from Spain in 1821 the missions were secularized and mission lands were divided into private land grants. The Rancho Niguel, which included most of what is now the park, was granted to Juan Avila in 1842. After the Mexican–American War in 1850, California became part of the United States; after a severe drought Avila sold the ranch in 1865. Rancho Niguel changed hands multiple times until it was acquired by Lewis Moulton and Jean Pierre Daguerre in 1895. During the 19th century, others also took advantage of the shelter and seclusion offered by Aliso Canyon. Dripping Cave (once used by the local Native Americans as a shelter), tucked into a sheltered part of Wood Canyon, became a "base of operations" of outlaws, led by Juan Flores, who robbed stagecoaches traveling between Los Angeles and San Diego. Long after the bandits were arrested, it retains the nickname "Robbers Cave". In 1871 Eugene Salter, the first white settler along Aliso Creek, claimed in the canyon just outside the Rancho Niguel. The next year, the homestead was taken over by the Thurston family who irrigated an orchard using water from Aliso Creek. Aliso Canyon was used for sheep ranching through the first half of the 20th century, although tourism was also growing due to the popularity of Aliso Beach at canyon's end, and the establishment of the Aliso Creek Inn and Golf Course on the old Thurston property in 1950. During the 1960s, the Rancho Niguel was sold for residential suburban development in the planned cities of Aliso Viejo, Laguna Hills and Laguna Niguel. The Aliso Canyon was the proposed location of a "much publicized national fitness center headed by former Los Angeles Rams coach George Allen." A six-lane highway was proposed to run the length of the canyon, to link inland communities with Laguna Beach. The canyon was spared from development when about 40 land parcels were acquired by the county for use as a park, the largest in 1979 when the Mission Viejo Company donated . The park officially opened on March 31, 1990 as Aliso and Wood Canyons Regional Park; it was later designated a Wilderness Park to better preserve native habitat. Continued land acquisitions and donations since then brought the park to its current size. Features and characteristics The park encompasses the dramatic Aliso Canyon, which is the valley formed by Aliso Creek as it slices through the San