Day 38: Solstice Canyon

Day# 38: Solstice Canyon
Rising Sun Trail/Solstice Canyon Trail
Solstice Canyon- Malibu, CA
Sunday, August 2nd 2015
Time: 3 hours, 17 minutes
Pace: 47:13/mile
Distance: 4.18 miles
Elevation Gain: 769 feet
Dogs allowed?: Yes

Directions: 
 From Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu:
Drive south on PCH for 2.2 miles to Corral Canyon Rd
Turn left onto Corral Canyon Rd and drive 0.2 miles
At the sharp left turn, continue straight onto Solstice Canyon Rd
Drive 0.3 miles to the parking area
Large paved parking area with bathrooms. This is a popular trailhead and parking can fill up fast. If parking is full there is some room on Corral Canyon Rd to park and walk in. Just make sure you are all the way off the road.

Wanted to go hiking with my sister and my niece today so I suggested this spot as it has some interesting ruins for my niece to explore and some interesting boulder climbing as well. We headed down to the trailhead only to find the parking area full. So we headed back out to Corral Canyon Rd and found a spot to park just up the road and walked in to the trailhead.

Mila inside a tree just after coming off Corral Canyon Rd

 We decided to start on the Rising Sun Trail as it gains elevation and we figured the easy walk down the canyon on the way back would be a better way to end the hike. After climbing a bit we found this windmill that Mila thought was really neat.
 

Mila and Colby at the windmill

With my sister, niece and their dog Colby in tow, we headed up the trail to the top of the Canyon. Great coastal views up here and a nice winding trail along the canyon walls.

Interesting house on the bluffs above the canyon

Danielle and Colby headed up the Rising Sun Trail

 
 After reaching the ruins at the end of the canyon, we stopped for a quick snack break and explored the ruins a little bit. Neat little spot back here with lots of shade and spots to sit and relax.

 After checking out the ruins we headed up to the little waterfall. It had just a slight trickle but was still a cool spot to visit. Just a note, dogs are not supposed to go past the ruins, so keep this in mind if you bring your furry friend.

Mila near the waterfall

The trickle at the falls

 After a short pitstop for a virtual cache, we headed down the easy, wide Solstice Canyon Trail back to the car. Found another tree with a hole to climb through on the way back as well. Fun spot to hike and easy enough to bring the whole family. Highly recommend this one.

Mila found another tree to climb through