Epic Travel → North America → The West Coast → Southern California → Los Angeles Area → Eaton Canyon (Hike)

Location: San Gabriels front range, Northeast of Los Angeles

Distance: 3.6 miles (roundtrip)

Elevation Gain/Loss: 500 feet

Time Required: 1.5 – 2 hours

Red Tape/Notes: No fee or permit required; hike starts at the Eaton Canyon Nature Center. There’s lots of beta for this hike online (try SoCal Hiker or Modern Hiker) although the trail is so heavily trafficked scarcely necessary. Please do not attempt to go further up canyon than the first set of falls; if you’d like to see more of the canyon, get the training needed to do the Eaton Canyon Technical route from the top down. It’s amazing.

What’s Nearby?: The Huntington, Allison Mine Loop, Eaton Canyon (Technical), Little Santa Anita Canyon, Bailey Canyon, Rubio Canyon, Mt. Lowe Railway, Millard Canyon/Dawn Mine Loop

This is one of the most crowded (if not the most crowded) hikes in the LA area. This is due to a number of factors – it’s pretty easy (under 4 miles with only minor elevation gain), it leads to a waterfall that flows year-round (although it’s significantly less impressive in the fall), and it involves some rather entertaining river crossings that lead non-outdoorsy people to feel that they’re being terribly adventurous. Still, the falls are very pretty, and this hike is a nice option if you’re in the LA area and just need to get outside and stretch your legs quickly, or if you happen to have family and friends visiting who aren’t up for an epic day of your usual shenanigans. To avoid the worst of the crowds and actually score a parking spot in the Nature Center, arrive early. You may even get to witness one of the embarrassingly frequent rescues that happen in this area, as people try (and fail) to make it to the upper falls. This rescue thankfully involved injuries only.

Epic Travel → North America → The West Coast → Southern California → Los Angeles Area → Eaton Canyon (Hike)