Wildwood Canyon Fitness Hike - Wed 3/26

Please join the Brand Ramblers as we head out on a sunset fitness hike up Burbank's Wildwood Canyon to the Verdugo Moutains ridge line, this Wednesday 3/26 at 5:30 PM.

This hike is rated as a fitness hike as there is a nearly 1700 foot elevation gain in the 2 miles of the Vital Link trail that runs atop the western slopes of Wildwood Canyon to the junction with the Verdugo Motorway fire road. The trail is well maintained and has numerous switchbacks the last 3/4 mile as it rapidly ascends to the antenna complex at the summit.

Don't be put off – this isn't the stuff of Iron Triathlons – it's just a moderate-to-strenuous ridge trail that will give you an excellent workout while enjoying an early spring sunset!

Total round trip is 4 miles – and starting at 5:30 we should be back at the trail head by 7:30, just pass sunset.

Driving Directions
1. Take freeway (134 to 5) or surface streets to Harvard Road in Burbank and head north towards the Verdugo mountains.

2. Harvard Road enters parkland at Sunset Drive – continue north towards the Castaways and park in the lot at the junction with Wildwood Canyon road (the entrance is well marked). Do not park beyond the gate as it may be padlocked at sunset – instead park in the adjacent overflow lot.

3. We'll meet in the parking area and then head up Wildwood Canyon road to the first trail that takes one up to the ridge.

4. Call Ken's cell if you're running late or get lost.

Topped Off: Last Sunset of Winter 2007-08

The Brand Ramblers kicked-off the 2008 sunset hiking season with a 2.5 mile/1200 foot ascent of local favorite Mt. Thom in the Verdugo mountains.

This was also the last sunset of winter - which all enjoyed despite the somewhat smoggy air.

After a slight delay in gathering up the trekkers (thanks Kanwar!) we set off along the Las Flores Motorway fire road and reached the summit in just over an hour (with May, Shri and Wai dashing ahead).

Happy birthday to Ramblers Enrique and Hemant! Enrique celebrated his birthday this year by "bagging" Mt. Thom. Apologies to Leeand Matt for failing to alert them to this hike. We also really missed the company of Shirley, Vish, and Harvey!

Shri's photo gallery is now online - waiting for Wai and Enrique.

Next Hike: The Easter Sunday to Mt. Hollywood via Bee Rock and Mt. Bell has been postponed until April (see calendar for additional hikes and info). Check back soon for calendar updates.

Download this nice tabloid sized City of Glendale Trails and Fire Roads Map (PDF)

Sunset Hike: Return to Mt. Tom - Wed 3/19

Please join the Brand Ramblers as we head out for the first sunset hike of 2008 this Wednesday 3/19 at 5:00 PM. The entire hike up and back should take about 1-1/2 to 2 hours. This is not a difficult trek if you are in reasonably good shape.

Total roundtrip distance is approximately 5-miles with an elevation gain of 1200 feet. Park and assemble at the Las Flores Motorway gate (see driving directions for additional info). We’ll assemble at 5 and will start walking up Las Flores at 5:10.

Driving Directions
From the intersection of Brand & Doran drive the 3 miles to the Las Flores Motorway trailhead.

1. Head north (on either Brand or Central) and turn right onto East Glenoaks Blvd and drive for .7 mile
2. See direction signs and turn right at the light to stay on Glenoaks Blvd as it takes a 90 degree turn – continue on another .1 mile to the intersection with N. Glendale Blvd.
3. Turn left at N. Glendale Ave, staying in left lanes - continue on as Glendale Blvd becomes N. Verdugo Rd.
4. Stay in the left lanes continue on N. Verdugo Rd. as it becomes Canada Blvd (follow signs for Canada Blvd)
5. Continue driving north until you reach the end of Verdugo Park and turn left at Colina Drive.
6. Continue up Colina Drive as it becomes Sunshine Dr.
7. Locate street parking on Polaris Drive or on Sunshine Drive below the intersection with Sandingham Drive (watch for parking restrictions) and walk the rest of the way up Sunshine Drive to the Las Flores gate (just pass Kildonan Drive).

Call Ken if you're running late or get lost. See Google map for this route.

