Go Outside and Get This Custom T-shirt

Do our 2025 Adventure Challenge and get this custom t-shirt, a Topo Designs mountain accessory bag and more! It's easy: Pick ANY 3 activities you find on our website, snap a few favorite pics, write in to us and we'll send you a confirmation email for getting your rewards! Want a few quick ideas to get you going? We've got you covered.

Week: 07.02.2025
Regions: Northern & Southern CA

Can't Top This

Visit Presidio Tunnel Tops park in San Francisco

San Francisco’s Presidio was already a fantastic place to hang out for the afternoon, a beautiful site within the largest urban national park in the United States (the Golden Gate National Recreation Area). And Presidio Tunnel Tops is like a cherry on top. Make that two cherries on top, with the newly opened (July 2025) Outpost Meadow, a 1.5-acre green space located at Old Mason Street across from the Crissy Field Marsh in the Presidio.
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Baldwinner!

Hike a 2-mile loop at Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook in Los Angeles

Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook in west Los Angeles is famous for its expansive views of Tinsel Town, but this urban park and landmark also offers a solid workout in its stairway and trail system.
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Kirby Your Enthusiasm

Bike or hike down to hidden Kirby Cove just west of the Golden Gate Bridge in Marin

A biker stopped to take in the scenery on the fire road leading to Kirby Cove and overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge
A biker with a yellow backpack standing at a vantage just above Kirby Cove Beach with the Golden Gate Bridge in the background
A few people relaxing on the beach at Kirby Cove with the Golden Gate Bridge in the background
Biker passing the official sign to Marin Headlands Golden Gate in the San Francisco Bay Area
Just west of the Golden Gate Bridge in Marin is one of the Bay's most-accessible secluded beaches. Kirby Cove is accessed by hiking or biking a 1-mile fire road down to the beach, where the reward is an all-time classic Golden Gate view.
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Griffith’s Glow

Griffith Observatory Sunset Hike

Griffith J. Griffith believed that people gained an enlightened perspective on life when looking at the skies. So true! Especially when you gaze upon a glorious LA sunset and moonrise from Griffith Observatory, that generous star buff’s gift to the city he loved.
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Sunset's Up!

Hiking Sunset Cliffs in San Diego

San Diego is famous for its coastal views. And it doesn’t get much better than the Sunset Cliffs in Point Loma. The vistas along this less-traveled stretch of coastline (Ocean Beach is more populated) are some of the most spectacular in the Golden State. Get on the scene via a 3-mile (round-trip) hike.
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Pomo Pitch

Hike-in Camping at Pomo Canyon on Sonoma Coast

Secluded camping under the redwoods and by a creek … now that’s a good pitch! Get to it at Pomo Canyon Environmental Campground, an absolute gem within Sonoma Coast State Park. This walk-in-only campground has hillside options and spots closer to the creek.
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Big on a Bay View

Hike or bike the back bay in Newport Beach at Upper Newport Bay Preserve

Newport Beach is well known for having the biggest of things: homes, boats, egos (oh come on, you know we love you, Newport Beach!) … and the largest estuary in the area, which happens to be one of the top spots for hiking, biking, and bird-watching (no, you’re not too cool for t
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Your Mission Is Less Crowded

Do a less traveled route to Mission Peak in the Bay Area

A group of people clamored around the summit marker at Mission Peak in the Bay Area
Wild turkeys heading up a trail in the Mission Peak region of the Bay Area
A group of friends sitting down and hanging out at the summit of Mission Peak in the Bay Area
Mission Peak is one of the Bay Area’s most popular mountains, with many hikers climbing every weekend. Skip the crowds with this 6-mile loop up the less-traveled southern route.
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Peaceful in Glendale

Visit Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale

Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale
Statue at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Glendale California
Arch architecture passageway at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale
View of the Santa Gabriel Mountains from Forest Lawn in Glendale
Located in the heart of Los Angeles just off the intersection of the 5 and 2 freeways, Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale offers a peaceful and pondering escape, and some beautiful architecture.
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Trending Stories NorCal

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  1. Sequoia Re-opens Crystal Cave

    Step inside Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park's hidden world by visiting the newly re-opened Crystal Cave—the only cave in the parks open to the public. Closed for four years, this rare marble karst cavern is welcoming visitors once again, but only through the summer season!

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  2. Afternoon on the Island

    What is it about tiny islands in the middle of lakes? There’s something that just draws you in. It’s even more fun when getting there is half the adventure because you have to reach it by canoe, kayak, paddleboat, or a ranger-guided boat tour!

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  3. Easiest Best Hike in the World

    Choose the easiest and most view-rewarding hike in Yosemite. Okay, we’ll go first: the combination of hiking to Sentinel Dome and Taft Point. Both of these lookouts are within a couple miles of each other on Glacier Point Road

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  4. Hiker in the forest at Mount Sutro in San Francisco

    San Francisco's Middle Earth

    No need to travel to New Zealand to visit Middle Earth. San Francisco’s Mount Sutro Open Space is practically Hobbiton—a hidden “shire” in the middle of the city. Okay, maybe not quite as magical, but still an incredible place to take a hike in city limits.

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Trending Stories SoCal

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  1. Locals' Feature: Jim Litchfield, Owner of Reno Fly Shop

    If there's a river, you're likely to find Jim Litchfield there. As the owner of Reno Fly Shop, Nevada's premier fly fishing outfitter and shop, Jim's passion for rivers knows no bounds: he's fished in places near and far, including Alaska, Bolivia and Christmas Island. But home is beautiful Reno, where he has been running Reno Fly Shop and leading tailored river float and fly fishing adventures (including beginner-friendly options) for over a decade.

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  2. Can't Top This

    San Francisco’s Presidio was already a fantastic place to hang out for the afternoon, a beautiful site within the largest urban national park in the United States (the Golden Gate National Recreation Area). And Presidio Tunnel Tops is like a cherry on top. Make that two cherries on top, with the newly opened (July 2025) Outpost Meadow, a 1.5-acre green space located at Old Mason Street across from the Crissy Field Marsh in the Presidio.

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  3. Volcanic Activity

    Northern California is home to one of the most unique ecosystems in the country: Lassen Volcanic National Park. The region features geothermal areas, including the largest dome volcano in the world, Lassen Peak. Hike to the top of this active volcano on a 5-mile out-and-back.  

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  4. Oh Ryan

    Sure, it’s those whimsical trees that give Joshua Tree National Park its marquee billing; but this beautiful landscape also has surrounding mountains and its night sky—one of the darkest in Southern California and designated an International Dark Sky Park. Joshua Tree has four allowable stargazing parking lots, and a newly opened haven for spending the night nearby...

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