Hiking at Montaňa de Oro State Park
by Chuck Abbe
One of the real treasures we have here on the central coast is Montaňa de Oro State Park, located just outside of Los Osos. There are many recreational activities available at the park but today we are going to talk about utilizing the many hiking trails to increase our physical fitness.
Simply lacing up a pair of sturdy shoes and hitting the trail is a tremendous way to help you get fit and healthy. As you head off, recognize that not only will you be gaining physical benefits for your body but you will also increase your general sense of well-being and improve your emotional health.
Some Benefits of Hiking
A good hike can help you:
1. Burn calories to assist in weight loss.
A 150-lb person hiking a mostly flat trail for 60 minutes can easily burn 400 calories. If you carry some extra weight (such as your lunch, etc., in a backpack), add in some hills, and/or increase your speed, you can raise that calorie burn dramatically. "Just to whet your interest, you may be surprised to know that a person weighing 135 pounds, hiking with a 20-pound backpack for 4 hours at 3 1/2 mph will expend 1,358 calories, while a person weighing 150 pounds, carrying the same backpack for 4 hours at 2 mph, will burn up 1,200 calories." (Diabetic Lifestyle)
2. Decrease your blood pressure.
As you are enjoying your vigorous hike along the beautiful trail, your blood vessels dilate making it easier for the blood to flow, thereby decreasing your blood pressure.
3. Ward off osteoporosis by increasing bone density.
4. Decrease likelihood of heart disease (American Hiking Society).
5. Lower your cholesterol and increase the levels of HDL (good cholesterol), which removes the bad cholesterol from artery walls.
6. Increase your mental health by releasing endorphins (natural tranquilizers) and adrenaline.
Accumulation of adrenaline leads to muscle tension and anxiety.
7. Slow the aging process.
Hiking lubricates the joints and strengthens ligaments, muscles, and tendons. This can help immensely with chronic back pain or arthritis.
The Trails
There are miles of trails at Montaňa de Oro. They range from easy, flat routes along the bluffs to challenging climbs up several of the mountain peaks in the park. There is a Trail Map available at the Visitor Center at Spooner Ranch House that will enable you to choose a trail suitable for your exploration. Be aware that you will have to share many of the trails with horses and/or mountain bikers. There are many, however, that are available to hikers and runners (a different column!) only.
Without attempting to take you on a tour of every trail in the park, let me just whet your appetite with a couple – one easy and one considerably more challenging.
Possibly the most beautiful, and also the easiest trail in the park, is the Bluff Trail. This starts right across from Spooner Ranch House and follows along the bluffs all the way to where the park road ends at the Diablo Canyon property fence. It is approximately 2-1/2 miles, so a round trip gives you a nice 5-mile level hike along the spectacular coast line. At a good fitness clip, you could probably do it in about 1-1/2 hrs. However, the beauty is so intense though that you could easily take several hours to complete the loop. Watch for many shorebirds along the way, especially the striking Black Oystercatcher.
On the other end of the spectrum would be the challenging Valencia Peak climb. This is a very difficult trail which ascends steeply to the peak at 1347'. This is a 2-mile ascent, therefore a 4-mile round trip which will really get your heart pumping and yield incredible views of the coast.
If you want to improve your health and fitness while at the same time increasing your spiritual and emotional well-being, discover the trails of Montaňa de Oro!
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