Hike Report: LA Zoo to Amir's Garden

On Sunday afternoon my son and I joined my friend David for a short hike in L.A.'s Griffith Park.  It was an unusual hike in that we didn't begin until after 3:00, and it was entirely within the city limits of Los Angeles.  Nevertheless, it was a beautiful hike on a trail lined with beautiful wildflowers.

We parked at the northwest corner of the LA Zoo parking lot.  From there we followed a chain link fence around a maintenance area to a horse trail that passed under a bridge.

After passing under the bridge, the trail climbed to a ridge, then followed the ridge which provided some awesome views of Glendale to the east and Burbank to the north.  To the south, through the trees, we could catch glimpses of the zoo grounds.  On prevous hikes on this trail, I could hear occasional sounds of exotic animals echoing up, but on this day, only the sound of the strong wind could be heard, and the views were often looking through wildly waving grasses and bushes.

Eventually the trail leads to Mineral Spring picnic area, a popular picnic area  in a ravine that can be accessed by car.  We crossed through the picnic area and continued on a trail on the opposite side of the ravine that led up a short way to a place called Amir's Garden.   

Amir's Garden is a wonderful place to explore, with numerous trails twisting around the shady hillside.  After wandering around a bit, we headed back the way we came as the sun sank lower in the sky.

As we neared the parking lot, just before descending back down the ridge, we saw downtown Glendale and the intersection of the Ventura and Golden State Freeways (Hwy 134 & I-5) gleaming below us.  Urban sprawl never looked so beautiful...

Read about a previous trip I took to Amir's Garden here.