I don’t how this post stands in seeking viewers. But, I owe this to myself and my blog, esp. I’m about to hit my 100th post. This is technically my very first hiking trail. Something I’ve been longing to experience and been meaning to cross off my bucketlist. I’ve been traveling in common tourist spots, mainly cities and of man-made features. To have hiked an official trail is quite an accomplishment for me.
Ojai is sorrounded by hills and mountains showcasing plenty of accessible forests that offers many outdoor activities. That’s why Ojai is Ventura’s pride, and that is why a lot of folks in the area help preserve, supervise and protect it so much from abusive visitors.
I got to Ojai’s city center and spotted the Information Center to have a better view of where I can find this Rose Valley Falls Trail as my GPS couldn’t locate its exact location. At the Information Center, the attendant so willingly accomodated my inquiries and guided me where to drive giving me a map and a note assuring that I’ll admire the drive in Highway 33.
He was right! The route to the destination alone is already a trip on its own. I stopped to a lot of vista points admiring the scenic views of Highway 33.
The supposedly 15-minute drive turned into an hour as I took a lot of pictures. I will have a separate blogpost for Highway 33.
Now for my first official hike. I was greeted by some pleasant folks that are safeguarding the place. It was admirable to see these people offering their time watching over nature and the preserving its beauty. They also guided me to which of the two trails is the Rose Valley Falls Trail.
By the way, I found out about this trail through Nobody Hikes in L.A. If you are from the area, Nobody Hikes in L.A. is THE ultimate source for your hiking needs.
As a hiking noob, I didn’t want to get so overwhelmed by extreme distance nor heights. And so I pick this very easy trail, only 30 minutes or less. The effort may be minimal but the result is extensive.
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Finally I reached the climax of my mini-hike. It has this small waterfall to where the water comes down through leafy paths as if distilling it before hitting the ground. It was quite a magnificent sight… and sound. The water trinkling is always pleasant to hear even with this small waterfall.
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I was actually surprised that this trail and waterfall, eventhough small, still attracts a good number of hikers and wannabes.
There’s a group of hikers who repelled down the side of the waterfalls.
I’ll leave this post with this… just something for the springtime.
Step by step, I’ll definitely seek more trails.
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For more of adventurous travels, why not try …
Featured Blog
Philippines, and let Sony Fugaban be your guide to the most wonderful hikes in the country. He is one of my main inspirations to go hiking. Join him and hear the Stories of (His) Wandering Feet & Mind. He has covered so many thrills and beauties of the Philippines, my favorite post …
http://yobynos.wordpress.com/2012/02/27/weekly-photo-challenge-indulge/
is his brave and oh-so daring act of crossing a rope bridge underneath ravenous crodociles. Eeek!
Categories: California, Freshly Pressed, Nature, Top Ten
Nature!
We all love it!
Thanks for visiting my blog.
Wow, I want to go know!!!! This place is like a magical scene..Great images… How as the hike?
The hike is not bad at all. No incline except if you want to explore more. The trail is easy to navigate and short.
Here comes springtime! New hikes for me on the horizon too!
Up Here! ‘Tis the season for hikers. 😀
Great shots! What a beautiful part of the world that is! Thanks for sharing. 🙂
Thanks as always Sonel. 😀
You are very welcome as always rommel. 🙂
Hehe. Oh hey, I added you on my blogroll over the weekend.
LOL! You are too sweet rommel. Thanks again. 🙂
Absolutely lovely and thanks for the flower at the end! I’m glad you enjoyed your first hike it’s so rewarding on many levels to get out there and meet up with nature. I love to walk and we have trails from a mile to hundreds of miles here. I always wanted to do a long distance one but so far only managed twenty miles or so in a day and probably won’t ever top that!
Nice Job Gilly. Little steps for me too.
The flower looks like a paper mache. There are cuts in the middle of the petals, and it really looks like it was formed with scissors.
What a wonderful serene-looking place, and perfect for hiking. Love the photos!
Thanks Jude for the compliments. Perfect for beginners, too. 😀
what a brill post with some powerful and dramatic pictures love it. 🙂
Really beautiful & wonderful post Rommel. 🙂 Each photograph is so stunning. Great post. 🙂
Oh hi Arindam. Thanks for the comment. I added you on my blogroll. 😀
Thanks a lot. 🙂
Beautiful!
