A walk above it all
Despite being sandwiched between the bustling flats of Hollywood on the south and the 101 freeway to the north, Runyon Canyon offers 160 acres of wilderness and some of the best views of Los Angeles down to the ocean.
If the canyon could talk, it might tell tales of the capture of the nefarious bandit Tiburcio Vasquez, who was housed and then betrayed by the first land grant holder of Runyon Canyon, “Greek George” Caralambo. Or perhaps the canyon prefers the more salacious stories of the debaucherous parties thrown by Errol Flynn, glamorously homeless after losing his nearby Mulholland estate due to back alimony payments. Flynn briefly took up residence in world-famous Irish tenor John McCormack’s pool house (the stone foundation remains are still visible). Architects Frank Lloyd Wright and son Lloyd Wright even developed a plan for an elaborate luxury community here that never came to fruition due to ardent neighborhood opposition.
Info
Address North entrance: Mulholland Drive at Desmond Estates Road/Pyramid Place; South entrance: 2000 N Fuller Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90046 | Getting there North entrance: free lot off Mulholland on Pyramid Place/Desmond Estates Road and unmetered street parking; South entrance: unmetered street parking | Hours Daily, dawn to dusk| Tip Mulholland Drive at Cahuenga Boulevard West (Los Angeles, CA 90068) is the eastern terminus of the 21-mile scenic drive that leads to Leo Carillo State Beach.
From the northern Mulholland gate take the left trail for a moderate hike to Clouds Rest, where you can sit and catch your breath on a tall green bench and let your legs dangle like a small kid at the dinner table as you take in the sweeping vista. But the best part of the climb comes halfway up on the left, where perhaps Los Angeles’s luckiest goats are corralled next to the trail before a spectacular view of the Hollywood sign and Griffith Observatory to the northeast.
Following the entire loop, depending on personal fitness and the season (winter and spring are typically best, as summer and fall can be blazingly hot), takes anywhere from 90 minutes to two hours; longer if you’re really decrepit or lazy – or having too much fun ogling the hiker’s butt in front of you. And there are plenty of pretty people in Runyon Canyon to gawk at. The tony nearby estates house some of Los Angeles’s most telegenic residents, who like to hike the trail too.
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