![]() ![]() If it’s your first time, don’t look back until you reach the top. A destination for exercisers south of the 10 freeway, the park’s main draw is the steps: more than 282 stone slabs that deliver hikers-breathless, aching-to the top in under 20 minutes. But that’s all part of this urban overlook’s understated charm. Parking: Plenty on PCH by Malibu Seafood or pay $12 in the lot at the trailhead, just east of the restaurant.Īn oil-rig–studded hill on the edge of Culver City’s industrial zone is an odd place for a state park. ![]() The descent toward the ocean has sweeping views of Santa Monica beaches all the way to Point Dume that are more than easy on the eyes. Cutting through wild fennel and rust-colored grasses, the packed dirt path leads you on switchbacks along the east side and top of Corral Canyon. Hang a left at the first fork-this way you can face the ocean during your descent. But things quiet down-and heat up-quickly on this shadeless trail. What makes Malibu’s Corral Canyon stand out is its raw nature-coastal sage scrub and willows clinging to parched hills (lush with wildflowers after a wet winter), plus the occasional bunny or lizard-experienced over a 2.4-mile, fairly gentle and shockingly deserted (on a weekday afternoon) hike.Īs the trail begins, the noise of PCH and the sea breeze follow you up. Where mountains collide with ocean, it’s hard to go wrong in the search for perfect views. Length: ~1.5 miles with possibilities to extend Pets? Dogs are welcome (encouraged, almost), with much of the trail allowing off-leash roaming. Watch out for the largely permit-parking only blocks in this neighborhood. You can enter the park on North Fuller Avenue or North Vista Street. Franklin Avenue is a good place to find a two-hour spot. You can also cheat a bit (ok, a lot) and take a much shorter hike from Mulholland Drive. At the top, the trail plateaus along a ridge, giving views of the architectural hodgepodge of the Hollywood Hills-solar panels, pools and decks on stilts-downtown Hollywood and the Capitol Records building, the manicured tidiness of WeHo’s grid and the tangle of high-rises along Miracle Mile. ![]() Either way, it’s a mostly gradual ascent, except for a treacherously steep and narrow section near the top of the eastern canyon wall. You can catch the loop from either the east (Fuller Avenue) or west (North Vista Street) side of the canyon. The packed dirt and paved paths here lead hikers, runners, yoga enthusiasts and roving weightlifters on a loop around the canyon, guaranteeing countless moments to pause and utter “This is so L.A.”-particularly during the after-work rush hour, when people-watching reaches its frenzied peak. Alternatively, a DASH bus runs up Vermont Avenue daily from 10am–10pm for only 50 cents (35 cents with a TAP card).Īn exerciser’s paradise in the Hollywood Hills, Runyon’s the spot for views of the toned bodies and even tonier homes endemic to this part of L.A. If that lot is too hectic, look for street parking along Observatory Avenue. Parking: Snag a spot in the lot next to the Griffith Observatory. It’s an ideal vantage point for checking out sweeping views of the Los Angeles basin, the edge of the San Fernando Valley, the hazy hills to the west, the skyline of Downtown Los Angeles with the Observatory in the foreground, and the money shot: a view of the Hollywood Sign at eye level across the canyon. After about a solid 40 minutes of walking, you’ll reach the top: a big, dusty clearing with picnic tables. Starting off amid scrubby evergreens, the path quickly emerges into the hills, winding higher and deeper, with the Hollywood Sign appearing to the left about 15 minutes in. To get to the Mount Hollywood summit, Griffith’s highest peak, pick up the trail at the north side of the Observatory parking lot. Its 360-degree views offer a glimpse of everything from the Verdugo Mountains to the Pacific Ocean (on a rare, smog-free day, at least). At the top of Mount Hollywood (the hill behind the Griffith Observatory, not to be confused with the Hollywood Sign-adorned Mount Lee), you’ll get a bird’s-eye crash course on L.A.
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