The East Coyote Hills are a low mountain range

Mountain range

A mountain range is a single, large mass consisting of a succession of mountains or narrowly spaced mountain ridges, with or without peaks, closely related in position, direction, formation, and age; a component part of a mountain system or of a mountain chain...

 in northern Orange County

Orange County, California

Orange County is a county in the U.S. state of California. Its county seat is Santa Ana. As of the 2010 census, its population was 3,010,232, up from 2,846,293 at the 2000 census, making it the third most populous county in California, behind Los Angeles County and San Diego County...

, California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

, mostly in the cities of Fullerton

Fullerton, California

Fullerton is a city located in northern Orange County, California. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 135,161.It was founded in 1887 by George and Edward Amerige and named for George H. Fullerton, who secured the land on behalf of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway...

 and Placentia

Placentia, California

-Local: Placentia is a Charter city with an elected city council and professional city manager. Placentia City Council*Mayor- Scott W. Nelson*Mayor Pro Tem- Jeremy Yamaguchi*Council Member- Joe Aquirre*Council Member- Constance Underhill...

.

The hills received their name from the nearby Rancho Los Coyotes

Rancho Los Coyotes

Rancho Los Coyotes was a 1834 Mexican land grant resulting from the partition of the Rancho Los Nietos grant, in present day southeastern Los Angeles County and northwestern Orange County, California...

; by the 1870s they were being called Coyote Hills. Most of the East Coyote Hills were developed as residential areas in the 1980s and 1990s. Several equestrian and pedestrian trails have been built through the area, as well as a golf course and Craig Regional Park.