Academic-Capital

The preserve contains 4,000 acres of pristine land in both Peñasquitos and Lopez Canyons ( 1 ). Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve contains rivers, wildlife, waterfalls, birds and ancient trees. It is open to the public with a $3 car pass paid at the entrance. People on foot may enter free with no cost.  There are plenty of people walking the main trail so you should feel safe. Yelp visitors rank it 4 out of 5 for local attractions ( 2 ).  Comments include great trails, take sunscreen, and lots of wildlife. Visitors admired the overall quality of the hike and the beautiful waterfalls. As the trails are well maintained bikers and children can walk easily. On our trip, we hiked the 3.5 miles to the waterfalls and back( 3 ). Hitting a number of side trails the total trip was somewhere around 8.5 miles. Be sure to leave early, as it will take you about 2.5 hours for a round trip with some time to watch the waterfalls. We made it back just after dark and the ranger had to wait a few