Mount Hollywood: Hiking goes Hollywood

What you'll be seeing

 Mount Hollywood

The red carpet of hikes

Requires little to no prep!

What you'll need:

• Water- 1 Liter
• Trail Shoes
• A buddy!   

Found on the East side of the Santa Monica Mountain Range. The geographic divider between the San Fernando Valley, Los Angeles, Santa Monica, and Glendale. A nice reminder that nature can exist beside millions of people. I call it nature because it consists of more dirt than asphalt, more native fauna than county planted palms, and enough critters to still call it wildlife. Yes, this hike just qualifies as such. It is hike. Not a daring one, you can make it one if you'd like.

Stolen from Google Maps.

Getting to Griffith Park is a fairly simple ordeal. Just west of the 5 Fwy and south of the 101, you'll find the park. There are numerous signs pointing to the Zoo, golf course, and park facilities. Just follow them. You should end up on Los Feliz. The main road that runs along the park.

Personally, I was looking for the Mount Hollywood Trail. I'm not really sure if this was THE trail because there were no markings that determined which trail was which. However, which ever way you chose led up to the same overlook and peak. Follow the above map and you should see a couple trail heads.

We took off from the parking lot after making a turn towards the "Merry Go Round" sign off of Los Feliz. For the life of us, there was nothing noting which street we were on. If you keep going north, you'll run into the LA Zoo. Not that it's a particularly bad thing, you've gone too far. Turn around and head up the hill!

Once you get onto the trail you'll notice it's hard to miss the direction it's headed. It's wide enough to drive up. Then you notice it was once paved over with asphalt. Hmm. Don't worry this still qualifies as a hike and not a walk.

Nicole adjusting to the outdoors

Now, about maybe a mile up the trail, we noticed a ladder. A well put together utility ladder. I don't know who it was intended to be used by, but we did. This climb was very worth it. Just have a little bit more confidence than you do fear, and you should be just fine.

One way ladder!

Once to the top, you're standing under a high voltage power line structure. You know it's high voltage from the nice "hmmmmm" that it gives off. I'm sure it's also giving off some super power giving radiation as well. So try not to sleep under the thing. Unless you want some funky lookin' offspring.

Anywho, we marched on up the narrow clear cut trail. It was fairly steep and full of loose dirt so watch your step. Keep climbing up and you'll reach the large trail again. You'll emerge from the climb looking up at a bridge. It's a pretty cool sight.

ZAP! ZAP!

Climb up there for ShortCut #2

We got a little curious and ventured up to the base of the bridge. Well almost the base of the bridge. Seeing the most direct path up this mountain, we took it. This was shortcut #2. We scrambled up the little dirt path until we reached a thin yellow utility rope that was tied to a steel pipe jutting from the ground. I don't know why I trusted this rope that could of been frayed up top but hey it worked. We pulled ourselves directly under the bridge.


What a view. Immediately we understood the crowds that would come through to take pictures of the panoramic views. Amazing. You could see Los Angeles, Santa Monica, the Pacific Ocean and onward. What a perfect Sunset.


We stuck around for a while, just admiring our beautiful city. It always looks better when looking in.


Took some pics, chit chatted with the fellow hikers, and hiked back down in the dark. If you're careful, you can easily go back through the two shortcuts we took. Just mind your footing, and they won't have to name the trail after you!

This is a fairly easy trail with some exploring between turns. Half a liter of water should do, one liter should be more than enough. So bring it!

Obligatory Handstand Pic

See yah guys out there!

JoshW

The Bros Guide to Pacific Poison Oak.

What has leaves of three, green and sometimes red, and will make you want to run naked through a room full of rakes?

 Give up?

PACIFIC POISON OAK.

I'm writing about this today because I believe it has affected each and every one of us in one way or another- personally and very privately. If you've spent any amount of time in the lush valleys of Southern California, you may already be familiar with this devil plant. In hopes of preventing any further encounters with this plant, this article might help those confused with it's appearance and effects.

I'm not going to get ridiculously indepth with the genus and species name of the plants, I'm not going to explain why or how 15-34% of the population are immune until repeated exposures. I'm not going to explain how the urushiol interacts with the dermis layer of the skin to cause contact dermatitis and a more severe possible anaphalaxis.

I'm going to offer quick specific tips on avoiding this awful plant and enjoy the rest of your time outdoors!

• ARRRRGHHH...What the heck does this stuff look like!?

It's important to note where you're going to find these plants. It's called Pacific Poison Oak for a reason. It's specifically found in the Pacific Coast. It's also fair to state that Poison Ivy DOES NOT grow on the West coast.

Study these pictures well! Know your enemy. 

The "poison" in the Poison Oak is an oil called urushiol that irritates the skin and causes you to get a rash. This rash is barely comparable to a dozen or so mosquito bites. Itching is an understatement. It's the feeling that your skin doesn't belong on you! In more severe cases, blistering of the skin is a possibility, in that case, take great care to prevent infection if the skin should tear.

No two plants are exactly the same.

 Notice the bundles of three.
 Notice the rounded curves to the leaves.
Notice the spine running down the middle of the leaves and forward sweeping veins.
Notice the size
- about three leaves fit in the palm of your hand.
Notice the color
-Bright Green = Summer
-Red/Oily Red= Fall
Notice location
-Short shrubs/low to the ground
-Unless in vine form
-Mix with other vegetation such as chaparral and other dense areas of growth.


