Waterfalling

Waterfall + Rainbow = Sweet!

With all the rain in the past week, I figured it'd be pretty fun to go look at waterfalls. J-J-J-Jay Unit was down, so we rolled out PCH to what turns out is a relatively popular waterfall spot in Malibu, Escondido Falls.

It's a pretty, straightforward hike (maybe a couple miles, minor elevation) along a combination of road and a well-traveled trail up Escondido Canyon, with numerous (easy) stream crossings. Here's a bird's-eye view of the canyon, courtesy of Google Earth.

Escondido Canyon bird's-eye

We arrived at the lower falls along with a handful of other visitors in short order, and found plenty of water running, along with a mysterious, sulfury stink.

Escondido lower falls

Jay and Shawn at the lower falls

We then traversed a significantly steeper, muddier path upstream to the upper falls. This required some rock scrambling, but the journey was well-rewarded. The upper falls tumble over numerous mossy aprons into a good-sized (but not deep) pool from which rainbows (and presumably also invisible leprechauns and pots of gold) emerge.

Escondido upper falls

My only issue with this place is that it's obviously well-known, easily accessible, and thus prone to overcrowding - they should rename it Evidente (Obvious) versus Escondido (Hidden) Falls. Enroute back down the trail we saw a couple dozen visitors - too many for the narrow trail, and my solitary taste. If I went again, it would be very early in the morning to avoid this issue.

We considered hitting another waterfall (Sycamore Canyon in Pt. Mugu State Park), but given the time (now midday) and anticipated crowds, we elected instead to get some lunch and head to my favorite, secret Santa Monica Mountains overlook. After a short (<1 mi, 20min) hike, we were treated to some great views...

Ladyface Mountain, scene of my two-weeks ago hike

Snow-covered Topatopa mountains, to the north

Interestingly, in only a day's time, a heavy layer of smog had already settled into the LA basin...

Looking down toward Los Angeles, under a thick layer of smog

Another successful adventure, and now, time for another week at school. But next weekend, camping beckons!

Google Earth view of the route to my "secret" overlook