The group has been updated to reflect the changes from my email below the original description of the group.  I will modify this page again in a few weeks.

This is the original description of my purpose in starting this group:

"I love to hike, but I have kids that are 9 and 11 . . . and they DON'T. I was in several other OC hiking groups, but most of the hikes happen when I would either need to get a sitter or drag the boys with us. So I finally decided to start a group to pull together others who would hike with me during the normal work-week.

We will schedule a variety of hikes in a variety of locations, but my focus will be on hikes within half an hour (by car) of the intersection of Imperial Hwy and the 91 Freeway, and on hikes that are between 1 and 3 hours in length.  All of our hikes will start at 9 a.m. or later, and will end before 5 p.m.

I do work, but I can take time off for a few short hikes a week. If you can make time to join me, then . . . join me!"

But this is the email I sent out today, on the 1-year anniversary of the group:

My boys started school today, and I have started a new year with my business. Last year I loved our hikes, but neglected commitments I'd made to clients and was difficult to reach for support issues during our hikes. This year I realize that I cannot hike when I am supposed to be available to clients!

I have been considering what to do with this group all summer, and decided over the last week or two to try 6 months of member-initiated and member-led hikes, and to open up the hours a bit since so many of you want hikes that are earlier than 9 a.m. So tomorrow I will change the name of the group to simply "Yorba Linda Hiking" and drop the "9-5 Monday to Friday" part, and I will change the meetup settings to allow all members to add meetups.

I wish I could join you all on your hikes and walks! I wouldn't have started this if I didn't want to be out there myself! But the reality is that I have kids at home who need my attention when it is outside normal working hours, a business that needs my attention during the work-week, and that regular hikes will have to wait just a few more years for me.

Please feel free to email me or call me if you have any suggestions or questions. Contact me through this site and I'd be glad to give you my direct contact information.

A special thanks to Leslie, who has been leading walks all year, and to both Brendas who were so faithful during their commitments to lead hikes and walks! Thanks also to all the others who led walks or were faithful participants on those walks.  I hope you will all feel free to use this group to schedule any walk or hike you still want to lead.

--Maria Kettleson Anderson