Hiking Plus

The landscape will change from dry to green, eventually coming to a spot where sometimes you can hear the water running along the left down in a canyon. We'll stop there to share some Snacks and/or beverages to share and have a social event for 30-60 minutes, before turning around to head back the way we came. Please bring snacks and/or beverages to share.

Interesting Notes:
You will see several plants of note, and if you are interested, you can look them up before the hike. I'll mention several, and then fully describe a couple more:

Russian Thistle, Black Walnut, Caterpillar Phacelia, White Sage, Yucca, Bladder Pod.

Jimson Weed
The plant got its name from Jamestown, because in 1676, Jamestown, VA soldiers ate this plant in their salad and became psychotic for 11 days.

The leaves and seeds are used to make medicine. Despite serious safety concerns, jimson weed is used to treat asthma, cough, flu (influenza), swine flu, and nerve diseases. Some people use it as a recreational drug to cause hallucinations and a heightened sense of well-being (euphoria). All parts of Datura plants contain dangerous levels of the tropane alkaloids atropine, hyoscyamine, and scopolamine, which are classified as deliriants, or anticholinergics.

The risk of fatal overdose is high among uninformed users, and many hospitalizations occur amongst recreational users who ingest the plant for its psychoactive effects. As much as a 5:1 variation can be found between plants. It contains chemicals such as atropine, hyoscyamine, and scopolamine.

Ingesting only a few small seeds can result in serious poisoning and may be life-threatening. Ingesting even small amounts of the plant or seeds can result in confusion, frightening hallucinations, the inability to urinate or sweat, overheating, and a rapid heart rate.

Depending on the amount ingested, these troubling symptoms can last hours to many days, and in some cases can lead to death. Touching he plant can cause dermatitis.

Castor Bean
One of the most poisonous plants in the world.

The seeds contain ricin, one of the most poisonous naturally occurring substances known. Perhaps just one milligram of ricin can kill an adult. Walter White made a poison cigarette by putting in ricin, in the series Breaking Bad.

The symptoms of human poisoning begin within a few hours of ingestion. If death has not occurred in 3-5 days, the victim usually recovers. The seed causes skin irritation at the contact point. It is said that just one seed can kill a child.

In 1978, ricin was used to assassinate Georgi Markov in 1978, a Bulgarian journalist who spoke out against the Bulgarian government. He was stabbed with the point of an umbrella while waiting at a bus stop near Waterloo Station in London. They found a perforated metallic pellet embedded in his leg that had presumably contained the ricin toxin.

Castor beans are pressed to extract castor oil which is used for medicinal purposes. Ricin does not partition into the oil because it is water-soluble, therefore, castor oil does not contain ricin, provided that no cross-contamination occurred during its production.

Used in bone marrow transplants, cancer therapies, AIDS treatment, and can selectively destroy neurons by injecting ricin into nerves.

Directions:
Happy Camp
15100 Happy Camp Canyon Rd.
Moorpark, CA 93021
34.311460,-118.866110

From the 118 and from the 101:
Head to towards the intersection of I-118 and CA-23.
Exit 19A Princeton Ave., turn right (north) if coming from the east, left coming from CA-23.
Princeton Ave. north for 0.2 miles.
Left on Campus Park Dr. for 0.4 miles and continue on Happy Camp Canyon Rd. for 0.7 miles.
Follow signs to Rustic Canyon golf course.
Park on the right in gravel lot, just before golf course paved lot. Do not park in the paved golf course lot, it has a gate that closes at sunset.

The Hike
Distance: 5 miles, 3 1/2 hours
Elevation Gain: 500'
Difficulty: Fit Beginner
Pace: 2.0 mph
Dogs: No. A sign half-way says no dogs. I'm not the dog enforcer, so bring a dog at your own risk.
Restrooms/Drinking Fountains: Yes, inside the golf course clubhouse at the start, but likely closed after dark.
Parking: Free in the gravel lot next to the paved golf course lot.
Trail: Fire Road and some with powdered sand.

What to Bring:
1-2 liters of water.
Snacks and/or beverages to share
Hiking shoes preferred, but athletic shoes will be OK. They will get very dusty on this trail.
Flashlight or headlamp.

FAQ
Hiking Plus Page Links
Disclaimer / Release of Liability

Prior events to the festival:
October 2021
October 2022
October 2024
October 2025

Train Schedule, $20 each way:
Simi Valley 10:11a Carpentaria 11:27a

Return Train Options
Carpentaria 1:05p Simi Valley 2:29p
Carpentaria 3:19p Simi Valley 4:40p
Carpentaria 4:57p Simi Valley 6:22p
Carpentaria 7:16p Simi Valley 8:40p

Link to Amtrak

Train Trips
There are no machines to buy Amtrak tickets at the station and they cannot be purchased onboard. If you try to use their website from your phone, it isn’t optimized for phones and you may end up having some obscured buttons. Download the app.

Sign up for guest rewards before you purchase your ticket. Otherwise, if for any reason you don’t receive their e-ticket, you won’t have a number for recalling your purchase and you’ll have to call their customer service number to get it resent.

Meet near the tracks in Simi Valley starting around 9:20 AM.
The first photo attached represents out "approximate" path:
Link to Route

We'll start with a hike (an easy walk, no hiking shoes or poles needed) to Carpinteria Bluffs & Beach with its tide pools & tar pits, then trip around (and back & forth between) Islands Brewery, the Avocado Festival, Rincon Brewery & Giovani's Pizza, other great restaurants, etc. We'll let AMTRAK take us back to Simi Valley at the end of the day!

ALTERNATIVELY: Drive yourself and meet at the Carpinteria station around 11:27a, or look for your hiking friends on the beach-front trails, along Linden Ave, and nearby breweries.

AND: You may be able to book passage from other start locations, e.g. Chatsworth, Van Nuys, Ventura, etc...

Festival Link
The festival runs from 10a - 10p on this day.

Please comment when you have purchased your train tickets!