Thanks for the visits melli. Your pictures are beautiful as well.
Beautiful photos. I really like the one with the rear view mirror!! It’s great to enjoy a hike and enjoy nature, no matter how far you go or how long it takes. I’m glad you savoured the moment, looks wonderful. 🙂
Thanks for visiting.
Nice waterfall and lovely flower!
I don’t normally take pictures of flowers, but that one is quite unique with its paper mache look.
I am honored to be given a special spot on this post, Rom. This is heart”melting”.
Let’s keep sharing the many lessons and wonders of outdoor adventures.
KUDOS to this!
PS
I fell in love to that flower at the end.
No probs, Sony. Your blog speaks for itself anyway. I was gonna wait for my Phil. travel and feature your blog, but I couldn’t prolonged any further.
Rom, I like the new look of your blog by the way. It’s much better than the old one. Hehe …
The pictures are more emphasized with this theme.
I know. The Journalist theme is good to bring out the pictures. But, don’t get too attached. I will changed it soon. This theme doesn’t give a lot of option to feature my older blog posts.
Each picture is more beautiful than the last! Stunning!
Thanks for the visit, Jodi. Hmmm … Jodi, nice name.
That mini-waterfall must have been such a nice surprise during the hike — refreshing and with the ‘soundtrack’ to match!. 🙂
I know. I wanted to lay a table and get a massage. Bwahahah
Looks like you had a great time.
My serious hiking days are well behind me, but I’m about ready to start a Meetup group called something like “Out & About San Diego” or maybe “Roam-a-rama” in honor of Jerry Schad who died last year.
Roam-a-rama might be copyrighted by his estate, though.
Hi Russel Ray. There is also one in Santa Monica that I know of. I know there are a lot of advantages of going with a group. They can really guide us straight to the hike other than walking around to find where. Although, I’m foresseing the cons in going in groups and dreading it outweighs the pros..
Spectacular! Nice work.
Thank You mizrhi for visiting. Will get to your blog in time.
I can imagine how cool is it to find such a strange small waterfall. Nice photos 🙂
Thanks!
Wow.. So interesting! Btw.. did you notice that green rocks (mossy stone in the waterfall?) in your picture looks like a human touches its knees? ^^
I can’t see it. Which one, first waterfall, second … which?
Anyhow, thanks for taking a keen notice to the pictures.
Picture #7. Right before the paragraph “Finally I reached the climax of my mini-hike. It has this small waterfall..” it’s awesome!
nice natural photography!
They are the best kind.
love your photos.. mother nature has a lot of wonderful places like these to be admired and respected… thanks for sharing.
Thanks! I do admire those that are guarding the places in Ojai. It is such a wonderful place to hike and see what the mother nature brings. Ventura sure is blessed with Ojai being very well preserved.
Cool photos…
Thanks Pete!
WoW! Beautiful pictures! Thanks for sharing with us. And waiting for your next post on Highway 33.
Will get on it. 😉 Now that I got freshly pressed I sure will rearrange my posting schedule and will get right on it soon.
waterfall 😀
It said in the song not to go chasing it. Well, I’m glad I did. Hehe.
🙂
nice you did or we all would miss such lovely photos 🙂
Nature and beutiful places always inspire me too. Loved your post. Keep posting. BTW, nices pics as well.
Thank you dheerajsah. It’s not hard to get attached with nature. 😀
Bro, you made it to Freshly Pressed. How cool is that?
Love you man … Keep it up!
CONGRATULATIONS!!!
PROUDLY PINOY!
SALAMAT!!!!
Beautiful Pictures! Congratulations on being freshly pressed.
Bro, I invited all my friends on facebook to check this post. You certainly deserved the spot on the Freshly Pressed page. YEHEY!!!
WOOOHOOO!!!!!
Thanks for promoting the post even further. Are you glad you are my featured post on this post? Hihi, my thank you for inspiring me.
Oh, yeah!!!
Congrats on your 100th post. And Freshly Pressed. Your world is lovely, yet please visit mine in rural Virginia!
How I wish. How I wish. Maybe someday, you never know …
Thanks for the greetings.
