Our mission: The Friends of Hellhole Canyon (FOHC) supports the preservation of, and responsible recreation within, the Hellhole Canyon Open Space Preserve and nearby open spaces. 

LATEST NEWS

Butterfield Trails Ranch closes escrow: In December 2023, the purchase of this historic ranch to be San Diego County parkland property was complete. This could not have happened without the tremendous support of Valley Center organizations and residents and the cooperation of Supervisor Jim Desmond and his hard-working staff. Special thanks goes to previous owner Wayne Hilbig, the Rincon band of Luiseño Indians, the Valley Center Trails Association, the Valley Center Vaqueros and the Valley Center Historical Society for their efforts. The next step will be a planning process for how the property gets developed as a county park. Part of this process will be opportunities for public input. We will keep you posted, because your thoughts and opinions are important. Not familiar with Butterfield Trails Ranch? Watch our brief video about this special place and see our Butterfield Trails Ranch page for more information.

FOHC recognized as an “Outstanding Outdoors Organization”: The San Diego County Board of Supervisors honored the Friends of Hellhole Canyon with this community award in June 2023 as part of National Great Outdoors Month. Thanks for the shout out. We appreciate it!

Wildlife certification: FOHC has partnered with the National Wildlife Foundation to certify Valley Center, California, as a National Wildlife Community. To learn more about what this means, visit https://www.nwf.org/CommunityWildlifeHabitat.

why is hellhole canyon so special?