Warriors January Update
Greetings and salutations! This is Darshan the Martian with The Warriors of the Santa Anas. It is January 30, 2026, and this is your first Warriors update of 2026. Going forward, I will provide these updates at a regular cadence, in which I’ll go over what The Warriors accomplished in the past month(s) and what we have planned for the following. Since there is so much to cover with all the recent organizational changes, this update is a big one! Make sure to read it (or skip ahead) to the end as we have the 2026 VisionQuest Course announcement!
Organizational Changes
Before we get into the details of the trail work and this month’s events, I have some exciting news about the organization. There are three important changes you all should be aware of:
First and most importantly, we are in the process of becoming a 501(c)(3) non-profit, which means your donations will be tax-deductible. This is good for you and even better for us, as it will allow us to more readily secure corporate sponsorships and grants. This will help us continue to grow our impact in the forest.
Secondly, some leadership changes: Chris Vargas, the founder of the Warriors Society, has stepped down from his position as co-executive director and I am taking his place. Chris will assume the role of medicine man, leading ceremonies at club events. I, Darshan Ahluwalia, join co-executive director Keith Parsons and existing directors Keith Eckstein and Mary Huth. A new addition to our leadership team is Val Vanderpool, a longtime Silverado resident, Path Bike Shop employee and fellow mountain biker and trail runner. Most importantly, she shares our deep passion for the Santa Anas!
Third, as you may have caught from my introduction, we’ve changed our name from The Warriors Society to The Warriors of the Santa Anas. This is helpful in transitioning to a 501(c)(3) non-profit. Along with this name change, we’ll be launching a new website at warriorsofsantaanas.org.
Mission, Vision and Goals
While we have a new corporation with a new name and new energy at the top, we are the same club. Our mission remains unchanged, which is to:
Promote responsible recreation, ensure access and rebuild and maintain the trails of the Cleveland National Forest Trabuco Ranger District.
Since we’re beginning a new chapter with the organization, I also want to share our long-term vision and short-term goals for the club. As many of you know, the Airport Fire, which originated in Trabuco Canyon, burned through the southern half of the National Forest in September of 2024. As a result, all the official trails in the National Forest were closed, and of those closed trails, only one has since reopened (Maple Springs Trail aka Motorway). In addition to the closure, the fire damaged large parts of these trails. Those damaged and closed trails include beloved classics like Joplin, Holy Jim and San Juan Trail; trails I haven’t even ridden yet because they remained closed after the last fire in 2018, like West Horsethief and Trabuco Canyon; and advanced technical trails deep in the remote backcountry like Chiquito, Viejo Tie and Los Pinos Ridge.
Our long-term vision is to regain access to this closed area and rebuild all of our National Forest trails. We are committed to ensuring we do not permanently lose access to our trails, as we did with Coldwater Canyon and, seemingly, West Horsethief and Trabuco Canyon Trail. We are committed to working with the National Forest to reopen and rebuild our trails.
To give you an idea of the amount of terrain we are talking about: last year in collaboration with OCMTBA and Jim Foley, we submitted an 85-mile Biking on Long Distance Trails (BOLT) route that travels through all of these National Forest trails. About half of that terrain, and nearly all of the singletrack, is in the fire-affected area. So, while we have a lot of work to do to rebuild the damaged trails, imagine the day we are able to ride that 85-mile BOLT route in continuity or ride the original VisionQuest route! Check out the BOLT route here.
(I shared some of this vision informally on The Path Bike Shop Podcast the day after I assumed Chris Vargas’ role. Please watch it on The Path Bike Shop YouTube channel if you missed it!)
To help us realize that long term vision of rebuilding all of our public access trails, we are focused on completing shorter-term goals and tasks. Some of these goals include things already mentioned like becoming a 501(c)(3), launching a new website (warriorsofsantaanas.org), and establishing a regular cadence of scheduled trail work events, social rides, and public updates. In addition, we’ve expanded our web presence with a Warriors Instagram. Another important short-term goal we have is to obtain explicit permission from the U.S. Forest Service to work in the burn area. This will allow us to begin trail rehabilitation on Holy Jim, Joplin and other trails.
