Let's Do Something Awesome • The City Looks Small from Echo Mountain

The City Looks Small from Echo Mountain

This past Saturday I abandoned my normal weekend habits and was up at 7am, preparing myself for a long overdue trek through the mountains of Altadena.

For the last couple of years I’ve been a huge fan of the LA-based outdoorsy website Modern Hiker. Along with an incredibly comprehensive list of local hikes, the author includes a special page with a very spot-on lineup, “The Best Hikes in Los Angeles”. I’ve been on a mission to try them all, and this time it was for Echo Mountain in the lower San Gabriels.

Let me start by saying…I’m out shape. Many apologies did I have to breathlessly wheeze out to my athletically-inclined comrade as the entirely uphill journey required I make constant rest breaks. It was shameful. But we did make it to the top, finally, and the sight was (literally) breathtaking. The entirely grid of the city lay before us in miniature.

But we came for more than county-wide views and sore legs: at the top of the mountain lay the awesome remains of a 1900’s-era resort and railway, the perfect rest stop for lunch and some exploration.