SoCal hiking

I've been supporting my roommate these last two weeks by going on long hikes while she studies for her MCAT. Last week we drove way the hell down to Crystal Cove between Corona del Mar and Laguna Beach and did a 2-hour, 6+ mile hike, which was low on tree cover and high on hilliness. There was one mid-hike incline that I found particularly unpleasant, and the views weren't really worth the long drive. Today we did the Trippet Ranch to Parker Mesa Overlook hike in Topanga State Park as described at hikespeak.com (great site, btw, for LA hikers), which was about 6.7 miles and more like an interval-training hike. There was never a very long sharp ascent, but there were a lot of small hills, so your heart rate was never up to running level, but the level it was at it generally stayed at. It took us closer to 2 1/2 hours to do this one (the whole thing was 3, but we stayed at the overlook, which had a great view of the PCH to Santa Monica and beyond--you could even see what I think was either DTLA or Century City), but there was a bit more tree cover, it's much closer to Studio City, and the overall beauty of the hike was greater. And there were little lizards (and oddly red ants). Topanga Canyon is just great, so highly recommended, but bring a hat and a good amount of water.