Continue on to Oak Canyon Dr 3480 East and Turn Left Find a Place to Park Near Berghalde Ln
Directions to Park
The entrance to the park is off of Trabuco Canyon Road in Trabuco Canyon.
By expanding the Google Trail map on the right you can easily ascertain the best way depending on your location.
ParkingThe parking fee is $3 during the week and $5 on weekends. There is ample parking inside the park. Park Hours
7:00 am to sunset. Dogs
Dogs are allowed in the park however, except for Mesa Trail, dogs are not allowed on the trails. Facilities
There are several restrooms in the campground area. Two additional restrooms can be found along Hoffman Homestead trail. Water fountains are next to the restrooms. See map on right for additional details. Mountain Lions
There are plenty of signs warning of mountain lions, so stay alert. Newsletter
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O'Neill Regional Park
O'Neill Regional Park, located at the eastern edge of Orange County, is significantly less crowded than the more expansive Whiting Ranch Wilderness Park which is just a few miles to the west. Unlike Whiting Ranch, O'Neill Regional Park feels more urban than wilderness; the sounds of traffic and the sight of homes seem omnipresent. What sets this park aside is the attached campground along Trabuco Canyon Road. The trail network is not particularly extensive which explains the lukew
The park highlights are the abundance of oaks clustered along Live Oak Canyon Road and the view from Vista Point which is the highest point in the park at a respectable 1,492'.
The following map is provided by OC Parks:
I've noted one loop which covers almost entire park ... O'Neill Loop:
| Trail Info... | |||
| Trail Name | Distance | Elevation Gain | Difficulty |
| O'Neill Loop | 4.5 miles | 600' | Moderate |
| Trails and Map | ||||||||||||||
| | ||||||||||||||
| O'Neill Loop (4.5 miles) -- Starting at the northern edge of the parking area proceed north along Coyote Trail. For the next 1.2 miles the trail,  for the most part, parallels Live Oak Canyon Road, one of the most scenic drives in Southern California. The oaks and sycamores provide a serene and tranquil setting. After 0.3 miles you have to cross a paved road to continue onto Hoffman Homestead Trail. This trail is easy to miss...so look for it. Hoffman Homestead Trail continues north for almost a mile and maintains the  oak canopy feeling; the trail is mostly flat with very little elevation gain. At 0.9 miles turn left on Vista Trail. Initially, the canopy feel continues but before long you are out in the open and the climb to the top begins. The climb is pretty steady and there are a few switch-backs along the way. Just before reach the top, Vista Point, there is a very steep stretch of 50' or so. On clear days, Vista Point, elevation 1,492', offers great views in several directions...the look towards the nearby Santa Ana mountains and Santiago Peak is especially appealing. Just down from Vista Point you turn left on Live Oak Trail and begin making your way back towards the parking lot. This entire stretch, of almost 2 miles, is out in the open with no shade. The views along the way aren't bad but for the most part they are views of the surrounding residential areas. The trail winds it's way leisurely down the mountain. Just before you reach the western parking area you turn right on the Edna Spaulding Nature Trail. This short loop is a fairly easy 0.8 mile addition which includes a few old oaks/scyamores, sage and chaparral. When you've completed this loop it's only 0.1 miles to the parking lot. For a pictorial presentation of this park click here. |
Running
With the exception of the Edna Spaulding extension, the above
loop represents a fairly challenging 3.7 mile run. Another shorter run is taking the Coyote Trail and Live Oak Trail loop which is about 2.5 miles. This course is almost all fire-road and includes a very decent climb. Any run which includes Vista Point is sure to get the heart pumping.BikingCoyote Trail and Edna Spaulding Trail are closed to bikes.
Accordingly, that means you'll have to use several of the paved roads within the park to form a loop. Vista Trail is clearly the most challenging trail within the park and is probably best taken going down. Live Oak Trail and Coyote Canyon Trail (not to be confused with Coyote Trail) are the best ways up. Given the limited number of trail options there usually aren't a lot of bikers in the park.Hiking This park has just enough highlights to add this to your list. The oaks and sycamores along Trabuco Canyon Road are a delight and the views from Vista
Point are terrific. The loop described above offers enough variety to make it both scenic and a good way to get some exercise in. For those that don't care to do much in the way of climbing you can stay along the paved road which parallels Live Oak Canyon Road. This stretch of a mile is a delightful, peaceful setting under a tree lined canopy. There are even a couple of restrooms along the way. Photo GalleryO'Neill Loop...
Click on the lower portion of the photo to start slidesOhow
More Info
For additional information...
O'Neill Regional ParkTell Us What You Think
Source: http://www.runbikehiketrails.com/O%27Neill-Regional-Park.html
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