The Outlook Is Bright!

The crisp, sunny days of a SoCal winter are the perfect time to hike high and be dazzled. Here’s a lineup of choice views to pursue—great workouts, each with a memorable payoff.

Week: 01.25.2018
Regions: Southern CA

Bag Los Pinos

Hiking to Los Pinos Peak in Cleveland National Forest Southern California

Bag Los Pinos! This 4,500-foot peak in southeastern Orange County’s Cleveland National Forest can be pleasantly private. Reaching it on a 5-mile (round-trip) hike is a grind, with grand rewards.
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Hollywood Sunset

Sunset hike to Hollywood Sign in Los Angeles

We know, we know, there are all kinds of ways to hike to the Hollywood sign. But to see this icon in its best light, go closer to sunset and take the short, classic route up Mount Lee in Griffith Park. A late-day start means fewer people, less heat, and more lenient parking regul
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At Play on Rocky Peak

Hiking to Rocky Peak Above Simi Valley

Big views, big boulders, and a great hike are all good reasons to rock out on the Rocky Peak Trail in Simi Valley. This hike gradually ascends for nearly five miles to (surprise!) a rocky peak whose 2,715-foot summit straddles the border between Los Angeles and Ventura Counties.
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Apres Everything!

Bend Oregon Winter Adventures and Apres

Bend, Oregon, is more than the mountain town of the moment—it’s become the West’s most adventurous place to be. The summit at Mt. Bachelor is now open for the season, giving you access to terrain at the highest ski spot in the Pacific Northwest. If cross-country is more your spee
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Signal Hill Thrill

Hiking Signal Hill in Long Beach at Sunset

Signal Hill hike Long Beach
High above Long Beach, Signal Hill gets the green light for a hike that delivers rich history, epic views, unique art, more epic views, and one of the best sunsets in Southern California.
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Taco Peak Tea Time

Taco Peak Hike in Griffith Park Los Angeles

In 2015 a group of artists used reclaimed wood from a former Griffith Park wildfire to build a beautiful teahouse within steps of the park’s seldom-visited Taco Peak. The teahouse is gone but a bench remains, and the views from it are simply outstanding.
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Sea-to-Sea View

Hiking Cuyamaca Peak in San Diego County

It’s a bit of a leg buster, but this 5.6-mile out-and-back hike up 6,512-foot Cuyamaca Peak in Cuyamaca Rancho State Park gets you bragging rights for reaching the second-highest point in San Diego County. Better, it rewards you with sweeping views that extend from sea to sea...
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Butte Wait, There's More!

Hike Saddleback Butte in Mojave Desert

Hiking to a mountain peak in the desert?  And you don’t even have to leave Los Angeles County? No special effects here—it’s all natural at 2,955-acre Saddleback Butte State Park. Here you can get a taste of the Mojave Desert from Saddleback Butte, a solitary mountain rising 3,651
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Crown Jewel

Hike Dunsmore and Cook Canyons - Deukmejian Wilderness

Glendale is known as the Jewel City, and why not? Its Deukmejian Wilderness Park—nestled in the San Gabriel foothills—is a gem. During the 2009 Station Fire, a back burn was started here to prevent flames from sweeping down the mountains to the community. While this damaged nearl
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Trending Stories NorCal

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  1. Picnic and a Pedal

    West Marin has all the right stuff for an afternoon getaway: bike paths, babbling brooks, canopy forests, and secluded picnic spots. Combine a picnic and a pedal at Samuel P. Taylor State Park by biking the easygoing Cross Marin Trail.

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  2. Hike the Oursan Trail alongside Briones Reservoir in the East Bay

    Opt for Oursan

    Hike the trail less traveled in the East Bay's Briones Regional Park. The Oursan Trail is pure serenity on a wide hiking path skirting the northern shores of Briones Reservoir.

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  3. Most Peaceful Hike of All

    Is this the most peaceful one-hour hike in the Bay Area? It's got our vote! Lake Lagunitas is the smallest lake in a series of five found on the north side of Mount Tam, so it’s got that tiny but mighty charm. Do a 1.5-mile loop around the lake's shore-hugging trail.

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  4. Sebastopol Food & Wine Roll

    One apple farm, three charming towns, multiple wineries, and infinite natural beauty. Savor a perfect autumn day in Sonoma County by biking the West County Regional Trail from Sebastopol to Forestville via Graton. It’s a 17-mile (round-trip) adventure. 

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Trending Stories SoCal

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  1. Wine Down, Dine Out in Lake Chelan

    The fertile soil around Washington State's Lake Chelan is ripe for more than just the amazing apples. Vineyards here yield high quality grapes, and some of the country’s best less-discovered wineries. Locals know it, and you will too when you start choosing from the more than 30 wineries in the region.

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  2. Lace Up for Lacy

    Lacy Park in San Marino is a hidden gem that may very well be the most pristine green space in greater Los Angeles, and a concealed pair of nearby stairways makes it all the more appealing.

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  3. Hiker amid trees at Oak Glen Preserve in Yucaipa Southern California

    Apple of Your Eye

    That fall feeling is definitely in the air and on display at the Oak Glen Preserve. Apple orchards and colorful leaves are a bonus, as are the apple cider donuts and slushies you can enjoy post-hike.

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  4. Hike San Diego Volcan Mountain Wilderness

    Planet of the Oaks

    Let us count the number of oak tree species in the Volcan Mountain Wilderness Preserve near Julian: coast, scrub, canyon, black, and Engelmann. Five! The preserve’s Five Oaks Trail is a 3.2-mile hike that boasts all five.

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