Then do the next best thing and visit my blog! 😉
Thank you for sharing some truly exceptional pics!
Hi Hook! I see you explore more of my blog. Thank you for visiting it.
very beautiful click…I love to see natural beautiful.
Thank You!
Your post was great. I love the trails.
val
http://valentinedefrancis.wordpress.com
Will check your blog in time. Thanks for visiting. Feel free to explore.
Oh, how I love Ojai.
Me too! Are you from around the area?
I was. I lived in Long Beach and dreamed of moving to Ojai. Now I live slightly up the coast. . .in Portland.
Well still, nice meeting you. 😀 Feel free to explore my California Category. My blog will focus on the state of California. 😉
Yes, yes.
Great blog: Great photos too, and I like that it has a story line. I also greatly admire that the photos have captions explaining their significance. So many bloggers don’t include explanations, which really detracts from the interest lkevel.
Ow wow! Great comment. Thanks for appreciating and taking a keen look at this post. I guess when it comes to some of these stuffs like hiking, it’s hard to expand the story. I myself don’t want to put too much words avoiding to just blabber and blabber. I’m glad I did just fine on this post that I get to have a great comment like what you’ve given.
Thanks.
Beautiful, simply amazing photographs!
I’m currently in the midst of writing an ebook on traveling to Singapore! Was hoping you (and your readers if you guys don’t mind) could share with me on what you’d like to know about Singapore if you plan to travel here (or anywhere for that matter)
Here’s the link to my post, would be really grateful for your inputs and comments, cheers! http://themanwhodoesntwork.wordpress.com/ebook/
Hi! Thank You. I had been in Singapore for two days and one night. I didn’t, unfortunately, get to take pictures of the place as we were there for work during the short visit. I’ll see to it to direct you to blogs I follow that had been to Singapore.
Thanks Rommel, I appreciate that. Cheers!
Looks like you had a great time, beware it is addictive! You may like my site, it has a lot of backpacking information, but also trail reports and photos.
~Slimms
http://thebackpackingjournal.wordpress.com/
Thanks for the link. I will sure look at it when I get a time. I also provided a link here. Nobody Hike in LA. You and the link sure will get along.
Great outdoor stuff for this spring!
‘Tis the season for it. 😀 I got itchy feet.
Beautiful photos and it really looks like a lovely place to go for a hike! Thanks for sharing and congrats on being freshly pressed!
It is. Good for newbie hikers, simple but resulted with a good view of the waterfall.
A beloved hike of mine…like you, I feel the journey to the trailhead on Highway 33 is half the delight! Thank you for the reminder of how lovely it is!
I know. Like I said here, I swear I took a lot of time stopping and taking pictures of the mountains, hills and the road. Are you from the area? California?
Yes! I am a Ventura local!
Woohoo!!! Nice to meet you Victoria. Always glad to meet a Ventura blogger.
Ow feel free to explore my Ventura tag. 😉
lovely!
Thanks! Hihi Your blog title really intrigues me.
Beautiful photos – thanks for sharing! Congrats on being FP!
The last photo of the purple flower is my favorite, and I really love purple. It looks like such a beautiful place. Check, it is now on my bucket-list.
I suggest checking out Potrero John Trail. It says in Nobody Hikes in LA, it’s only 6 miles north of Rose Valley. Maybe it makes your trip even worthwhile. If you do go there, sink in the views of Highway 33. Don’t hesitate stopping to vista points. 😉
very nice 🙂
Thanks for sharing the “Nobody Hikes in L.A.” link. Never heard of this before. I certainly don’t think of hiking when I think about L.A. LOL!
Love this trail!! You shot some great photos!!
Thank you. I’m no photographer but I guess the pictures came out good given the location.
Ow are you from the area? CAlifornia? You’ve done this trail?
Nice place…..
Nice photos..
n great description…..
Thanks Yogi for the visit.
Reblogged this on no holds barred… and commented:
You have awesome photographs. You must have great done a lot of exploring and hiking around this place.
Thank you for reblogging.
Wonderful pics! 🙂 I’ll have to visit someday. 🙂 Thanks for sharing.
Are you from around? California?
No, TX, but I have visited twice to S.CA and once to N.CA. Missed this spot somehow.
