Lightweight Hike to Inspiration

Los Angeles -- Spending Sunday afternoon with my wife nearing Inspiration Point.

St. Patrick's Day on Top

Celebrating St. Patrick's Day on Echo Mountain above Pasadena in Los Angeles.

Sunset Over JPL

Pasadena, CA -- Tucked in the foothills of Pasadena* exists a small village of structures, laboratories and offices called Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). It is here, in the shadow of the San Gabriel Mountains that scientists and engineers explore outer space by constructing and controlling robotic planetary spacecraft. JPL also assists Hollywood writers and motion picture production experts by advising them with scientific accuracy.

*Although the address is Pasadena, the JPL campus is actually located in La Canada/Flintridge

Smokey LA Skyline

Pasadena, CA -- Spring fever overtook us all as a dry, balmy wind blew through our group and into the valley. This is our weekly Happy Hour hiking group in the foreground. Behind us are the buildings of downtown Los Angeles which, are under a shroud of smoke from the Santa Barbara fire.

Historic Mtn Railway by Foot

In the early 1890s, two gentlemen, professor T.S.C. Lowe and engineer D.J. Macpherson embarked on an ambitious project. They planed on building a first-class hotel 1,400 ft (427 m) above the budding city of Pasadena. The mountain they chose was at 3,200 ft (945 m) and overlooked all of Los Angeles. Transporting the formally-dressed patrons was a problem, so they designed and built a funicular that whisked guests up the steep, 62% grade track to Echo Mountain called The Great Incline. On top, a 20-room chalet, an 80-room hotel and observatory were built which earned the resort “The White City.” Click on the black & white photo taken in 1896.


From atop Echo Mountain, another train took adventurers 4 miles (6 km) up to another resort in the oak and pine forest called “Ye Alpine Tavern.” One more ridge, only ½ mile away is Inspiration Point, which I featured yesterday.

Today’s photo is what’s left of that ill-fated railroad to the sky. Sadly, a series of floods, windstorms and fires wiped out every building and much of the narrow-gauge track. Eventually, the money ran out and the desire to rebuild was thwarted by immense disappointment.

Today, however, the hotel ruins, rail beds and even a few artifacts can be seen if you have the leg power to get there. I hike these trails and ruins nearly every week with a some hiking friends. The trail heads are literally minutes from my back door.

On Top of LA

Eighteen of us "Happy Hour Hikers" meet tonight atop Echo Mountain for our weekly Wednesday night hike. With a 3/4 moon and LA's bright lights illuminating the trail, we hardly needed flashlights. Two falling star sightings, great friends, food and drink made for a great start of 2009.

Halloween Party on Echo Mtn.

The Happy Hour Hiking group had over 30 people show up Wednesday night. The theme: Halloween. Some hiked the three miles up with costumes while others arrived with special lights and assorted party favors. All in all, our weekly meetup (meetup.com) was another success.

Tonight marked our 30th hike to Echo Mountain overlooking Pasadena and most of Los Angeles. As daylight savings kicks in next week, we still plan on meeting at our usual time and beginning our hike in the dark. We will see how long that lasts....

Climbing the Hills Over Pasadena

The Happy Hour Backpacking Group had an exceptionally clear night. Our weekly Wednesday night hike began at 6:00 at the top of Lake Avenue, and festivities began at 7:00 on top of Echo Mountain. The views overlooking Pasadena and Los Angeles were incredible. We had about 25 hikers, good wine, dozens of assorted appetizers and warm air in October.

Anyone want to join us next time?