This is one of my first trails. When I used to be a UCI student during COVID-19, this was a great place to escape into nature near campus and overlook the Irvine landscape. However, I don't visit it these days for the following reasons: - It's overall short. - There is no designated parking for the trail. I think you could park in the elementary school during the weekends. There is also some street/residential parking. - It is inaccessible. It starts as a cement paved path and stairs which are all VERY steep. You could stop there, as there is a bench with the same view. However, hill you have to climb up to get to the top is very sharp, jagged, and steep. - I saw some big, black, chunky spiders at the top. - It is very scary and slippery to come down the rocks, and there is no alternate route. read more

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Great trail to do a sunset hike. We did a leisurely 6-mile Loop. Great views out to the ocean. Please come and create your own adventure read more

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This was my very first hiking experience! To be honest, I wouldn't consider this beginner-friendly, at least not in the beginning of the trail. There is a steep path to the top, so make sure to wear the right shoes. Definitely would recommend in the early morning or evening. It got hot real quick! (we also saw a snake towards the end!) read more

Turtle Rock Viewpoint Trail - Hiking Near Me

This was a nice paved walk. to me, this was not a hike? I just felt we were in housing tracks so much it didn't feel like we got away or found that peace you do on a true hike. But it got the job done and we all have burnt some calories. I found other dog owners so respectful even if they had larger ones being cautious with there's around my little ones, very nice etiquette of fellow dog parents. Would come back though as a walk. Unless it brought us to the wrong location? If we ever find a different location I will update this. read more

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It was a challenging trail that starts with a straight incline up a brushy hill then goes through an area behind houses, down to a steep decline to a street. Wear shoes with good traction and bring a lot of water and electrolytes. The trail takes about 2 hours or a little less depending on your pace. I'm not sure the viewpoint was worth it to be honest. Pretty. read more

Turtle Rock Viewpoint Trail - Hiking Near Me

Beautiful scenery from the top. The sunset view is amazing. Nice hike to the top. Be careful with dogs as we saw coyotes on the trail.

Easy and relaxing walk with great views of Irvine. Dog friendly. Wish more folks would pick up after their dogs. We got here a little before sunset and it wasn't crowded and we captured some great photos of the scenery. read more

Soooo I had to do some driving around to find the bottom trail head's. Most of them are in residential areas but I was not sure if it was a permit parking thing so until I have a better idea of where to park it will be 4 stars. I ended up parking at Chaparrel park. That entrance take you up a good set of cement stairs the. Gets you into the steepest point of the hike and to the highest vista point. It really is nice up there I can see this being amazing for sunset. I then did some scouting and took the trails down to find all the trail head entrances. 1- hike- the hike at the base going up is easy-moderate, if you enter from Chaparrel park.. you have a pretty good difficult steep hike then it kicks back in to moderate than easy.. in all honesty.. this is perfect for trail running with the pup.. 2- people - people for the most part were keeping their distance and wearing masks. It was not to heavy of traffic for a Sunday morning sooo I was pretty happy with it. 3- dog friendly-.. yes..... My dog does great off leash but I did keep him on leash on this run. He loved the hike and I'll definitely be doing it with him again. There are two places at the two points of the Vista that have trash cans.. PICK UP YOUR DOGS POOP... Be a responsible dog parent and pick up the poop... People run this trail and I dont want to step in it.. there are places to throw it away...put your big person pants on BAG IT , CARRY IT THEN TOSS IT IN THE BINS. Overall a good hike if I find a better place to park I'll post it.. be courteous to the neighborhood and to nature !! Cheers C-JAC read more

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Great hiking spot especially during the pandemic. There is a lot of room for social distancing. The time I was there, there were both people who were masked and unmasked. Pros: - i used the AllTrails app for the route to follow. - There is plenty of parking in the residential area across from Turtle Rock Preschool. - Some uphills, but pleasant area Cons: - some people walk their dogs and refused to collect their dog poop. So there are a lot throughout the trail! read more

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Easy loop. Used AllTrails app for directions. Started from Chapparal Park and parked in the residential area. Went up the stairs to the viewpoint. Such a pretty view of Irvine. I can see this trail being a hot spot for sunrises and sunsets. Looped around through the neighborhood. read more

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It's a very very short trail. Not steep at all. The view looks great Yelp ! It's actually not high up !!

