12/16/2023 0 Comments Backbone trail stunt roadHusband and wife hiking and writing duo Doug and Caroline Chamberlin are the authors of The Complete Hikers Guide to the Backbone Trail, the first guidebook for the 69-mile long trail through the Santa Monica Mountains. In fact, you may have already hiked some of it without even knowing you did. The National Park Service thanks the efforts of our dedicated volunteers and is appreciative of the support of the Chumash and Tongva peoples.Guidebook reveals the Backbone Trail has something for everyone. Visit the Santa Monica Mountains National Park Service website for Backbone Trail reference materials, or contact the Visitor Center. And Malibu Canyon outlines both the many unique layers in the small mountain range, but also what you've accomplished. Soon you'll cross the creek and continue on the shoulder of Piuma Road to Malibu Canyon Road and the Piuma Trailhead.įrom Saddle Peak you can see the far-flung communities of Los Angeles, but here chaparral is the community. Continue across the driveway and past the pens. Out of the woods what appears to be a residence is actually the California Wildlife Center. Meandering through this California bay laurel woodland you might think you're in the broadleaf forest of another state. And slowly you enter a magical, damp, shady forest full of pleasures. In 0.1 mile the trail crosses Piuma Road and a little to the left. Malibu Creek, indeed, has played an important role for the Santa Monica Mountains. And this canyon continues to serve as a major cultural hub as numerous tv shows, commercials and movies have been filmed right here. You can see names left behind by the Spanish ranching era including the Reyes Adobe, Rancho Las Virgenes and Tapia Park. This bridge connected coastal villages like at Malibu Lagoon, Himaliwu, with Talopop. By analyzing the material we better understand that Malibu Creek was a bridge for the Chumash people. This village has cultural deposits dating back 7,000 years. Research has shown us that where the Visitor Center is located today, was once a large Chumash village named Talapop. In fact Malibu Creek has been an important cultural hub for people for thousands of years. And hiking through a transverse mountain range next to a fresh water source that's leading directly into the Pacific Ocean is a really unique place to be. It is just one of hundreds of tributaries making Malibu Creek the only stream to cross through the Santa Monicas from one side to the other. Finally an intimate rest stop in Dark Canyon appears. Around mile five the trail will switch back and forth and so will your eyes from the flora at your feet to the vast watershed of Malibu Canyon. There's a certain kind of intimacy contrasting the tremendous quantity and scale of diversity turn by turn. And enjoy the many glimpses of your surroundings through the chaparral. What might happen if we lose just a few species?Ĭontinuing, you'll pass a spur trail to Stunt Road at mile 2. Which means that plants and animals are dependent on one another. The survival of plants and animals in this and other zones is dependent on co-evolution. But adaptation to the long hot dry months is still vital. Growing at higher elevations means the chaparral receives more rainfall. Some examples include chamise chaparral, another chaparral and manzanita chaparral. Depending on the specific characteristics and topography of a particular location the dominant chaparral's plant species may vary. It is sometimes referred to as the elfin forest. Do you know which plant community this is?Ĭhaparral is a predominant plant community for the entire length of the Backbone Trail. Returning to the trail you begin that long descent amid magnificent stacks of sedimentary boulders. Saddle Peak is the first real view across the greater Los Angeles basin from the Backbone Trail. A 0.5 mile up the ridge you'll walk around a water tank and a bit further you'll meet a spur trail to the top of Saddle Peak. The trail is across the street and you'll hike west.Īnd let's begin. Park on the dirt shoulder of Stunt Road about 500 feet west of the Lois Ewen Overlook. Then you'll drive to the top of this mountain, Saddle Peak. This segment ends at the Piuma Trailhead. On the trail keep your good eye out for rattlesnakes ticks and poison oak. Remember, a good breakfast, hydrate early, triple check weather and pack essentials, no visible valuables in the car and no keys in the wheel wells. It is almost all downhill over its seven miles with about 3,000 feet of cumulative elevation gain. We walk segment #6 east to west due to elevation, so do some good downhill training hikes.
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