Experiencing L.A. - Costal Fog & Paseo Miramar Trail at Sunrise, Pacific Palisades (Part 2)

Looking for a workout? A chance to experience L.A. in perhaps a totally different way? Then perhaps the Paseo Miramar trail over in Pacific Palisades is for you!

Hard to believe, but the Paseo Miramar trail is all within Los Angeles city limits. Located in the Pacific Palisades district of L.A. this hike offers views of the mountains, hillside homes, the city, and the ocean. And in the spring and early summer, while the rest of the city is blanketed under June Gloom, coastal fog. 

Time in right and you'll catch the sunrise. 

There's no "bad" time of the year to go,  but experiencing the fog up against the Santa Monica mountains can be pretty spectacular. 

The same view, more of a wide angle shot. Los Angeles experiences a weather phenominon referred to as "June Gloom" in the spring and early summer. As a result, at the beach it can be sunnier - and even warmer - in January than June. In the distance, barely visible, is the outline of the San Garbriel Mountains. 

Same view, wider view. 

Fog, hillsides, palm tree, sunrise. 

On a clear day, this would be looking towards the Santa Monica Bay and Pacific Ocean. Instead, simply an amazing sea of fog. 

The Paseo Miramar trailhead is located at the top of Paseo Miramar, off of Sunset Blvd, 1/2 mile north of Sunset Blvd and the PCH. Thanks to being listed in numerous websites, including the Los Angeles Times "10 Essential Hikes" - this is a very popular hike. Parking is on the street. As stated last week, please keep the noise down and respect the quiet of the neighborhood (no one wants to be woken up by a group of friends meeeting at the trailhead early Saturday morning). 

© 2014 www.experiencingla.com

Best Hike in Los Angeles: Upper Temescal Canyon Ridge

What's the best hike in Los Angeles?

Depends on what you're looking for. 

I think an strong argument could be made for the Temescal Ridge Trail being among the very best hikes in Los Angeles.

This past weekend I was back in town. I friend and I decided we'd try a sunrise hike. We were at the trailhead around 5:30am. 

While the rest of the city was blanked in a very thick marine layer, we were able to get just above the fog in time for the sunrise. The Temescal Ridge trail is part of Topanga State Park; the trailhead is located in the Los Angeles community of Pacific Palisades (see map and directions at the bottom of this post), just 10 minutes north of the intersection of Sunset Blvd and the Pacific Coast Highway. 

No one else was on the trail. In fact, despite being a Saturday in May, a few minutes from the rest of the city, we didn't see anyone else for the first hour and a half we were out. 

Sunrise was at 5:48am. Pretty spectacular. 

Equally as impressive were the peaks from the adjacent ridge that were just slowly becoming visible as the fog receded ever so slowly. 

Another view from the same spot. I didn't have my "good" camera with me - these photos were all taken with my iPhone. 

After another couple minutes, the ridge to the south became visible. 

My buddy Jim and I ended sticking around at this one spot taking photographs for about 30 minutes. 

Really spectacular. I've been on this trail numerous times, and have blogged about several times in the past. Here are are a couple previous posts: Celebrating June Gloom and Beyond June Gloom.

As the minutes passed . . . 

. . . our views changed again . . . 

. . . and again. Wow. 

As I've blogged in the past, a reminder of the brevity of our lives and what Scripture calls our "brief stint" we have here on earth. 

There are some power lines along part of the ridge. Yeah, yeah, I know - kinda ugly. (Of course, no one complains about having access to electrical power.)

But even then, the views with the fog coming over the ridges were great. 

Here are two other views from the same trail, at different times: 

First with much denser fog. This photograph was taken at the exact same trail, just a different day.  Amazing conditions. 

Second, on a late Fall afternoon. Exact same trail: no fog, very clear conditions. Great views of the entire L.A. Basin, all the way to downtown Los Angeles. Pictured above is a close up of Santa Monica, Venice, Marina del Rey and El Segundo. Quite spectacular. Here's a link to a previous blog post with similar photos from this hike. 

We walked about three miles up, turning around at the Rogers Road junction - which could have taken us to Will Rogers State Park. Maybe another day. Above, stopping to take a picture ...

... of the deer we spotted along the way.  

I mentioned how underused this trail is: it was a Saturday morning in May - and we saw only one mountain biker and two other hikers during the 2 1/2 hours we were out. For some reason this hike hasn't received nearly the same press as the nearby Skull Rock Loop Trail or the Paso Miramar Overlook.   

So why is this trail (imo) among the best hikes in Los Angeles?

Positives: 

- Easy access to the trailhead on city streets - just 10 minutes north of Sunset and the PCH.

- Free parking and clean restroom at the trailhead.

- Trailhead starts relatively high up at 1700 ft elevation. You're already very close to "the top" when you start, making for an easy to moderate hike along the ridge (great for beginners!). 

- Depending on local conditions, you're often just above the coastal fog. 

- On clear days, great views of the entire city and ocean. 

- One of the least crowded hikes in Los Angeles. There are times when I've hiked here on weekdays and have not seen a single other person. 

- It's a fireroad (vs a narrow trail), making it open to both hikers or mountain bikers. A wider path also means less problems with poison oak, ticks, bugs, or other critters. 

- Just a few miles from the beach, with ocean breezes and mild year-round climate. 

Negatives (if any):

- as it's a ridge (vs a canyon) there is little to no shade anywhere. You might want to avoid it between 11-3pm during the hot summer months.

- Because it is so underused, I recommend hiking with someone, or at least someone know where you're going, especially if you go on a weekday. Despite the fact it's surrounded by a huge metropolis, don't count on any cell phone coverage. 

