A relatively gentle hike that beat up my ankles a bit because I went a little too hard with other hikes in the weeks preceding. I started later in the day to beat the heat and hiked the last few miles back in the dark.

This is a comparably flat trail, until the end. The final ascent is a scramble at times, so be prepared mentally after being lulled into complacency after all those miles of gentle rolling hills! There's also some up/down before reaching the final ascent. Of note, while there's not insignificant shade in the beginning, as one's down in the trees, there is almost no break from the sun for much of the trail, which made for a hot hike, even later in the day. There are also a lot of trail junctions, so make sure you bring navigation and know your planned route.

The trail was mostly in good condition, but some parts, like the Bear Canyon Trail (which runs parallel to the Bear Ridge Trail), were heavily eroded in the middle. I took Bear Ridge on the way back, and a bit longer, it's the unquestionably more scenic choice. It was also in better shape than Bear Canyon. Bugs were annoying, in that they constantly hovered around my head. However, they didn't bite — yay! I was also careful to navigate around a few bushes buzzing with bees. Parts of the trail were also muddy and didn't smell the best, I imagine because of standing water and also animal droppings.

View from the top is lovely, although the trail overall is one of the less stunning eligible hikes, in part because of the lower elevation. That said, is any hike in SoCal not completely gorgeous? Steep (no pun intended…) competition!