Chino Hills State Park is almost never crowded, except during a spring super bloom, when the hillsides erupt in California poppies and hordes of would-be influencers arrive to take photos for Instagram.
I had last been there in March, after a winter of bountiful rain lifted California out of drought for the first time in 25 years. The hillsides were covered in every imaginable shade of green. I joked to my wife that it looked like the park was decorated for St. Patrickâs Day.
But as the thermometer flirted with triple digits on Saturday, there wasnât another soul in sight as I pedaled through the parking lot to the start of the Telegraph Canyon fire road, desperately searching for a breeze. It felt like I had the entire, massive park to myself.
The place felt so eerily devoid of life, in fact, I began to wonder if this was a bad idea.
Too hot even for the birds
As I peddled up into the hills, birds of prey floated in the sweltering breeze above the ridges, waiting for a squirrel, or a mouse, or even a little lizard to make the mistake of moving out in the open.
Iâm a pacifist at heart, always cheering for the prey in wildlife documentaries, but I started to feel sorry for those winged hunters. It seemed the only thing dumb enough to move through that scorched landscape was me.
In my defense, I have an electric mountain bike. Itâs the kind you have to pedal, but a motor between the cranks multiplies your effort many times over: Itâs easily capable of carrying me up the steepest hills at 15-20 mph.
On hot summer days, that breeze combined with a light sweat is a surprisingly efficient cooling system. I usually can ride for hours and stay very comfortable.
But on Saturday, the faster I rode, the hotter it got. Speeding along those sun-scorched trails felt like sitting in front of a giant hair dryer. Dropping off the ridges into the canyons was like descending into a furnace.
Not just hot, but dry too
On top of the relentless heat this summer, Los Angeles, Orange and San Bernardino counties all just recorded their driest July since record-keeping began 132 years ago â and it shows.
Iâve lived in California for nearly two decades. I know how dramatic the swings in the landscape can be even in relatively normal years. But Iâve never seen Chino Hills looking quite so desolate.
I lasted only about an hour and a half before the heat became too much to bear. I imagined getting a flat and having to sit still, beneath that baking sun, to make the repair. My breaking point was when the water in my Camelback started to taste like it had come from a hot shower.
So I pointed the front wheel downhill and coasted most of the 10 miles or so back to my car. Luxuriating in the shade, sipping a LaCroix that was almost too cold to hold, I scrolled for news and saw the first reports of the French tourist who died in Death Valley after his car got stuck in mud, miles from help.
Chino Hills is no Death Valley, but I shuddered at the news. I still think of Southern California as a place with perfect weather â so benign you rarely bother to check the forecast. I wonder if those days are numbered.
More on the heat
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(Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
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- Some analysts say the buyers succumbed to âdeal heatâ and wildly overpaid, while others argue soaring media revenues, global branding and franchise scarcity justify the eye-popping valuation.
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Editorâs pick
Another pick
Things to do
A man runs in Runyon Canyon.
(Christina House/Los Angeles Times)
Todayâs recipe
Goop Kitchen executive chef Kim Floresca prepares a winter salmon bowl in the L.A. Times Test Kitchen.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
Many home cooks, afraid to cook fish at home, dip their toe in with salmon. It has a mild flavor, the texture is buttery and appealing, it has few bones to contend with, and, well, people like the way it tastes. Itâs the chicken of fish. In this piece from June, Carolynn Carreño walks through ways to get a perfect medium rare salmon, and offers several recipes.
Question for you
Whatâs your favorite California summer song?
- Reader Mark Rule suggests âIt Never Rains in Southern Californiaâ by Albert Hammond.
- Reader Rick Barthel suggests âCaliforniaâ by Joni Mitchell.
- Reader Ross Hering suggests âEstimated Prophetâ by the Grateful Dead.
Keep âem coming! Email us at [email protected], and your response might appear in the newsletter this week.
Photo of the day
In this 2024 photo, hikers in Death Valley National Park pass a sign warning against using the Golden Canyon trail after 10 a.m. when temperatures become dangerously high.
(Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times)
Games
Hereâs todayâs mini crossword, plus our other free, daily crossword puzzle, sudoku, word search and jigsaw games.
Have a great day, from the Essential California team
Jack Dolan, investigative reporter
Hugo MartĂn, assistant editor, Fast Break desk
Kevinisha Walker, multiplatform editor
Andrew J. Campa, weekend writer
Karim Doumar, head of newsletters
Shi Bradley, audience intern
How can we make this newsletter more useful? Send comments to [email protected].