Wow, these photos are absolutely stunning! I would love to hang some of these in my dentistry office! Thanks for sharing your views of the world!
Weee! Strong comment you have here. Go ahead if you do decide to. Is it the flower or the waterfalls that attract you?
The waterfalls! Amazing, you took these yourself?
Love that first picture of the moss — and also the flower! Nice – and glad you enjoyed your hike! 🙂
Sure did! Nature does know art with that flower. It’s like Mother Nature cut it with scissors to perfection.
ROMMEL!!! Should I comment again? Hehe.
Congratulations on this! The hard work has paid off. You actually have a lot of “FP-worthy” posts so I hope your new readers will take time to explore your blog.
And before I forget to say it: YEYEY!!! 😀
tita buds!!!! Me so happy. Party on top of the Eiffel Tower ulet… Bwahahaha
Thanks for all the support tita buds. You are one of my inspirations too. 😉
Can I be in your FP club now? Hehe
Nature and it’s Beauty! Couldn’t say more. 🙂
… and the people who preserve their worth. 😉
Indeed! 🙂
wow its very beautiful and very touching once
You must have a reason why it’s a touching one.
I guess connecting with Nature must have something to do with it. Either what, thanks for visiting the blog.
Ojai is a jewel in the crown in what California of old use to be! Thanks for sharing your pictures of your hike on the Rose Valley Trail.
Are you from the area? California? Ventura sure is blessed with Ojai.
Had family who use to live in Ojai, so have lots of good memories of the area rommel!
I love your picture…I am agreed this is very beautiful places
good pics! awesome
Beautiful places..fantastic..
Excellent nature!
beautiful …
Really very impressive .I loved it
Congrats on being freshly pressed! Hiking is soooooo much fun, especially during this time of the year! I’m sure you’ll be doing lots more of it now.
Your photos are lovely, especially of the waterfalls!
Hi Romantic Asian Guy. I see you’re from San Diego. I will definitely explore more of the city. And without no doubt, Ima go hike, hike and hike. 😀
That’s a beautiful area. Nearby Pine Mountain has a few really nice trails to explore. I recently did a 21 mile day hike over Pine Mountain through areas of snow. It was awesome!
I’m sorry. Is Pine Mountain in California? If so I’d definately check it out.
Yes. Pine Mountain overlooks Rose Valley. If you continue on Highway 33 past the turn off for Rose Valley Falls you will drive over Pine Mountain summit before heading down the mountain’s backside and into the Cuyama Valley. There is a road that takes off from the 33 at the summit and that runs along the top of Pine Mountain for about five miles or so. Pine Mountain Summit on the 33 is about 12 miles as the crow flies from the turn off for Rose Valley, but obviously a little longer on the road proper as it is winds around the mountain landscape. Pine Mountain Ridge Road is typically closed until spring sometime when the Forest Service opens it back up for the season. It is a beautiful, relatively high mountain (~7000′) environment up there that is covered in open pine forest with great views. There are several campgrounds up there where one can also picnic for the afternoon while enjoying walks through the pine forest or whatever. On clear days you can see the Pacific Ocean and the Santa Barbara Channel Islands. Here is a US Forest Service link (via Google documents, hence the long link address) to information on Pine Mountain:
https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:Rz0r7vY7JhYJ:www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fsm9_034014.pdf+&hl=en&gl=us&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESiYlYqsMHYRrzJuyJjsvhzjW1GOJKlyjuQ4MqFxZKeEp9_W1xH-eYIS7JA5Si5jVyWiO-hqmvL62j3x-qIM-3M7ia6W5dyNIXeRNSprdF82VV2UL8cUcQtFrUtdOZQgBUDlcrP-&sig=AHIEtbQPwD3nPBElVrPHaShUptMK_b5xRw&pli=1
Oh thanks. But the trail you had is so so beautiful, but is for the extreme. I might hold it off for a while. Maybe when I get used to hiking. Just being honest.
