In the hills and trails along Placerita Canyon Road, volunteers with SCV Trail Users gathered at the Golden Valley Ranch and East Walker Ranch open spaces to work on local trails on Saturday for National Trails Day.
According to its website, SCVTU is “comprised of passionate trail users who build, maintain and advocate for multi-use off-road trails in and around the Santa Clarita Valley area. SCVTU was formed in response to trail closures in the Santa Clarita area, and remains a strong advocate of safe and equal access for all non-motorized trail users.”
Among those who spearhead the initiative are Tony Arnold and Ken Raleigh, who focus on the removal of invasive mustard for the continuation of trail use.
“Santa Clarita owns a lot of open space around, and we’ve helped them design and put trails in these open spaces and they’re really loved by the community for hiking and biking and even equestrian,” Arnold said. “The problem is in the spring this mustard, invasive species, grows and the trails become unusable.”
According to Arnold, nearly 20 volunteers came to clear the trails, with an average of 15 to 40 volunteers attending on average during the once-a-month cleanups.
“We try to do this once a month until summertime. Hikers love it because if you try to use the trails without [cleaning], you can’t see potential snakes down there, it’s really hard to see where the trail goes. This grass grows very thick, and when you get done, it’s open wider than 4 or 5 feet, and it’s really clean and easy to see where you go.”
Due to the moisture in the ground, the invasive species grow so fast from February to June that they need to be removed several times, according to Arnold.
“These trails get a lot of use. Just over the hill is the Fair Oaks Community. If you were over there you’d see a lot of hikers. The state and the Forest Service have trails over on this side,” Raleigh said.
“They all connect together. There’s 40 or 50 miles of single-track trail that connect together. They take you all the way down to [Highway] 14 and [Interstate] 5, out to Sand Canyon, over to all the neighborhoods, over to just over the hill and Target. It really makes for a great resource for the community to hike and bike on,” Arnold added.
Jim Zoller and his family have made these volunteer days an enjoyable tradition.
“It started because my son needed to get volunteer hours at school … he enjoyed it so much, we just kept coming back. He went way beyond whatever volunteer hours he needed just because we’re hikers, we like to be outside. So we’re giving back to the trails that we use,” Zoller said. “It’s fulfilling being with other like-minded people in a beautiful environment.”
Joining other volunteers who appreciate Santa Clarita’s nature, Zoller encourages residents to be mindful of the city’s trails.
“People should keep in mind to not throw their trash in a natural area. We’re so fortunate to live so close to so many trails, and get out to enjoy them, but respect nature, animals and plants,” Zoller said. “We’re fortunate to have all these trails so close to us, and that the city takes the time to invest and make sure that they’re maintained.”