"Getting to the top is optional. Getting down is mandatory." Ed Viesturs I enjoy that this hike is in Irvine and relatively local. There are tons of homes, so it's a big awkward to try to find the trail. It requires driving past people's neighborhoods in search for this local trail. When you get to the top it's beautiful. The hike itself is relatively paved. It's a pretty easy hike but parking can be a pain. Besides the homes/lights when you get up top, there isn't that much to see...I've been spoiled having hiked in various parts of true wilderness in Kansas, Utah, Korea, and Japan...so when I come here, I'm scaling/inflating it at 4/5 relative to southern California. My fellow comrads who are used to more strenuous and scenic routes in less city areas, please take that into account when considering this trail. read more

Turtle Rock Viewpoint Trail - Hiking Near Me

Used the trail from the All Trail App. It was a decent hike about 5 Miles. See my pictures for what the trail looks like, lots of good scenery and vegetation on the hike. But towards the end you end up walking through normal neighborhoods to get back to the cars. I'd recommend starting at the park at the bottom instead of parking on the random street it starts you at. There are multiple intersecting trails as well so you can explore and mix it up! Dog friendly trail, but please pick up your poop! read more

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Beautiful view from top of the hill. The hike was short but steep, but that's just how I like. Such a nice hike/walk if you have little time after work, the View is nice and peaceful up there either for sunrise or sunrise or at night. But he cautious for little insects, especially after the rain. The flowers are blossoming, just keep your eyes on the road. read more

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Definitely recommend during sunset or even at night. Such a vibe, especially if you're in the Orange County area.

Great easy hike, I parked in the adjacent little park next to the big park. Easy to find street parking. I start at the stairs up and went all the way till the end of the path where there is a bench that has a great view of Irvine. You can go higher for a better view but it is really rocky and not a real path up. read more

This is a fantastic hike. The views are super pretty especially during sunset. The incline is a little challenging for beginning hikers like me, but it is a lovely trail. Super beautiful nature in the middle of Irvine City read more

Turtle Rock Viewpoint Trail - cactus hehe - Hiking Near Me

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Fri late morning 4/2/21. Parking on the street was easy. We passed only a handful of people on the trail, including two dogs whose owners were considerate. This was an easy hike for Mason but there really wasn't any shade. I think we must not have followed the trail right because we found ourselves in the housing community. Or is this hike similar to Signal Hill and more of a steep walk through the neighborhood? We thoroughly enjoyed the tall grass and wildflowers with our wild and free GSD. It was a good workout with some steep pathways. I imagine this would be a great spot to see a sunset and city lights at night. But there was lots of broken glass at the top and an odd heap of stones. Doesn't look like it would be family friendly after dark. Maybe we will try this hike at another time and follow someone else's map. read more

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Easy walk with nice scenery . Great hiking trail for a weekend if you wanna stay in the area

This is NOT a hike. More like a short walk up a hill in a suburban neighborhood. The "trail" starts at the rear of Chaparral Park (next to Bonita Elementary). The first part is all paved and mostly stairs. This provides some good cardio but about the time your heart really starts pumping you are done with the stairs. The second part is a loose dirt and rock trail to the top of the hill. From the start of the trail to the top of the hill only took me about 10-15 minutes and I'm not all that nimble. There is a great view of Irvine, Costa Mesa and Newport from the top. I continued to walk a trail along the ridge line of the hills but within a quarter mile it was heading back down into the neighborhood so I just turned around and went back. I did get a glimpse of a fairly substantial snake crossing the trail on top of the hill, probably 3 feet long. Not sure what type of snake it was but definitely not a rattlesnake. If you want a short walk and get a bit of cardio along with a great view, this is your baby but only worthwhile if you live in the area. read more