Wow! Freshly Pressed! Congratulations Rommel! The traffic, the readers, the viewers, the commentators! Continue making amazing posts and don’t forget those amazing photos! Keep it up. 🙂
May reply pa pala. Hehe
NO! I’m done keeping it up. I’m keeping it steady. Hehe. 😀
Will do, Mikhail. Punta ko sa carinderia mo balang araw, este sa hospital mo pala.
wew! nice one Kuya Rommel 🙂 i love this post as much as I love hiking. I will have my birthday climb this coming April 14-15 🙂 congrats… kainggit nman 🙂 Keep it up bro!
Weee! Birthday climb? Is there really such a thing? If so, I might have one this year.
Ganda ng mga Coron entry, FP material.
Yep 🙂 and I’m so excited for it!
Sobrang ganda, paguwi mo dito sa Pinas, dapat magCoron ka! thanks for the compliment 🙂 hehe…
Lovely travel place & picture
Beautiful photos! I love the ones of the waterfall and that gorgeous purple flower!
Lovely I enjoyed your post
Wow! This is one exciting trail. Breathtaking views, perfect for making adventures or simply a time to meditate and gather one’s thoughts. Congratulations. Thanks for sharing all the amazing travels you made. Stunning pictures as always.
This is Great Action Pack I wish to do so, nice post 🙂
As I read this blog, my wife was reading an app called, “All Trails” looking at more trails to hike.We just begun hiking monthly.We’ve done Torrey Pines twice.Now, she wants some more challenges.I see you are in our area sometimes (San Diego, I saw the Balboa Park pics)..What a coincidence.We have video on our blog…check it out when u want:
nofrillsthrills.wordpress.com
I love Torrey Pines. I’m planning on doing the gliding flight there. Weee. Have fun on your hikes and stay safe!
The Gliding flights…I need to look into that…what’s that about?
Hang gliders. They have a port further down La Jolla. I actually have a photo post of the gliders. Did you checked out Black’s Beach…. Aka Nude Beach 😀 while in Torrey Pines?
Thanks for the info on this hike Rommel and the beautiful photos. As you know we are big hikers and it is sometimes difficult to find hikes when in bigger cities. We experienced that when we were in Encinitas earlier this year.
Well done, Rommel, and congratulations. 🙂
You have a great collection. Thanks for visiting my blog.
Great pictures! Brings back meemories. I use to go fish up at the lake. My favorite place in Ventura was Rincon.
This is the second time I heard of Rincon from a blogger. Will remember that. I always love the comments from the locals.
Great photos. I love those kind of mirror photographs! And the place looks really nice.
I think the mirror shot gives it away from the Freshly Pressed judges. Although, the flower at the end takes home the bacon.
It felt like I journeyed with you at Ojai. Every bit of thrill and excitement, we get to see through your images and felt through your words. You have the heart and passion of a great adventurer. Great post!
Apir Roms, this is LIFE 🙂
Great post! Ojai has some of the best hiking trails anywhere (in my opinion). It’s like a hidden oasis. I highly enjoy going there 🙂
http://alyknowsbest.com/
Tru dat. I always go there to hike whenever I don’t anything else going on.
Thank-you for visiting my blog! 🙂 Glad you liked “Retired Trolley.” Love your photos!
Good job for getting out there rommel. You’ll be a hiking enthusiast in no time, I’m sure. On an unrelated note, It’s nice to see you put so much care into promoting others. I have experienced any new blogs through your “Featured Blog…” on every article. Keep up the good work!
I love hiking now. Have a number of it this year. Not a lot though, I’m still not that much of an actual enthusiast like others are.
More beautiful shots…I’m so, so thrilled to have found your blog. Very nice to meet you, sir!
anne
Hi, Rommel! Still new on wordpress. Thank you for the first to like my blog. I find your photographs awesome, writing skills par excellence and insights deep for yet a young man as you are. Keep it up and keep blogging. 🙂
Congratulations on being FP! I’m glad to have found and connected with you and your blog. Blessings! 🙂
I am continually amazed at the beauty of our world. Thanks for the show.
Rommel, your photographs are stunning. That is such a beautiful place. I haven’t stayed in Ojai long enough to go hiking there, and I’ve only been there in the summer. It’s much too hot for me to hike when it’s over 100, and Ojai get pretty hot! Again, wow!!!
30 minute-hike sounds just right :D. I am like you Rommel, in choosing scenic rides that drag from 15 minutes to a whole hour. Beautifully captured nature in its purest form!