This Santa

Hike at Santa Susana Pass State Park in Los Angeles County

In 1861 the Old Santa Susana Stagecoach Road was used by Wells Fargo & Company as a stagecoach route. These days the stagecoaches are long gone, leaving behind a historic hiking trail. Santa Susana Pass State Park is a fairly small park and most of the trails intersect, offering up lots of opportunities for exploration.

Almost every trail in the park is completely exposed, dry, and dusty in the summer with temps frequently climbing over 100 degrees. But the rest of the year is usually quite pleasant, with winter rains bringing seasonal waterfalls and cooler temperatures, followed by wildflowers in the spring.

The 3-mile (round-trip) out-and-back historic trail climbs 708 feet in elevation as it weaves through the park’s distinct sandstone crags of the Santa Susana Pass. The trail is so steep in sections that it’s tough to picture stagecoaches passing this way; it’s tempting to just chalk it up to years of erosion and assume it must’ve looked much different back in its heyday. But according to the park brochure, this pass was nicknamed “the Devil’s Slide” due to its treacherous grade, so it might not have looked so different after all. The route was used to deliver mail between Santa Barbara and Los Angeles—a segment of the famous Butterfield Overland Stage Route. Though the city views in the distance have changed quite a bit over the years, it’s easy to imagine the park’s flora has stayed much the same, with buckwheat and sagebrush lining the trail and California walnut and sycamore trees down in the canyons.

Grab a map at the trailhead so you can plan your route. We recommend starting at the park entrance on Larwin Avenue and following Powerhouse Road fire road into the park. From there hop onto the Bannon Quarry Trail (a singletrack spur on the left) until you see the turnoff for the Old Santa Susana Stagecoach Road. Follow that until it ends at the park entrance on the other side of the park and then go back the way you came.

Park entrance is on the 10200 block of Larwin Ave in Chatsworth. Street parking only; be sure to obey all posted parking signage as it’s in a residential neighborhood. Dog-friendly!

Story and photos by Natalie Bates, @wanderwithnatalie

Trending Stories NorCal

View all Stories
  1. Field of Light at Sensorio in Paso Robles

    Light This Way

    Hidden in the bucolic hills of Paso Robles lies one of the greatest light shows on earth. The lighted art exhibition, Sensorio, is as if the rainbow magic of the aurora borealis was plucked from the sky and planted in the fields.

    View
  2. Bikers and walkers on the Bay Area Ridge Trail with the Golden Gate Bridge behind them

    National Park City Walk

    See San Francisco the way locals do by hiking the Presidio, a national park right in the city! Wooded trails, secluded beaches, and epic views of the Golden Gate Bridge feature on this 5.5-mile out-and-back on the Bay Area Ridge Trail. It’s a lovely slice of the City by the Bay.

    View
  3. Bucks Up!

    Come on in, the water is beautiful. Whether you like swimming, kayaking, stand-up paddling, or heading out on a bigger boat, Bucks Lake is a high mountain haven that’s easy to access, blissfully uncrowded, and surrounded by sandy beaches, picnic areas, pines, and aspens.

    View
  4. Surfboards and tents for shade are set up on the beach at Cull Canyon Regional Recreation Area in the Swim Lagoon Area

    Switchbacks and Swimming Holes

    Hike hard, play hard! This 7-mile out-and-back in Cull Canyon Regional Recreation Area is a great workout with payoff vistas and a relaxing post-hike picnic and dip in the water.

    View

Trending Stories SoCal

View all Stories
  1. Bear Hug

    This 5.5-mile loop through Coyote Lake-Harvey Bear Ranch County Park explores one of the newest segments of the acclaimed Bay Area Ridge Trail, one redolent with trees ranging from madrone and manzanita to buckeye and blue elderberry (with a bubbly post-hike bonus).

    View
  2. Two kayakers on Upper Klamath Basin on tour with Sky Lakes Wilderness Adventures

    Zen & the Art of Kayaking

    It’s the most meditative and relaxing experience you’ll ever have on a kayak. Yes, you read that right, a Zen experience on a kayak. It all happens in beautiful Klamath County when you head out on a guided tour with Sky Lakes Wilderness Adventures.

    View
  3. A Rose in the Pines

    A crackling fire, a bottle of wine, a bubbling Jacuzzi tub with a waterfall … now the big question: Marvin Gaye tunes or not? In the morning (ahem) it's breakfast in bed and a leis

    View
  4. Alex Villicana, Villicana Winery and Re:Find Distillery

    Locals' Feature: Alex Villicana

    Tech booms, AI revolutions, okay that’s all fine, but you wanna know what else is really cool? Being a pioneer in a world-famous industry that—in Paso Robles—remains solidly down to earth. When Alex Villicana established Villicana Winery in 1993, he clearly had grape expectations...

    View