Spring break plans: hiking around Los Angeles

My spring break begins on Saturday.  I normally go somewhere within Arizona to explore local trails.  Last March I was in Big Bear Lake, CA.  The year before that, in Prescott.  This year I wanted to drive up to Fairfield, CA to see my son Eric before his big deployment, but he told me he's on call all next week and can't leave the base.  That includes going off base to have a meal or hike a few local trails.  Being retired army myself, I understand military protocol and procedures.  Rain is forecasted for most of next week there as well, so when Eric said he's locked down on base, that freed me up to stay closer to home.  Plans to hike Briones Regional Park and Laguna Valley Park in a soft drizzle with doggie odor afterward in the van then turned to southern California and drier weather and happier dogs.  Los Angeles is 400 miles closer to home.

My choice this year is the San Gabriel mountains north of Los Angeles and the Hollywood sign.   I've always wanted to hike up to that white Hollywood sign.  Why not?!  Both were plans from last year but I ended up heading into the Mohave Desert Preserve instead.  The Mohave Desert Preserve is an area I'd gladly go back again, even with a group, but I'm leaving that option for another time.

I started planning my hikes Thursday evening.  Hiking up Mount Baldy (aka Mount San Antonio at 10,069') is a no-go due to snow, but it's a mountain I want to do later this year, perhaps over Labor day weekend.  I know Sadie, Zeke and I can do that 12-mile hike. Three hikes I want to do for sure are the "Bridge to Nowhere" north of Azusa, CA, https://www.hikespeak.com/trails/bridge-to-nowhere-hike-los-angeles/ , a 10-mile hike where once the paved road was; hiking up to the Hollywood sign, a 6.5-miler with 1100' elevation gain https://modernhiker.com/hike/hiking-mount-lee-to-the-hollywood-sign/  that includes a mile-long detour to Bronson Cave, aka the "Batcave" from the 1960s TV show Batman that I was a big fan of; and a 3.3-mile hike in the Runyon Canyon Park, Los Angeles's largest dog park with off-leash option https://hikingguy.com/hiking-trails/best-la-hikes/runyon-canyon-hike-directions/.  I found a myriad of great trail reports by several avid SoCal hikers covering many other dog-friendly hikes.

I'm finally convinced to do a bit of urban hiking, although the hikes are really outside the dense city of LA.  I have a few more hikes on schedule depending on the weather that include ocean vistas and waterfalls in Santa Monica and Malibu.  If I can get four good days of hiking in before having to drive back on Saturday, I'll be happy.  I'm taking Sadie and Zeke again.  I plan on leaving early Sunday.  As usual, I will hike a minimum of four miles a day.   There are also a few good breweries I want to try out.

I never spent much time in Los Angeles when I was stationed in Monterey with the US Army in the late 1990s.  I completed several marathons across the state, though:  San Francisco, Sacramento, Big Sur, San Diego Rock And Roller, Redwoods, Los Angeles.  The worst marathon experience was the one in Los Angeles in 1996.  There were a few spectators, but most people just gawked.  At the end of my 4:20 hour ordeal, all I got was a soft popsicle because the volunteers allowed the homeless to all the food reserved for the runners.  That was such a disappointment for me, starved, exhausted and having to drive back to Monterey on an empty stomach and not finding a decent eatery until I got outside of the city.  The way that race was organized turned me off to the city.  I know it's a strange excuse.  My return this coming week is a second attempt to try to at least like the city.  My dogs are country dogs that prefer the tranquility of wilderness to the pounding of asphalt and assholes.

I'm looking forward to seeing how true to my plans this next week will be.   Weather, road conditions and the health of the dogs will all play a part.  Wildflowers this March don't look as promising as they were last year, but I'll be on the lookout for those as well.  I plan on camping outside Joshua Tree National Park Sunday night to get up early on Monday for a sunrise stroll at Chiriaco Summit, CA (there's a free campground behind the George Patton museum) and then heading to the Bridge to Nowhere by late that morning.  Weather will be warm but cloudy.

Let's hope "The Big One" doesn't tear up my plans!