Eaton Canyon Falls & Altadena Ridge

A 3.4-mile round-trip through a dense riparian canyon of coast live oak, sycamore, and bay laurel that delivers one of the most satisfying waterfall payoffs in the LA basin. The route involves four stream crossings — two are knee-deep most of the year — before arriving at a 40-foot cascade tumbling down a granite face. The canyon walls close to 50 feet on either side at the narrows; the effect is of deep wilderness rather than suburban foothills.

A Pasadena institution since 1915 — a genuine old-fashioned soda fountain still making phosphate sodas, egg creams, and sundaes at a marble counter on South Fair Oaks Avenue. This is a dessert/snack stop rather than a full lunch — plan a proper meal before or after at a nearby Pasadena restaurant. The cherry phosphate is the correct order. The pharmacy section still operates as a working drugstore.

The Sam Merrill Trail climbs 3 miles and 1,400 feet from the Cobb Estate to Echo Mountain — the site of the Mount Lowe Railway's 1893 incline station, abandoned in 1937. The concrete foundations of the observatory, searchlight, and hotel survive on the crest; the views encompass the entire LA basin from Santa Monica Bay to the San Bernardino peaks. The trail is shaded by big-cone Douglas fir for the first mile.