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5 stars because of it's convenience. They're aren't many hiking trails like Turtle Rock in or close to Irvine. It's steep hills and different trail routes really makes it a terrific workout. Pros: French and Suicide Hills 4 miles total: About 1 and 1/2 hours. Scenic views of city lights during sunset. Dog friendly for Labradors and similar dogs. Cons: No bathrooms nearby. read more

Turtle Rock Viewpoint Trail - 1st hill sunset - Hiking Near Me

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Beautiful local hiking an walking location - a great opportunity to get a chance to view nature! Highly recommended for a weekend morning or weekday afternoon if it hasn't rained in several days. read more

Adore hiking in the hills of Turtle Rock! I'm not a trail runner, so I actually do hike these hills and get a pretty good work out. The route I do is a bit over four miles, 350 ft elevation gain (I think). What's great about hiking here is even the big hills seem manageable if you go at a slower pace. French Hill can even be fun! Pretty views around dusk / sunset. Sometimes, you can even see Catalina. read more

The view is so great. It definitely worth it to hike up the mountain and feel the night breeze. read more

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Disclaimer: no turtles. Saw a playground structure turtle but that's about it. Difficulty level: easy to intermediate, especially if you plan on climbing lots of the hills Trail: lots of bushes and shrubbery. We went mid-August and all the plants were dried and dead. Still pretty hot this time of the year, so go early or later in the afternoon! Mostly sandy but there is a sidewalk option with stairs. Certain parts were steep and slippery, so be careful. Recommend long pants unless you don't mind getting scratched by the branches and leaves. Parking: lots of free street and community parks. Super safe because it's in a ritsy Irvine neighborhood View: houses everywhere. I'm sure it's nicer when everything isn't brown. Signal: T-Mobile hates me, so there was some in the neighborhoods, but once you're up on the trail, it's pretty erratic and sketchy A nice hike. You'll see other people hiking around as well. It's one big circle, so you'll eventually find your way around. read more

Got aggressively questioned by an Irvine Police Officer around 12:15AM and threatened with a citation since, according to the police officer, "there are 'No Trespassing' signs everywhere." I told my husband and he called the Irvine Council, spoke to a lady named Renee and here's what she had to say: The name of the park is Chaparral Park (aka Suicide Hill) and it is a public park. This means, even after 10PM, authorities can ask you to leave, but that's it. They cannot force you off the park or give you tickets/citations or arrest you because it is a public park. If you do receive a ticket/citation, contest it and you'll win on this basis. However, if you are caught with booze or drugs of any kind, then that will give the authorities an actual reason to give you a ticket/citation. TLDR: Remember your rights to be in a public park and also, avoid going through the school to get to your car. Park in the neighborhood where there are no signs requiring a permit/other parking conditions. read more

Total newb hike area. DO THIS: - Start at Chaparral Park, park in the neighboring residential areas. - Climb the stairs straight up and sulk in the view. - Walk back and to your left there is a trail/pathway, climb up. Looks difficult, but looks are deceiving. - You make it to the top, sulk in the view. - Continue on the trail. Every now and again, the trails may split. Go whichever way you want. - When you reach a dead end, either hike back and do another trail or do like me and jog 1.5-2 miles around Turtle Rock back to my car (and possibly bump into a steaming hot, sun-kissed, half-naked, sweaty, baywatch-looking hunk). PROS: - Trail is totally manageable-doable. - Pretty smooth trail, with tons of small rocks at certain areas. I was able to jog/fast-walk on most parts of the trail. - Good for non-athletic people. You know, the ones that trail all the way in the back when you're running the mile in high school. - A gem for locals if you're looking to plug in a quick exercise for the day. - Nice hikers, friendly locals. CONS: - Not as scenic as I hoped it to be. - Brown. Yellow. That's all I saw. I like greenery. Can you blame me? No unusual plants and/or animals. - Boring for the most part. - Small. If you get lost, you're stupid. - Not a challenge. TIPS: - Wear sunblock. - Wear bug repellent. - Wear long pants (avoid tan lines and being scraped by twigs and brush). - Wear comfy shoes with traction. - Bring water. - Bring your dog if you want. I would come back again if I'm ever looking for an easy hike, but there are tons in OC that provide a better and more picturesque hike. read more

