1 min
Overview
A convenient, dog-friendly hike in the northwest side of Elysian Park, near the heart of Los Angeles itself. This short route offers some decent portions of elevation gain, good shade, and great views of the valley and downtown Los Angeles when the air is clear – all in a park seldom-used by L.A. hikers outside of the neighborhood. Great for a quick pre-work trek or for when you just don’t feel like driving a long time to get to the trailhead. Elysian Park is the oldest and second largest park in the city of Los Angeles, but I hadn’t really spent much time in the park until mid last year. Well known amongst nearby residents, the park does offer some picturesque and relatively easy hiking trails, is very dog-friendly, and is centrally located – so I wanted to try to highlight some of the park’s better trail options for urban hikers or those who just might want to squeeze in a quick trail before work. This route circles some of the nicer hiking areas of the park’s northwest corner, beginning near the entrance to the Grace E. Simons Lodge. Park on the north side of Elysian Park Drive or walk to the corner of that road and Stadium Way from the parking lot on Chavez Ravine Road, and look on the north side of the road for a beaten footpath and gate. This is your trailhead. Almost immediately, you’ll be greeted with a wide dirt path winding through a fairly thick forest. Sure, you may still hear some of the traffic from Stadium Way for a while, but you’ll also have a lot of fragrant eucalyptus trees nearby to distract you … and most likely a large number of canine hiking companions. At the 0.4 mile mark, you’ll come into sight of the Golden State Freeway – and yes, I know that sounds like something you’d never, ever want to see when you’re hiking – but if you’re lucky you’ll be able to look past the freeway to the L.A. River and San Gabriel Mountains beyond (assuming you’re hiking on a clear day). Enjoy the northward views and greenery as the trail meanders along the north side of Elysian Park. At the 0.8 mile mark, t
Trail Stats
3.9 km
59 m
222 m
161 m
—
Photos
Trail photo
No caption provided.
Trail photo
No caption provided.
Trail photo
No caption provided.
Trail photo
No caption provided.
Trail photo
No caption provided.
Trail photo
No caption provided.
Trail photo
No caption provided.
Trail photo
No caption provided.
Trail photo
No caption provided.
Trail photo
No caption provided.
Trail photo
No caption provided.
Trail photo
No caption provided.
Trail photo
No caption provided.
Trail photo
No caption provided.
Trail photo
No caption provided.
Trail photo
No caption provided.
Trail photo
No caption provided.