View Temescal Ridge Trailhead, Pacific Palisades in a larger map

The trailhead, located just past the corner of Via Las Palmas and Via La Costa in Pacific Palisades. While ritzy Via Las Palmas might look like a gated community, it is most assuredly a public road. Continue another 100 yards on Via Las Palmas past Via La Costa, and there is a public parking lot (with restrooms and a drinking fountain) on the left. Don't forget to carry water. 

View Temescal Ridge Trailhead, Pacific Palisades in a larger map

© 2012 www.experiencingla.com

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Clear Day: View from Temescal Ridge, Topanga State Park

The upper Temescal Canyon ridge trail offers some of the most striking views of the Santa Monica Bay as well as the entire westside of Los Angeles.

It's an easy hike, with the trailhead starting at the top of the Palisades Highlands in Pacific Palisades. Click here for directions and a map.

Another view with the pier and buildings of Santa Monica are clearly visible. These photos were taken in October - with some great visibility.

Walking a bit further up the trail, the entire westside suddenly appeared from behind the peak to the right. Starting from the left, you can see the Getty Center, the entire UCLA campus, Century City, and Westwood Village. Wilshire Blvd continues on all the way to downtown Los Angeles, which is visible in distance. Click on any of these photos for a larger image.

Here's a close up. The southernmost buildings of UCLA, the theaters of Westwood Village, and the office and residential towers along Wilshire and in Century City are all clearly visible.

Here's the same trail on an early morning in April, with thick coastal fog obscuring everything but the sunrise and mountain peaks. Another study in contrasts - another L.A. experience.

© 2010 www.experiencingla.com

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Beyond June Gloom

Los Angeles, along with the rest of coastal Southern California, experiences a unique weather pattern, known as "June gloom" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/June_Gloom.

Throughout the spring and early summer, this means very thick low fog along the coastal regions. Ironically, coastal Southern California experiences more sunshine in January than June.

There are several ways to deal with June gloom: ignore it, wait until around noon when it "burns off," drive inland away from the coast, or - perhaps the most interesting - get above it.

One of my favorite hikes in Los Angeles gets above it. It's a fairly easy hike along the western ridge of upper Temescal Canyon, accessible from the top of the Palisades Highlands (in Pacific Palisades).


A recent hike, which started in thick fog, slowly gave way to hints of blue sky as I climbed a bit in elevation.


Sunrise through the edge of the fog a little before 6am. Pretty neat.


More blue sky ahead. On this particular morning, the coastal fog topped off around 1600 feet. While the rest of Los Angeles was socked in, the peaks of the Santa Monica Mountains poked through, making for a great hike.


Turning around, the normally visible Santa Monica Bay and city of Los Angeles were blanketed in low coast fog.


Looking northwest, fog up against the mountains of the upper Palisades Highlands and Topanga Canyon. This entire area is part of the extensive Topanga State Park. Here's a link to a previous post on Topanga State Park: http://www.ExperiencingLA.com/2009/04/topanga-state-park.html.


Another view looking back towards the city. An slight ocean breeze caused the fog to literally pour up and over the ridge I was just on.


I ended up walking another 30 minutes or so, to where the Temescal Ridge Trail connects with the Rogers Road Trail. If you're really ambitious can take this trail and either hike or mountain bike 5 1/2 miles south to Will Rogers State Historic Park. I opted for the easier route back to where I started.


Heading back, the fog against the mountain peaks made for some pretty stellar views. Glad I had my camera. In previous blog posts, I've shared some thoughts on how the creation points to the Creator http://www.ExperiencingLA.com/2010/05sunset-north-of-sunset.html. This was definitely my experience on this hike.

A mountain peak, guessing about 1800 feet, peaking though the fog.


Bright morning sun and blue skies while the rest of coastal Los Angeles was still under a thick blanket of fog.


Looking into upper Temescal Canyon. Here's some previous thoughts on coastal fog and a similar hike: http://www.ExperiencingLA.com/2009/05/fog.html


Weird. No, this isn't a double exposure. Just fog surrounding the same peak on the eastern ridge of upper Temescal Canyon.


This entire area is within Los Angeles city limits.

I've often hiked this ridge with a group of guys from my church. Amazingly, we rarely - if ever - see anyone else on this trail.

A final shot - this one of "1729" - or what a local hiker calls "High Peak"- on the eastern ridge of Temescal Canyon. Another link to this hike: http://www.experiencingla.com/2008/05/not-on-digitized-road-pacific-palisades.html

I headed back into the fog, and to my car. I would definitely recommend a hike along the western ridge of upper Temescal Canyon.

Directions to the trailhead: take the Pacific Coast Highway to Sunset Blvd (in Pacific Palisades) and turn north. Continue four blocks up Sunset and turn LEFT at the 2nd light: Palisades Drive. Continue up Palisades Drive 2 1/2 miles pass a traffic light and continue another 1 1/2 as it curves to the left and becomes Chastain Parkway. At the 2nd stop sign you'll be at Via Las Palmas and turn RIGHT at the Via Las Palmas.


click on this map for a larger view

Via Las Palmas is technically a "private" street - but with public access to the trail head. Continue up Via Las Palmas one block around a traffic circle and continue another short block to the parking lot. There is a parking lot, a bathroom, and a drinking fountain at the trailhead. Walk across the street and follow the paved trail, which becomes a dirt trail after about 1/8 of a mile. Continue to the ridge where you can either turn left (north) and enjoy the hike I took, or turn right (south) to Skull Rock - and eventually back to Sunset Blvd.

click on this map for a larger view

© 2010 www.experiencingla.com
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