Christmas Dayhike in Griffith Park

That's Catalina Island out there

Griffith Park Observatory

I think Griffith Park is my favorite Christmas Day hike. Lots of people are out, and this year, despite the cold, it was still busy.  Sunshine and utterly clear skies prevailed

December 20 dayhike down the spine of the Verdugos

Glendale

Mt Hollwood, Mt Lee, Santa Monica Bay

Today Nina and I hiked down the length of the Verdugo range. It was a perfect day, cool with mixed skies. It's a 13-mile hike with a car shuttle. I'd wanted to do this entire hike for several years as an end-to-end dayhike, and it was worth the effort.

December 5: Hiking Club Scramble at Vasquez Rocks

Fall has arrived

We fashioned an 8-mile looping scramble-ramble around Vasquez Rocks Natural Area, visiting all corners of the park.

Neolithic rock art

That's right

Observant readers of Kev's Blog are no doubt asking, "What kind of crap are you trying to pull over on us?" Right! But whoever painted these in the last couple decades did a very good imitation of paintings at stoneage sites like Lascaux. Why? The word inherited by the current park staff is that the images were painted by an artist as a film backdrop.
But native Tataviam would have undoubtedly used this alcove as a shelter. It offers great shade in summer, warm southern sun in winter, and nearby water.

We topped off our dayhike by climbing the tallest rock outcrops in the park. A good time was had by all.