highest points in the Santa Monica Mountains and is in Ventura County. From the peak, you can have views of the Pacific Ocean, Channel Islands, and Mount Baldy. Plus Camarillo, Oxnard and Ventura city, Newbury park and some parts of Simi Valley. There was a big fire in May 2013 which has burnt many trees in some areas. You can see this in the beginning part of the trail. You can see this barren area (which used to be green earlier) in a panoramic view at the bottom of the page.
There are actually two ways to reach to the top of Boney Peak. Many start from Circle X Ranch in the Santa Monica mountains. However, the majority of people start from Newbury park in Ventura county. This because Circle X is a bit difficult to reach compared to easy access to the trailheads in Newbury Park. In this write-up, I am going to focus on trailheads in Newbury Park. There can be two trailheads in Newbury park itself- one on the Potrero Road where Wendy Dr ends. There is a dirt parking lot of a few cars. Or you can drive a little more West on Potrero and enter through the official parking lot of Santa Monica Mountains NPS office and start from there. See the map below for both entrances.
From Newbury park, there can be three popular versions of the Boney Mountain hike.
"This hike includes some breathtaking up-close views of the shear rock faces of Boney mountain. Follow the Satwiwa Loop trail west past a pretty pond, then bear right at a quarter mile and head toward the Boney Mountain Trail across the open grassland. Go left on the Boney mountain trail and follow above sycamore canyon to where it drops into the base of the canyon to a lovely waterfall a few hundred yards past the Hidden Valley Trail junction. Backtrack to the Boney Mountain trail and continue upwards towards the Danielson Monument, bearing left at a trail marker pointing towards the monument. From the monument/old cabin site, head south for about 1 mile to a stunning overlook of Boney Mountain, which is our turnaround point. You will see a bench like rock on the trail with an unforgettable view of the rock faces."
Remember, this is the turning point or the destination point as
per Mark Zuber. Up to this point is 7.5 miles and 1600 feet elevation!!!
We overlooked this point yesterday and kept going for the peak!!
Took us another hour or so but took us to even more staggering views.
Read about this in #2 below. However, see the image below which shows
the Boney Mountain view from this Overlook point. It is shot with
a Kodak AZ521 camera with I guess 40-50x zoom.
Directions.
As shown in the Bing Satellite image below, follow your way to the Waterfall.
This can be confusing as there are many trails mixing with each other
so print this page or do your homework right.
After you
reach the Waterfall, follow the second map below. Continue on the Danielson
fire road. DON'T turn into the trail marked as FOSSIL Trail or Old Boney
Road as shown with a red X below. You must continue straight. You will
come to Danielson's cabin of which only a chimney is left these days.
Rest for some time if needed. To continue, take the trail on the left
and you will be in a narrow but green trail. It will start getting more
challenging as you reach the Overlook point. Take a look at the Boney peak
from there. Then continue on the trail. Keep going another 1.5 miles
or so. There are no more trails mixing with each other. Keep going until
you reach some nice big rocks. Go up, be careful and enjoy the 360
views.
When you reach this overlook point, you are done for hiking alternative
#2 above. See the photo below to make sure how this point looks. The
photo shows some stunning views in the background.
Panoramic view from 360 Overlook point: To enjoy the view, to some extent, without 'wasting 7 hours' and 2000 plus calories, click on the image to download and view this in high resolution.
One more view panoramic view on the way to Overlook and 360 Overlook
point. Same thing. Click on it to view the full resolution photo:
Some more photos:
Waterfall:
The Chimney:
Birdeye view of Newbury Park with Kodak AZ521 camera.
This is Amgen headquarters in Thousand Oaks from this hike:
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