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We hiked from Laguna Beach to San Clemente with L.A. Times writer, Dakota Kim.  The weather was balmy, the inns charming, the dining exquisite. It was a mid-summer weekend and Angelinos crowded the beaches,  Great for people watching, but we also had long stretches to ourselves.  Dakota wrote this wonderful article "Hiking inn-to-inn from Santa Monica to San Diego without a tent. Here's how to go inn-to-inn."  It describes our journey together plus provides great information on hiking150 miles of the Southern California Coast.  This is a great supplement to Walkabout Malibu to Mexico: Hiking Inn-to-Inn on the Southern California…

There is a surge of popularity for hiking from inn-to-inn in Europe, and the same is true in California.  Adventurers hike trails connecting coastal villages along the wild Pacific.  They trek through the majestic Sierra Nevada Mountains, along the serene beaches of Southern California, and through the parklands around the San Francisco Bay.  Each day ends with a comfortable bed, a hot shower, a good meal, and perhaps even a therapeutic massage or a soak in a hot springs.

WHAT DRAWS US TO DISTANCE HIKING?

“I only went out for a walk and finally concluded to stay out till sundown, for going out, I found, was really going in.”  -John…

This moderate four-day, 27.3-mile walkabout hikes some of the most alluring swimming andsurfing beaches in the world as well as rugged rocky shores under steep cliffs that you will share with sea birds, seals, and dolphins.  You may want to pause from hiking each day to swim in the luxurious waters of the Pacific.

Start this hike in Newport Beach.  It has the feel of an old-time Southern California seaside hamlet.  Eateries and watering holes surround the pier.  Live music spills out of taverns on balmy evenings. 

Day 1 hikes 7.2 miles to Crystal Cove State Park.  Walk Newport’s Ocean Front Promenade, take the ferry to Balboa Island, and stroll along the harbor to…

The American River starts high in the peaks of the Sierra Nevada.  It winds and crashes through deep canyons down to the foothills where it eventually is tamed to form Folsom Lake.  Released again, it flows wide and powerful to meet the Sacramento River.  This moderate 66-mile, four-day walkabout starts in the foothill town of Auburn and descends downstream along the river.  It hikes back in time through California’s gold-rush history visiting Old Town Auburn, Folsom, and Sacramento.  On this hike, you’ll enjoy charming inns, excellent restaurants, live music, a brew pub, and old-time saloons.  

Looking for a fun weekend hike?  The first two days of this walkabout…