All "Hikes" Stories in Southern CA

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  I Do!

  Even if you’re not getting married anytime soon, you’ve gotta visit Wedding Rock, the most dramatic spot in Patrick’s Point State Park. It’s called Wedding Rock because the park’s

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  Screaming Mandatory!

  Feeling the wind whoosh past you as you soar above Corona’s Skull Canyon, 200 feet in the air while zipping along a matrix of steel cables, is one of the most exhilarating of all s

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  If Jack Sparrow Had a Lagoon

  Nothing goes together better than bird-watching and buried treasure, right? Never connected the two? Consider 610-acre Batiquitos Lagoon in Carlsbad—perhaps the most bird-friendly

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  Whole Lotta Ballona!

  It’s a thrill to see a pterodactyl patrolling a prehistoric pond, even if you know it’s really “just” a great blue heron stalking the Ballona Freshwater Marsh. Less camouflaged are

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  River, Meet Ocean

  The city of Ventura is officially known as Buenaventura, meaning “good fortune.” That applies to one of the least-known but most abundant estuaries in the region, where the Ventura

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  Swim Hole, Say No More!

  People flock to Kirkwood’s Silver Lake, a quiet beauty set against the backdrop of the Sierras. But few know about the easy 2-mile out-and-back (round-trip) hike that follows one o

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  Tall Drink of Waterfall

  Tucked between Echo Summit and Lover’s Leap on US 50 there's an impressive display of water barreling down a mountain. Hello, Horsetail Falls! The commanding 800-foot-tall waterfal

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  Meet Margaret!

  You have an adventurous side and enjoy lakeside solitude, but you don’t want to be too far from your comfort zone. Time to meet Margaret! Tucked just north of Kirkwood and just off

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  Emerald in the Woods

  Green Valley Lake, nestled at 7,000 feet in the San Bernardino Mountains right between Big Bear Lake and Lake Arrowhead, has all the watery charm of those popular bodies of water, just on a smaller scale, and decidedly without crowds—or motorized boats. It's also got camping, including first-come, first-served options.

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  Malibu Creek State Park

  Yes, Angelenos, you can escape city lights and view the Perseid meteor shower at Malibu Creek State Park Campground—so close to the big city, but it feels like it’s a galaxy away.

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  Secret's Out

  The turquoise waters and pristine beauty of Secret Cove on the east shore of Lake Tahoe are like an ode to Tahoe’s iconic spirit. And while this lovely spot near Incline Village is

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  Spooner Afternoon

  Tucked quietly away above Lake Tahoe’s eastern shore, Spooner Lake hides in plain sight. Just 12 miles north of Stateline on Highway 50, hikers, bikers, and beach loungers jet past

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  Shealor Stunner

  Robust mountains, striking slabs of granite, and deep green pine reflections make Shealor Lake near Kirkwood resort a jewel of the El Dorado National Forest. Reach this alpine oasis on a 1.3-mile hike.

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  Fo Guang Shan Columbarium

  Improbably perched above a steep oak-filled canyon in the Puente Hills above Whittier is the nation’s largest Buddhist pagoda, and you can see it on a 2.5-mile partial loop trail i

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  Tae Go Sah Temple

  A startling vision greets you deep in Sand Canyon outside Tehachapi. Like an ancient Oriental woodblock print come to life, a Buddhist temple sits at the confluence of two narrow w

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  Ramakrishna Monastery

  The Ramakrishna Monastery, perched on a foothill above Trabuco Canyon, accepts all religions as divinely inspired. For this reason, monks created the Shrine Trail, a mile-long loop

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  Great Is an Understatement!

  Tucked against the Utah border in eastern Nevada, Great Basin is a hiking wonderland of 13,000-foot peaks, ancient forests, sub-alpine lakes, and marble limestone caves.

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  Slot Canyon Cathedral

  Ready to play the slots? We’re not talking the casino kind. We mean exploring the only slot canyons found in Nevada! Located right off Great Basin Highway (aka Highway 93), Cathedr

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  Thanks, Annie!

  Annie’s Canyon Trail in the 1,000-acre San Elijo Lagoon Ecological Reserve in Solana Beach includes the most unique quarter-mile you’ve ever maneuvered—through a sandstone slot canyon!

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  The Secret of Bear Canyon

  Here's a cool secret: The best water holes on the Arroyo Seco River are past ever-popular Switzer Falls. To end at the 50-foot plunge is to miss the best of Bear Canyon. In other words, keep going!

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