All parts of the plant have potential to cause an allergic reaction. Even after 2 years the oils are still active.

This is a Poison oak plant in the Summer or Fall?

FALL!

Look at this vine, looks like a morning glory plant or some Tarzan swinging rope vine.
WRONG.


 Although it is considered a shrub it may present itself as a vine. So be careful where you wrap your arms around when climbing a tree or finding a hand hold on a 30ft sandstone face!

 Final Quick Tips

• Should you come in contact with the poison oak plant, wash your skin with soap and cold water to remove the oils. Follow the soap and water with a water and rubbing alcohol mixture a 1:1 ration will do the trick.
• What about my clothes? Wash your clothes, boots, and whatever else you used outdoors! They can all carry the oils. Sneaky.
• Also, for any reason- DO NOT SMOKE the plant. It is extremely irritating to the lungs and will cause pulmonary edema- internal drowning- death! Don't Die!

Go Be Stoked and Do Not Fear the Oak. Respect it!

Sage Ranch: Simi Valley's Hidden Gem

Just when we thought we'd exhausted all other wilderness and unknown terrain in the San Fernando Valley there was Sage Ranch. One week ago, Kim did some digital exploration on Google Maps and stumbled on this beauty. A few hurried phone calls after work, we set out for a drive down some crazy turns and steep grades. A few times we uttered, "what the...where did we end up?" but we stayed committed and before we knew it we had already entered this gem of a park.
Technically this park is located directly between the San Fernando and Simi Valleys laying directly on the Ventura-LA County line. The entrance to this park lies on Woolsey Canyon Rd and Black Canyon Road (Google it). What is usually dry, dusty terrain in the Summer, is covered in lush blooming sage, chaparral, and natural grass in Spring. Within the first minute you'll notice the large sandstone, a dominant feature that adds to the potential of this park.

This is a beautiful park that is very accessible to any one ready to get some sun! Come stoked with a curious and adventurous attitude and prepare to have a great time.

Some more local fauna blooming, adding to the beauty of this desert landscape.

Entering the park we also noticed a nice little feature that definitely surprised Kim and I. Campgrounds. Quite a few campgrounds. All shaded with charcoal grills that were ready to
 use, except for a few that were locked. Although, it is important to note that there is this sign. "Group Camping Only", well I sure don't plan on doing any one man trips. Looks like I'm in the clear, right? Ha. I'm not recommending anything.

Yes, this park has a trail. Yes, we recommend all hikers to stay on the trail but the vegetation is hearty and low maintenance. As we are all aspiring climbers and mountaineers, we look forward to absailing these boulders. Belays will be set in place and we will all come home- hopefully with a few bumps and bruises.

You can get a wonderful view of the surroundings by scrambling up a few boulders. Watch your step and you'll be fine!

There are also countless caves, nooks, and crannies to explore in this park. Go, dig deep in this park. 

My few words of warning:

• Bring water! 1-2 liters should be just fine for a few hours here. There is access to water fountains at camp.
• Watch for snakes. Signs are posted everywhere, don't be aggressive in your exploration, respect the land!
• Keep an eye out for Poison Oak! Leaves of three let them be. Seriously.
• Don't litter. Don't Graffiti. Don't break Glass.

 Go check this place out, don't be bummed if you make a wrong turn. Enjoy the ride, you're going somewhere new!

Re-Igniting the Dirtbag

As the few of you may have noticed, there hasn't been an update to this blog in months. We haven't forgotten about the blog, it's come up in conversation nearly every time we've met. I'd use the excuse of Winter to blame on our lack of things to write about but we live in Southern California. There hasn't been much of a Winter in the first place. We have squeezed out a few trips and tried out a few new things but it's been almost a chore to accomplish. We'll be covering Carrizo Plains in the next post but for now I wanted to talk about re-igniting the dirtbag in all of us.

Stuck in classrooms, behind desks, waiting call-backs, repaying loans, moving out, moving back in, balancing relationships, 12hour shifts, and just looking for direction have all slowly snuffed out that spirit of Summer. That limitless feeling to the days, one adventure after another, faded with the season. As I drove 5 hours home, from Mammoth after spending a full day on the mountain, I continued my binge on The Dirtbag Diaries. This blog, this podcast, was a slap in the face. A few guys, down on their luck, professionally, turned to blogging to pass the time. They are Oregonians after my own heart. They've turned their passion for outdoors and adventure outwards. All the excuses, all the things stopping us from going out and getting dirty, they discuss. They're not sponsored athletes going out and telling us to just "Do It". They bring meaning to the adventure in their lives. Listening to all of this, I started to realize:
I'm getting comfortable.

Not in the car I was sitting, not the bed I was going home to. I was getting comfortable with life. Sleeping in, spending weekends eating out, finding bars to go to, have all eased me into this state. I've become uncomfortable with the idea of change. The idea to just go out and get lost, get scraped up. Not saying that I don't enjoy any of these things. It's all we've been able to squeeze out of our weekends, afternoons, and conflicting schedules. So with Summer coming up, we've been planning some trips up and down the coast. Flying east and driving west. Getting stuck, climbing out. Carvin' asphalt.

Here's to the upcoming season with all of you!

Here's to

A Stoked Summer.

Coming Soon: Carrizo Plains National Monument Review and Tribute to the BLM