Lake Forest is a city in Orange County, California, set in the Saddleback Valley of south Orange County, between the Santa Ana foothills and the cities of Irvine, Mission Viejo, and Laguna Hills. With about 86,000 residents, it is a master-planned suburban city that grew out of the historic community of El Toro — Spanish for 'the bull' — and incorporated in December 1991. The city later expanded to include the master-planned developments of Foothill Ranch and Portola Hills, giving it a varied residential and commercial geography. The city's name reflects its signature feature: Lake Forest and Forest Lake, two man-made lakes around which some of the earliest neighborhoods were built. The original core holds single-story ranch homes and condominiums from the 1970s and 1980s, many with lake-club access and mature landscaping. Around this center, newer subdivisions, hillside communities, and business parks spread across the former ranch and air-station lands. Lake Forest's economy blends residential suburban life with a significant employment base. Business parks along the I-5 and toll-road corridors host technology, medical, and corporate offices, and the city sits within commuting distance of Irvine's larger employment centers and the former Marine Corps Air Station El Toro, which was decommissioned in 1999 and redeveloped. The Irvine Spectrum and the broader south-county job market are minutes away. Recreation is a defining strength. The city maintains 31 parks, and Whiting Ranch Wilderness Park, a 2,500-acre county preserve within city limits, offers hiking, mountain biking, and equestrian trails through oak woodland and coastal sage scrub, including its red-rock canyon landscape. Heritage Hill Historic Park preserves the area's ranching past, and the Serrano Creek and Aliso Creek trails connect neighborhoods to the wider open-space network. Schools fall under the Saddleback Valley Unified School District, which operates campuses including Lake Forest Elementary and El Toro High School within the city. Transportation runs on I-5, the 241 and 261 toll roads, and arterial roads such as Lake Forest Drive and El Toro Road, with OCTA bus service and the Irvine Metrolink station nearby. Lake Forest appeals to residents seeking established suburban neighborhoods, open-space access, and proximity to south Orange County employment.