DMGTraining Log: Hiking the Stagecoach Trail
I headed out to Chatsworth this morning to check out the Old Stagecoach Trail that leads from Chatsworth Park South up to the Rocky Peak Fire Road. The trail west of Chatsworth are a tangled mess, so I quickly scrapped my guidebook's directions and found my way to the "Devil's Slide" mostly by dead reconing. It felt like hiking through a vacant lot.
I found my way up the "Devil's Slide" to Santa Susana Pass Rd, and across the overpass to the Rocky Peak Fire Road. After being sick for so long, I had expected to tire quickly, but I was feeling pretty good at this point, so I decided to push on to Rocky Peak. Unfortunately, knee trouble turned me around only half a mile up the fire road. (Nothing to do with previous injuries, but still worrying.) A little stretching relieved the pain completely, but I decided that continuing up the trail wasn't wise.
The pain in my knee did not return, and I returned home having covered 4.86 miles, and about 1000 ft' of elevation, in about 2 hours. Not serious challenge, but a fine first hike after being out of commission for the last couple of weeks. I'd love to return and go all they way up to Rocky Peak, but really just for the physical challenge. This is not a hike I'll be returning to for the scenery.