Panorama Nature Preserve

With the many things that have been going on in my life, I knew it was time for me to get rejuvenated. I thought of going to Disneyland, Knott’s Merry Farm or even LA Zoo Lights but in the end, decided against it all simply because I didn’t want to spend money. I’m sure I’ll go to one of these places in the near future, but it’ll be on a day when it’s less crowded and a little cheaper.

So, what did I decide to do? On a whim (kind of), I decided to visit the Fullerton Arboretum however it didn’t exactly work out for me since their free parking lot was packed. In fact, getting in and out of the parking lot in itself was a bit of a chore. I thus decided to go elsewhere.

Not far from the Fullerton Arboretum is a place called Panorama Nature Preserve. I don’t think a lot of people are aware of Panorama Nature Reserve and I have a funny feeling the locals that live near the reserve want to keep it that way.

I say this because the reserve is basically located in a pretty exclusive area. While anyone can access this area where there are nice homes on hills, only cars with a permit are allowed to park on these hilly streets.There are parking signs that state permit only. There are even roads that state they’re private roads. If that’s not exclusive, then I don’t really know what to say. Parking at the entrance to the reserve is available but you and your vehicle need to leave by sunset at the latest.

Honestly, I wasn’t sure what to expect with the Panorama Nature Peserve. A part of me thought I’d run into some complex trails but it wasn’t complex whatsoever. This turned out to be a good thing since I had on the wrong type of shoes and felt it whenever I had to walk over rocks. In addition to not being complex, the trail was not lengthy. However, it’s easy to make the visit a lengthy one if you go all the way down and walk/jog along a seemingly never-ending white fence. Although doing this will mean you’re off the reserve grounds, it means you’ll get additional exercise. I actually did this for a while before I decided to give up and go back uphill to the reserve.
The view from the top of the reserve was just alright to me since I’ve seen better views elsewhere before . Despite this, I managed to get some nice photos and even overheard some guy’s amusement of the view. Translation: you might find the views to be amazing even though I just found it to be OK.

There’s no bathroom so if you’re going to come here, make sure to expel your waste(s) beforehand. Also, there’s a golfing center near the reserve, so watch out for golf carts and make sure to not go into the golfing grounds. (Yeah, just another sign of exclusivity and privilege! I want to share that I caught a golfer in a golf cart look at me and it wasn’t exactly a friendly look. All I can say is that I had a right to be on the reserve and this guy probably felt otherwise due to his privileged lifestyle. Meh.)

Access to the Panorama Nature Preserve is free. If you want alone time, this place will be a treat for you since it’s not crowded or at least wasn’t crowded when I went.

Although I’ve experienced better hikes and trails, I enjoyed the Panorama Nature Reserve for what it was. I also kind of liked the feeling of exclusivity without actually living in one of the exclusive homes adjacent to the reserve. Because my time at the reserve wasn’t lengthy, I had the opportunity to do additional nature viewing and walking afterwards upon making another visit to the Fullerton Arboretum.