I won’t bore you with all the details of what is going on inside the organization. In brief: we’re busy getting the organization reorganized!
Trail Report
What did The Warriors accomplish in the Santa Anas this past month? We are happy to report that we restored the highest trail in our mountains! This trail ascends southward from the saddle between Modejska and Santiago Peaks to Santiago Peak’s shoulder. It is in fact where the Main Divide used to run, thus the name Old Main Divide. While this trail at 0.6 miles is not terribly long, this is an important trail for both hikers and bikers alike as it is the best access to and from our highest mountain. This restoration effort took 110 person-hours over three separate work days with 14 different volunteers.
It is also worth mentioning that The Warriors fixed some minor erosion issues on Buckthorn and picked up trash on Modjeska’s summit during the month of December. Buckthorn is to Modjeska what Old Main Divide is to Santiago Peak: it’s the best access to the peak as it gets you off the sometimes busy dirt road of Main Divide. Buckthorn ascends 0.8 miles from Four Corners southward to below the summit of Modjeska Peak. For bikers, it is primarily a downhill trail. We had two work days on Buckthorn involving 7 different people of about 50 hours total.
All in all, trail conditions are amazing on the highest peaks of the Santa Anas! If you haven’t ridden in the Saddleback Mountain zone yet, what are you waiting for? The summits are amazing and the singletracks are now better than ever!
What’s better than reading about the trail work? Well, aside from being there and helping out, the next best thing is to watch our recap videos (now with 100% more drone footage):
February Events
For February, we have two planned events on the calendar: a Social Ride and a stewardship event.
Social Ride: Pleasant’s Peak
When: Sunday, February 1 | 2:00PM to 5:00PM
What: Celebrate the Full Moon with an afternoon ride to the summit of Pleasant’s Peak, one of the raddest peaks in the Santa Anas! This is a social pace ride with multiple regroups, turn-around times, and descent options.
Where: Meet at Blackstar Canyon Trailhead with your gravel, hardtail or full suspension mountain bike!
Stewardship: Four Corners Trash Pick Up
When: Presidents’ Day, Monday, Feb 16 | 12:00PM to 4:00PM
What: Ride or drive to Four Corners, install a TRASH BAGS sign, interact with motorists, and pick up trash around the Four Corners landing area. There is an opportunity to ride up to Modjeska or Santiago Peaks afterwards.
Where: Meet at the bottom of Motorway (Maple Springs Trailhead).
2026 VisionQuest
This year’s VisionQuest is April 25, 2026. The theme is “The Tale of Two Summits” as we’ll stand atop both Modjeska and Pleasant Peaks.
The course routes are as follows (subject to changes):
VisionQuest
Approximately 10k/45mi
Four Epic Descents: Buckthorn, Two Monkeys, Tombstone, Motorway
Two Awesome Summits: Modjeska Peak and Pleasants Peak
CountingCoup
Approximately 30mi/6k
Two Epic Descents: Buckthorn, Motorway
Two Awesome Summits: Modjeska Peak and Pleasant’s Peak
Access to this ride is for Warriors members only. Longtime dedicated members have earned their place in the organization as members by consistently volunteering their time on trail work events or supporting out club rides over the years. These are our Legacy members. The path to Legacy membership is a long one that takes dedication and potentially years of service. The VisionQuest, and other club rides, are a way of giving back to our volunteers who have given so much.
As a newcomer who wants to ride the VisionQuest, we offer another path: Associate Membership. Make a monetary contribution to the organization. The minimum donation that gives you access to our VisionQuest is $125.00, but we encourage you to offer what you can. The donated money is used to help fulfill our mission of restoring all our Santa Ana trails. Associate Membership is limited to 50 members and we have very few spaces left (countable on two hands). If you wish to ride the VisionQuest, please make your donation as soon as possible and contact us at info@warriorsofsantaanas.org.
More information will be sent to registered VisionQuest/CountingCoup participants in the coming weeks.
Questions? Comments? Want to get involved with trail work? Reach out at info@warriorsofsantaanas.org.