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I have so many good memories of this place I wouldn't say its a good place for hikers, since it's short and its not much to break a sweat. I actually did this hill in heels before so I can say it ain't too bad. The last time I came here was to film. We normally film at Mt. Rubidoux in Riverside but it became too much of a drive. Once you get to the top, it's peaceful and relaxing. They have a little bench where you can stop and enjoy the scenery. There aren't many places like this in Orange County, so I don't know why anyone would complain about it. read more

One of the closest and shortest hikes by UCI. If you don't want to park in the school lot, which I didn't, you can park on Silver Crescent or Flintride. Cross Sundance and walk pass the school, then the paved walk path hangs to the right. Then you walk up about 136 stair steps and you'll see a small hill which can be conquered in 5 minutes. That's the hike. It's short and sweet and adventurous for small kids. Easier going up then coming down. Once up there, it's a panoramic view of houses, hills, and the surrounding neighborhood. No snakes spotted here. I think this is a make-out point for the younger kids. A very Do-able hike for all ages, no pun intended. read more

This was my go-to nighttime hiking/walking trail until we got kicked out by the police... This place is very close to a neighborhood and seems like the neighbors were fed up. **JUST A REMINDER: this trail closes at 10 PM and the police will give you a $250 citation if they catch you here after 10. Luckily, the police did not give us a citation, but be warned! Otherwise, I love this little trail! Bring a towel/blanket if you want to lay down because there are only sand and rocks here. The view is amazing at night, but gets really crowded on Friday nights. The hike is not hard at all, but wear sturdy shoes to not slip on the sand going up/down the hill. Parking is really easy. There's a school parking lot on Sundance, walk past the school, and you should see the stairs that take you to the trail. Easy hike, awesome view, but now there's a closing time. read more

Turtle Rock Viewpoint Trail - Hiking Near Me

Had a fun time with my friends and the view just amazing just that if we went in the night it would of been way better

If you arrive at Chaparral Park and head towards the right of it -- you'll find a staircase that leads upwards. In just a Short 10 min walk up those steps, you'll reach the top of Turtle Rock Viewpoint Trail. At the end of the trail,you'll see a metal bench there for you to sit and enjoy the hillside view. :) Easy hike; and easily accessible from the park. Just parking in the neighborhoods and walk up. read more

Turtle Rock Viewpoint Trail - Bench at top of trail - Hiking Near Me

Mark S. and I came here to try hiking for the first time! Before going on the actual trail, we had to climb a hill of stairs (based in Chaparral Park) to get to the top of a small hill. On that hill, there's a bench where you can see an already breathtaking view of the wondrous city of Irvine. Trekking through the rocks on the next hill up, you can gain access to the actual trail. We took about 1.5 hours to get to the trail and back, which was a pretty good workout for our first hike. When you go through this trail you'll find a lot of scenery of Irvine, which is great. You can see the Anteater Recreation Center as well as UCI! It's pretty amazing! I'm not actually sure if we walked through private property, but while on this trail we didn't discover any difficulties with anything in particular, so we had a great experience. Very good trail for beginners (like me)! read more

