San Diego County is the place to get walking. There is an abundance of open spaces in which to enjoy spectacular views, wildlife sightings, far-from-the-madding-crowd tranquility or a heart-cranking climb up a steep hillside trail.

Two of my favorite walking spots: Hollenbeck Canyon in Jamul; and Goodan Ranch/Sycamore Canyon Open Space Preserve, which stretches between Poway, Santee and Lakeside. Both contain thousands of acres of former ranch land, with a variety of habitat and topography. And both are within a half-hour drive from downtown San Diego. These areas are remote enough to remain uncrowded, yet feature well-maintained and easily accessible trails.

At 3,200 acres, Hollenbeck Canyon is accessed from Honey Springs Road, just off Highway 94 (Campo Road) south of Jamul. The main trail is about 4.5 miles out and back, passing first through a meadow above which hawks and other raptors are often seen hunting for rodents. Then the trail angles to the right along a flat, riparian area. A small stream is bordered by magnificent oaks and stately sycamores.

In the trees, woodpeckers peck and warblers warble. To the side, hills of coastal scrub and boulder outcroppings provide a more austere, but no less enticing view. Leaving the shade of the stream bed and becoming somewhat rocky, the trail gradually climbs up several hundred feet in altitude, along the eroded wall of a steep gorge, with views of the imposing Otay Mountain and Lyons Peak ahead. There's a sweeping vista of the seemingly endless expanse of the canyon behind. It then drops back down to an oasis of green trees along the stream bed, a great spot to stop for a snack before turning back.

Hollenbeck Canyon is managed by the Department of Fish and Game, and there are no services, other than a port-a-potty in the parking lot, where, incidentally, the Border Patrol usually parks a van.

The Goodan Ranch Visitor's Center.

^{Photo by Wendy Lemlin}

Sycamore Canyon Preserve, including the 325-acre historic Goodan Ranch, consists of 2,272 acres of coastal sage scrub, chaparral-covered boulder-strewn hills, grasslands, riparian habitat and oak woodland. More than 10 miles of trails lead to grand vistas, abundant wildlife and the ruins of the 1938 ranch buildings, which burned in the Cedar Fire of 2003. The park is managed by the San Diego County Parks Department for the enjoyment of hikers, mountain bikers and equestrians. Despite being blessedly uncrowded, is extremely user-friendly, with troughs of water for horses, dogs and wildlife scattered along the trails. There's an impressive, two-year-old Visitor’s Center, which houses an abundance of rest rooms, as well as cultural and environmental exhibits.

There are two entrances to the park, the Goodan Ranch staging area (at 16281 Sycamore Canyon Road in Poway) and the entrance to the more rugged hills of Sycamore Canyon (at 13920 Highway 67 in Lakeside). When I use the Poway entrance, I start by following the one-way trail to Martha’s Grove, inclining along the face of a ridge, wending down through the verdant grove of oak trees and then through coastal scrub to the main trail through flat meadows to the Visitor’s Center. For an even better workout, I enter at the Highway 67 staging area, and hike that trail up and down the steep hills, leveling out in the flat area near the Visitor’s Center and back up by way of Cardiac Hill.

Check it out on Sunday (November 22), when Supervising Park Ranger Maureen Abare will lead a moderately difficult three-mile ecology walk from 8:30-11:30 a.m. Meet at the Highway 67 staging area. Call 858-513-4737 or click for more information HERE.

(Want to sugest another area for great hiking? Leave us a comment.)