Daylight Saved! Griffith Observatory Looped

Nine Brand Ramblers braved Sunday's early arrival of Daylight Savings for a brisk jaunt to the Griffith Observatory via the West Observatory trail. Wai kept himself busy collecting pixel-level documentation of the trek - see his gorgeous photo gallery.

After ascending along the upper loop and spending some time exploring Observatory grounds (arrival was prior to the 10 AM opening) the Ramblers leisurely returned to Fern Dell by strolling down Canyon Drive to link up with the Western Canyon trail.

Plant/Shrub Watch: Kevin provided an updated ID for the Mountain or California Lilac (Ceanothus) that is now in bloom; Ken spotted a blooming California native Sacred Datura (Tolguacha) and as usual we saw lots of Castor Beans (Ricinus Communis), a source for an famous old-is-new-again poison.

Next Hikes:

Wednesday March 19 5 PM - Return to Mt. Thom in the Verdugo mountains. Full details to follow. See also last years BR hike to this local peak.

Sunday March 23 8 AM - Eaton Canyon to Henniger Flats in the San Gabriel Mountains (Pasadena).

Fern Dell to Griffith Observatory Hike - Sunday 3/9/2008

Join the Brand Ramblers this Sunday at 8:30 AM as we regroup at Griffith Park's Fern Dell campground and hike up to Griffith Observatory. This trek is shorter than last week's Brush Canyon to Mt. Lee hike with less gain in elevation.

Important Note: Daylight Savings returns Sunday morning at 2 AM - we 'lose' an hour of light in the morning so we pushed the start back to 8:30 AM. Daylight Savings means we can start after work hikes in the weeks to come - look for a return to Mt. Thom in the Verdugos on Wednesday March 19 (details to come).

Google map for the Fern Dell to Griffith Observatory hike

Driving Directions: Take Los Feliz Blvd to Fern Dell Drive (just east of where it turns into Western) and drive up Fern Dell into Griffith Park and find roadside parking across from the Trails concession stand (Trails makes a nice post hike treat - coffee and gourmet food). If you're running late or have trouble finding your way - call Ken.

13 to the Summit: Brand Ramblers Kickoff 2008 Season with Trek to Mt. Lee

The Brand Ramblers 2008 'season' kicked off with a pleasant Sunday 8 AM Griffith Park hike up Brush Canyon, across the Mulholland Trail to Mt. Lee and the Hollywood Sign. 13 brave ramblers made the 7-mile round trip that included a last minute leg to the Bronson Canyon 'Bat Cave.'

Not counting the Bat Cave excursion the trek slightly exceeded the original estimate of 5-miles roundtrip and 90+ minutes. All told, it was a moderate if leisurely 180 minute effort involving an approximately 1100 foot gain in elevation.

More photo documentation to come from Karthik, Enrique and Harvey.

Next hike will be announced shortly - we expect to start afterwork evening hikes in the Verdugos once daylight savings returns on Sunday March 9.

UPDATE: Mary contributed these stats: 6.36 miles from the parking lot to the 'summit' and back; elevation gain just over 1100 feet; averaged 2.5 miles/hour, not counting resting time for snacks and water on Mt. Lee.

Enrique's Flickr album of this hike.

Karthik's Picasa album of this hike.

Mt. Lee Hollywood Sign Hike - Sunday 3/2/2008

The Brand Ramblers' first trek of 2008 is this Sunday 3/2/2008. We'll be walking up to Mt. Lee and taking a close up look at the Hollywood sign.

Meet Sunday morning at 8 AM at the Bronson Canyon parking lot in Griffith Park (see directions below). It's approximate 5-mile round trip up and back on well maintained fire roads so we should complete the hike in 90 minutes or so. We trek up Brush Canyon and then head west to Mt. Lee, passing around the summit with great views of the San Fernando valley to the north and a panorama of LA downtown to the ocean.


View Larger Map
This easy-to-moderate hike provides an excellent opportunity to gaze down upon the heart of Schollywood from the summit of Mt. Lee.

Mt. Lee Hike Album

Link to Google map for this hike.

Driving Directions: To get to the Bronson Canyon/Brush Canyon parking lot drive up Bronson Canyon (in Hollywood) north until you enter Griffith Park. Proceed all the way until the locked fire road gate and park at the turnabout parking lot or the larger parking area just before this turnabout. Call Ken if you're running late or need additional directions.