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Sure you can visit, but it's a hassle now. This upper unpaved trail is open space, but with houses right next to it. Some people just aren't considerate and have recently ruined it for everyone. This is a quiet family neighborhood filled with elementary aged children. The police are on alert because of a few dangerous idiots drinking and falling down the boulder and cacti covered hill or lighting up in dry brush. This is a neighborhood trail that has been way overhyped by young inexperienced hiker/travelers on social media. This is open space lite, it isn't suicide hill, and you can not see Disneyland fireworks from here. If you have a car then you can find way more scenic places than this. Go along the coast or into the mountains for real open space. Join OC Sierra Club and consider taking their Wilderness Training Course so you can learn more about our local wonders and safely go off trail. Rent camping equipment from REI or car camp at any number of locations you can find through https://www.reservecalifornia.com It's also a great way to prep yourself for traveling across the country or around the world. read more

Turtle Rock is a a single track hike with short steep hills and beautiful scenery. This hike is a combination of a few different trails. There's a big hill in the Turtle Rock neighborhood--just south of UC Irvine. On the weekends or evening you can park in the school's parking lot or simply park on the street. Although its fairly short, this is a pretty good beginners hike. There are different trails to take, so i would recommend looking it up on Google Maps to get an idea of the different trail start points. Hiking during the early mornings or evenings is really enjoyable. The view of the sunrise/sunset is beautiful at the top. In addition, it allows you to get a 360 degree glimpse of the cities around. On a clear day, you are able to view the Pacific Ocean out towards Newport Beach. I will try to upload some photos from my hike. read more

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It's a bit of a walk but if you scale the entire thing including the rocky hill you'll see one of the best views orange county has to offer, only bested by pelican hill maybe. Also, go at night. Enter through Bonita Canyon Elementary. read more

Do not go here at night. Was up here at 11pm and an irvine police officer walked through handing out tickets. I'm not sure how this works during the day but definitely do not do a night hike if you don't want to pay money and go to court. (The police officer was very cool about it, he really didn't want to be giving out tickets to people hanging out up there but it's just a part of his job) read more

This is one of my spots when it comes to checking out a breathtaking view of the world (aka Irvine). You simply park at the school for free in the middle of the night, cut across the little playground, and go up the hill (it's not a long hike). I've been here with one other person to 100 other people (I know it's a good place to bring staffers/workers/your entire dorm for a good bonding experience). It's pretty much always empty when I'm here too, unlike some places such as Twin Peaks in SF (which is amazing but sometimes there's more people there than there are at any other popular joint). I mean, how are you going to have a "moment" with your person if there's not much of a seclusion there? There's a reason why people check out views at night, people! All serious talk aside, I think this place is more for groups and even just a quick warm up. You can run up the hill and back down several times, so knock yourself out. I've seen dogs up here too, so grab yours or borrow one for the trip up (and down). What else? Honestly you'll only like this view if you have mad Irvine pride. You can point out where the arc, fields, etc are and think you've got mad skills. And afterwards, go chill in the playground nearby. We always do. read more

I have lived in Irvine for pretty most all of my life and I have no idea why I haven't been here before. I went here with my boyfriend and his sister during sunset, and it was gorgeous. It was not completely dark yet, but there was still a pink hue in the sky. The city lights were already on, so you could look out into the distance and see all the lights. When we came here, it was a Saturday night and I was surprised there weren't more people (it was just us and 2-3 other people). I guess there would be more people here on a Saturday/Sunday morning trying to get a work out in, since there are lots of steps here! The steps are doable though; it only took us about 10-15 minutes to get to the top. So if you're wanting to come here for a hike, I would say you're better off checking out Peter's Canyon. Here, there are concrete stairs at first, and then there is a dirt path up to the top. If you have a DSLR, come take pictrues. Super pretty! I would say that this is a family friendly trail (not the dirt path though). But where the concrete stairs end, you can still get a great view! As for parking, you can park in the neighborhood or at the school and take the stairs up. read more

Turtle Rock Viewpoint Trail - Hiking Near Me

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I'm not sure how people consider this a hike. I walked up the hill easily in sandals 9PM at night. It's a joke view .. the view of the city is nice, but the surrounding area going up this "hike" is not vibrant in life. It's full of rocks, dirt, and sand. If you want to smoke or drink something up here, be my guest. It's easy reaching the top so hopefully you don't stumble along the way. read more