Valencia Peak Trail

Definitely one of the best hikes I’ve ever been on. We started extremely early so by the time we got to the peak, all we could see were those early morning overcast clouds. It really gave us that feeling of being at the top of the world. I would recommend to anybody, especially if you are camping at the Montana De Oro State Park.
Be sure to bring plenty of water and wear sunscreen (little shade). Also, there are some rocky/​loose gravelly parts after the halfway point so wear proper shoes for safety.

Whether you’re a beginner or experience hiker, Valencia peak trial will spark your interest. Valencia peak trail is a well maintained trail with gorgeous panoramic views of Los Osos coastline (including Morro Bay) and the Montana De Oro mountain ridge. At first that trail starts off easy then progress to a medium hike.
A few tips: Exercise caution in certain spots due to loose terrain. Keep a look out for the U.S. Coast & Geodetic Survey Marker located on the peak, and Sunscreen is a MUST.

I’m a tenderfoot when it comes to hiking. I don’t do it for the exercise (although that’s a nice side effect of walking up a small mountain). I do it to see something new, interesting and cool; I like the reward of a nice view of something at the end of the journey. I realize that’s probably the outdoorsman equivalent of saying I only listen to Top 40 songs. In that vein Valencia Peak is like a new LMFAO song about party rocking bundled with a trip to Mars in a purple rocket with stripper poles. I have no idea what any of that means but that’s what I said to my friend and I stick by it.
Standing at the trailhead along Pecho Valley Road across from the very popular Bluff Trail, my eyes are being overstimulated and I’m still standing next to my car adjusting my selfie stick. Ultramarine blue water crashes into the bluffs on either side of the sandy cove just below me. The weather is breezy and chilly even at noon and few people are on the beach. A small dog runs along the wet sand playing chicken with each incoming wave, its yapping carried up to where I’m standing by the steady onshore wind. As a person accustomed to SoCal hikes that start, continue and end in some kind of dry, brushy desert canyon full of lizards and horse manure, the multitude of the sights and sounds of the Central Coast briefly pop my Orange County bubble of track homes and Chipotles to show me a small peek of what Nature actually is like without a weekly groundskeeper.
Like a well-​paced story, each of the three or four sections of the four mile round-​trip hike has its own moods and impressions. A long ridge during the second half of the hike up has you looking down at deep canyons to either side of the trail while the peak and its final switchbacks tower some 600 feet above you. It’s a wonder more people aren’t hiking and enjoying the constant postcard-​worthy vistas literally surrounding you. In the end this is what makes the hike so memorable for me; it is one that truly validates the adage that it really is about the journey and not just the destination.
Final tips: There is very little shade on the trail so bring your sunscreen, hats and anything else you need to protect yourself from melanoma. A lone picnic table near the halfway point where Badger Trail crosses the peak trail could be a scenic spot to share a sandwich, although some tall brush and the way it’s set off the path probably blocks some of the westerly view. Prepare for the fact that none of your photos will accurately represent what you see with your own eyes.