Big Morongo Canyon Preserve

Posting out of order. I hiked this over two months ago, March 14, 2026. Twelfth hike for the year.

Only been here once before, and it was a long time ago. Not sure how I managed never to come back, but I hadn't, until this March.

This trip was a spring trip, with quite a bit of flowers in bloom, even away from the watery bottom of the seep in Big Morongo Canyon.

The The area has several defined trails. One heads down the main canyon. One runs along the east side of the preserve. One runs to the west. Numerous trails criss-cross the central, wetter area of the preserve. I wandered somewhat aimlessly, but not very far down the canyon, as I didn't have time to do that.

The spring bloom was still going strong, with a wide variety of flowers along the paths: Desert mallow in the wash, brittlebush on the hills, a patch of Mojave aster near an overlook, chia, yucca, and a very few larkspur and lupine.

I zigged zagged around enough to hit my three mile minimum, plus a little bit.

This would have been a Saturday afternoon, a stop on the way towards Yucca Valley/Twentynine Palms, and a night of astronomy outreach at Sky's the Limit. I was still on a decent roll, as far as hiking, getting out once or twice a week. It's been slower, recently, but two hikes this last weekend: Volcanic Tablelands near Bishop, for Hike #20, on May 16, and Red Rock Canyon State Park, near Cantil/Ridgecrest for Hike #21.

That was supposed to be surrounding a nice astrophotography outing, but that fizzled out for me. Only managed two short hikes, so I think that means I have, I think, three hikes to blog.

Big Morongo Preserve has a webpage on the San Bernardino County website. Apparently, it's owned by the County, as part of Big Morongo Regional Park, but there's also a non-profit partner that shares in management.

Free entry. No pets. No smoking. No collection of plants or animals. Open 7:30am to sunset.

And, of course, it can get *really* hot in the summer, so it's more of a three-season park, although it does remain open year round, and an early or late hike in summer would still be comfortable. Trails are a mixture of regular dirt and boardwalks, because the trails crisscross a seap, where water bubbles up due to the San Andreas Fault. That makes this a literal oasis in the desert, but even an oasis can be hot in the summer.

If you do hike in the summer, wear proper sun protection, bring liquids, and carefully monitor your comfort, especially if you're with kids. They overheat quicker and don't always signal you before they *really* overheat, so, can not stress this enough, if you go in the summer, take it easy, and don't over do it!

Mount Hollywood Trail, After Dark

Hiked May 3, 2026. This would be Hike #19 for the year. I haven't blogged Hike #18, which was Warren Peak, two weeks ago. Apparently, I still need to blog Hike #12, Big Monorogo Canyon Preserve, as well.

I've hiked this innumerable times, but it's been a few years since I've hiked it at night, when I can get the nice "Griffith Observatory in Front of the DTLA Skyline" shot. In this case, I got to the Observatory early, worked a bit, then headed up to Mount Hollywood. Once there, I headed back down, stopping near the big bend in the road that heads up the south side of Mount Hollywood, and waited for dark.

Two second exposure, f/11, ISO 1000, then cropped somewhat to produce a zoomed in image. My lens was a Nikon 24-120mm zoom, which isn't quite enough for what I wanted to do, here, so I had to crop.

The flowers were, in order, sacred datura, sticky monkey flower, and thistle (both blooming and spent). The sticky monkey flower was pretty common, but not right next to the trail. Only a few plants were well-placed for photography.

There were other flowers, but it's well past peak for wildflowers in this area, although the cooler temperatures this week have helped.

As previously noted, it's about a three mile hike from the Charlie Turner trailhead (far northern end of the lot in front of Griffith Observatory) to the summit of Mount Hollywood. If I was more motivated, I had time for a longer walk, and considered going to the Hollywood sign. But I forgot to bring my prescription medication, which was due to be taken around 8:30pm. I wasn't sure how long I'd need for the longer hike, so figured I'd stay close, so I could get back home by around 9pm, not too late, at least in my mind.

It was a little chilly by the end, but not too cold. Good way to get some extra steps, and I do enjoy time out on the trail, when ever I can manage it.