Peters Canyon Regional PArk
Peters Canyon has a special place in my heart. There is something just so cool about it that I can’t quite explain. Its a lovely place to take a hike, but there is not much shade so be sure to bring sun screen and proper clothing!
There are two places I like to park, one is paid and one is free. The paid parking lot is closer to the reservoir and you’ll have way more options as to what trails you want to take. The free parking is by Bent Tree Park and will basically put you at the very bottom of Peters Canyon.
The habitats in here vary quite a bit, but for the most part it is a lot of dry dusty trails lined with shrubs and a few trees. My favorite thing to do is visit the creek where it feels a lot cooler. If you’re lucky you might even see some crayfish!
8548 Canyon View Ave, Santa Ana, CA 92705
My Visit:
Date: May 30, 2026
Time: 12:30 pm - 2:30 pm
Weather: Sunny ~80 F - 90 F
Habitat: Dry and dusty trail lined with bushes and trees. The creek below the trail was full of lush green plants.
Observations:
It was extremely hot when we visited, I suspect this was the reason we didn’t see too many birds flying around. I noticed a ton of different plants on our hike. There were lots of flowers, my favorite being the Southern Coastal Bushmallow. It has a lovely shade of pink and grows in clusters that almost make them look like natural bouquets.
The creek was very active with life probably due to the fact that it was significantly cooler with all the shade and water. We saw a few red dragonflies zooming around probably hunting for mosquitos. We also were able to see a couple of crayfish! It was a bit too hot to do the full loop so we just turned around after exploring the creek and went back the way we came.
Species Account:
Southern Coastal Bushmallow
Poison Hemlock
Shortpod Mustard
Common Sunflower
Sacred Datura
Flame Skimmer Dragonfly
Yerba Mansa