hikespeak

Mount Baden-Powell is a special summit in the San Gabriel Mountains. It is one of the range's tallest peaks at 9,399 feet and holds particular importance to the Boy Scouts of America because it memorializes the lofty accomplishments of Lord Baden-Powell who founded the Scout Movement. The views are lofty too, lording over an expanse of rugged mountains framed the San Gabriel Valley to the... Read more.

In Griffith Park, Mount Lee has the Hollywood Sign. In the San Gabriel Mountains, Azusa Peak has the A. The big white uppercase A just below the summit is hard to miss from the city below. You can hike to the A and up to the top of Azusa Peak on a 2 2/3-mile out and back hike with 1,275 feet of elevation change. After the steep climb, you have the option to hike to a second peak, Glendora... Read more.

The hike up and down Hazard Peak Trail delivers a heavy dose of ocean views. While it could be argued that this 6-mile round trip hike is the finest trek to the summit of Hazard Peak, you may wish to consider elongating that hike to a 9.2-mile loop that returns to the coast via Islay Creek Trail in the adjacent Islay Creek Canyon. Sacrificing a second helping of ocean views, the loop... Read more.

Montaña de Oro State Park is packed with so many picturesque places that it can be difficult to settle on just one day hike. However, if you are looking for broad, unobstructed view over Morro Bay, you should feel compelled to set out for the top of Hazard Peak. Looking north from this coastal 1,076-foot summit, you won't see anything even half as tall as Hazard Peak for about 15 miles,... Read more.

At 1,347 feet, Valencia Peak is one of the highest summit in Montaña de Oro State Park and may provide the best panorama of the park's stunning shoreline and inviting inland peaks. The views are epic and the hike is 4.5-miles round trip with 1,275 feet of elevation. An older version of Valencia Peak Trail was 0.4 miles shorter each way, and the new route uses more switchbacks to ease the... Read more.

The San Bernardino Mountains are a rugged east-west running mountain range in San Bernardino County east of the San Gabriel Mountains. While the range tops out at the 11,500-foot summit of San Gorgonio Mountain, you can find great panoramic view from a 4,000-foot peak that is much easier to reach. Marshall Peak rises above the foothills of the mighty San Bernardino Mountains and is just a... Read more.

Rocky Peak is a panoramic 2,715-foot summit on the border between Los Angeles and Ventura counties in the Santa Susana Mountains. The county line-straddling peak stands at the center of a 4,800-acre park bearing the same name. The shortest hike to Rocky Peak takes Rocky Peak Trail from Rocky Peak Road through Rocky Peak Park. Oh boy, we're off to a rocky start... The first two miles of... Read more.

If you're interested in getting some exercise with panoramic views over Griffith Park, consider hiking a loop to the summit's of three park peaks: Mount Chapel, Mount Bell, and Mount Hollywood. Starting from Hollyridge Trail at the top of Beachwood Drive, this 5.7-mile loop ascends 675 vertical feet, from 950 feet at the trailhead to 1,625 feet at the summit of Mount Hollywood, the... Read more.

Hikers have several ways to reach the Hollywood Sign atop Mount Lee in Griffith Park. For a short steep hike, you could cross Cahuenga Peak for a tough 3-miler. For a lengthier 6.4-mile trek, you could hike from Brush Canyon Trail to Mount Lee. Hollyridge offers something in the middle, a 3.5-mile round trip hike that climbs 750 feet to the Hollywood Sign. Accessing the trailhead is a... Read more.

For summit views without the usual summit effort, head to Sawyer Mountain in the Adirondacks. The trail to the top of the mountain gains 650 feet over a 2.5-mile round trip hike. While the trail travels through a sheltered hardwood forest the entire way, there are two overlooks around the summit that provide far-reaching views over the trees across the surrounding valleys, ridges, and... Read more.