Leader: Micah Whitson
Location: Turtle Rock Community Park (1 Sunnyhill, Irvine, CA 92603
Directions: From Culver Dr: Turn Left on Campus Dr. Turn left on Turtle Rock Dr. Turn left on Sunnyhill. Turn right into the parking lot
About the Run: We’ll cross over Shady Canyon Dr and head towards the Shady Canyon Trail. Upon reaching the trail we will make a right and head towards Bommer Canyon. About a half in we cross over a bridge and take a slight left heading towards Bommer Canyon. At ~0.7 miles arrive at bathrooms/water fountains, we will run up the Bommer Meadow Trail behind the bathrooms. At ~1.2 miles and two more bridge crossings we will reach the junction of Bommer Meadow and Nature Loop Trail. We will keep right and head up the Nature Loop Trail. At mile 1.75 we will reach the end of Nature Loop Trail and cross over Bommer Canyon Rd and climb Bommer Pass Trail. After a ¼ mile climb and descent we will reach the junction of Turtle Ridge Trail and West Fork trail at mile 2.4. We will keep right and head up Turtle Ridge Trail. The Turtle Ridge Trail is a mile long hill, consisting mostly of switchbacks. We will reach an elevation of 1040 feet at the peak (mile 3.5), one of the highest points in the San Joaquin Hills. There are great views of the Santa Ana Mountains and San Gabriel Mountains at the top (if it is clear). After reaching the peak and taking in the views, we will continue along the Turtle Ridge Trail descending sharply after a half mile flat section. At mile ~4.8 keep to the left and head downhill towards Summit Park Drive. At mile ~5.2 turn left on Summit Park Dr. We will pass by Las Lomas Community Park, where there are bathrooms and water. Turn right on Turtle Ridge Dr. We will pass by Mariners Church and the farmers market and turn right on Bonita Canyon Rd. Turn right on Shady Canyon Dr, which we will take back towards Bommer Canyon and then Turtle Rock Park. The route is 8.2 miles with ~1000 feet of elevation gain. The run can be extended by adding miles on the Shady Canyon Trail or shortened by running any distance out/back.
Map of the route: https://onthegomap.com/s/r9bd18u5 can be downloaded as a GPX file and loaded onto GPS watch