California Trails

Got a few days off, a pair of healthy feet, and a pain threshold higher than Dean Karnazes? You can (possibly) blaze the length of America's Most Beautiful Trail

In California's Big Pine Lakes basin, you can find the southernmost glacier in North America, for now.

San Diego is more than great views of the Pacific. These trails will take you through canyons, alpine, waterfalls, and more.

Get a different perspective on Lake Tahoe (and fewer crowds, too!) when you head into the mountains surrounding North Lake Tahoe

At these creekside, shorefront, and mountaintop spots, the views are so gorgeous that you may never want to go to sleep.

Over a 30-mile hike through the High Sierra, a father and son reflect on belonging in the wilderness.

Get on a high ledge, a crumbly cliff, or a knife-edge ridge and your body will recognize the feeling before your brain catches on.

No one likes hiking in a crowd. Get all of the scenery and less of the lines with these alternatives to the big parks.

After pandemic restrictions forced Sharon Wu and her fiancé to reschedule their wedding, they set their eyes on a consolation prize: the rugged Trans-Catalina Trail.

Every fall, male spiders in search of mates crowd the rocks of the 5.7-mile Condor Gulch to High Peaks Loop.

From tiny foxes to giant sea cliffs, Channel Islands is a world all its own.

The Bay Area's best hikes range from enormous redwoods to waterfalls dropping straight to the sea.

The 53-mile Lost Coast Trail heads through some of California's last pristine beaches.

Ditch the crowds but keep the views at Boundary Lake in California's Emigrant Wilderness.

See everything from low desert to high peaks on this 30-mile stretch of the Pacific Crest Trail.

See the coast the way it was meant to be seen.

Pack a summer of views into one weekend.

Find refuge from high summer temps temps on these chill dayhikes.

In the Los Padres National Forest, some of America's most impressive mammals roam alongside you.

This is your year. Start planning one of these life-list hikes and create memories that will last a lifetime.

Search for buried treasure on one of these gem-studded dayhikes, where gathering rocks is legal.

Match a hard hike with the best cure for aching muscles on these essential trips.

See butterflies, redwoods, whales, and some of the most beautiful coastline any major metro area has to offer.

The classic Pacific coast waterfall is the destination; the 15-mile round-trip hike through evergreen forests, coastal grassland, and beachside cliffs is the journey.

Find fields of poppies on this spring-perfect hike in the Chino Hills outside Lake Elsinore.

Visitors can access park's most popular sector beginning at 9 a.m.

The loop around Lake Tahoe is a classic adventure—and one of the best moderate long trails in the world. Tackle it with our guide.

After wildfire forced the closure of Yosemite Valley, tourists head to the adjoining national parks instead.

Lightning zapped them in the Central Cascades near Skykomish, Washington.

Biologists aim for an accurate population estimate for California's cougars in a highly ambitious survey.

Extreme heat is interfering with search efforts for the missing woman, who disappeared in early June.

The group that sued to restore the Yosemite valley to its natural state vows to take the case to the California Supreme Court.

The City of Angels: land of brunch, tanning, and of course, celebrity sightings at the local coffee shop. For hikers who want to explore trails in places that don’t start with “Runyon,” the options are as sprawling as the city.

The measure would fight to prevent extinction for the iconic butterfly.

The 730-acre parcel of old-growth trees is bigger than Muir Woods.

The woman escaped the encounter at Vasquez Rocks Park with minor injuries.

Access to the Monterey County coast should be restored by the end of July.

The popular city hiking path is getting an extensive makeover.

Redefine “close to home” on these three trails within city limits.

Find your own secret spot on this trek through the Sierra.

Spy seals, otters, and whales on the newly completed 3.8-mile Boucher Trail in central California.

The "fire hydrant" technology would make it easier for firefighters to do water drops in remote areas.

The death, in the park's Middle Fork of the Kaweah River, is the first river-related fatality of the season.

Here's where to go for baby birds, blooming succulents, and butterflies.

The proposed 319-mile-trail will have to wait until a $9 million debt is settled.

The season extension makes Mammoth the last California ski resort standing this spring.

The national park is increasingly turning to volunteer Search & Rescue workers to keep up with a jump in emergencies.

The California Department of Fish & Wildlife funds will go toward an easement along the river.

The state announced new efforts to fight the "catastrophic" environmental impacts of Mexican drug cartel marijuana operations.

An environmental group continues its fight to restore Yosemite National Park's Hetch Hetchy area to its natural state.

The New Zealand woman resorted to drastic measures after falling and breaking her pelvis.

Homeowners in the area have fought to keep the beach private for years.

The mountain bikers attacked this week near North Bend did almost everything right--except run.

It was the first death on the Yosemite National Park cables since 2011.

Wildlife officials trying to eradicate the destructive invasive rodent are struggling to keep up.

A wildlife official euthanized the big cat after it was injured by a car on Santa Rosa Creek Road.

A California Highway Patrol helicopter whisked a 53-year-old Pleasant Hill woman to safety after a fall.

About 20 bites have already been reported statewide this season, with even more incidents likely.

A hiker and a mountain climber fell to their deaths in separate incidents in early May.

Our intrepid Los Angeles scout tests himself against firestarting skills tests, battles of wits, and a very real-feeling fake war zone in the U.S.’s first installment of the trail run/obstacle course/survival skills competition.

California's redwood forests are under siege from climate change, development, and fire suppression--but there's still hope for conservation success.

The country's first national recreation trail has been closed since 2009.

Biologists don't plan to relocate the big cat, which has two kittens, after the "very, very rare" incident.

"Stormy," the national forest eagle cam eaglet, has officially fledged, say biologists.

Forget non-native palm trees, argues this Angeles National Forest crew leader.

Proposed solutions include capping the number of people allowed in the Valley.

Biologists found the San Bernardino National Forest bald eaglet apparently unharmed after tumbling from the nest.

The scenic coastal highway has been closed since April 2017 because of landslide damage.

Where to go for the most interesting natural features, from glaciers to rock dikes

The 54-year-old slid 15 feet and hit his head on boulders.

Others argue that tech can't fully explain risky outdoor behaviors.

The 76-year-old solo hiker was discovered Tuesday morning after spending the weekend in the park.

The actor/producer is section-hiking the trail with this ultralight gear.

The 79-year-old hiker suffered multiple bites, but was in stable condition over the weekend.

The national monument's long-awaited management plan prioritizes environmental protection over development.

The Redwoods Rising plan aims to bring back redwood forests to previously logged zones.

The popular path was closed after suffering major damage in a 2016 wildfire.

Sen. Mike McGuire's bill would create a 300-mile trail through wine and redwood country.

High winds swept huge piles of the spiky weeds into Victorville, blocking some residents' doors.