As state officials figure out how to put a high speed train under or around Los Angeles State Historic Park (aka the "Cornfield"), another project surrounding the rare piece of downtown open space has been proposed. Owners of the nearby San Antonio Winery have proposed a public-private partnership with Metro, developing a mixed-use space on a thin steep strip of land between Metro Gold Line Tracks and Broadway Avenue (map), according to blogdowntown. more ›

Scheduled for this weekend, HARD L.A. has now been canceled, according the LA Times. It is the second music festival to go wayside following the controversial Electric Daisy Carnival at the L.A. Coliseum, where more than 100 people were sent to the hospital, including 15-year-old who later died. more ›

Today apparently is Ocean Oscars day for the The Nature Conservancy. The behemoth environmental organization has been working with partners to preserve California State Beaches for over 50 years and today honored their favorite spots. more ›

Los Angeles is always giving us little hidden out-of-the-way spots in the middle of the city. One of those is Fryman Canyon, tucked between Mulholland Drive and Ventura Boulevard, this hike snakes you open space you may never have known existed. more ›

With a stellar music lineup set for Sept. 5, FYF Fest is presenting Save Our State Parks to raise awareness about the closure of 100 parks in California. They aren't just stopping there, FYF Fest is harnessing its draw as an amazing music festival and encouraging people to volunteer at a variety of charities and organizations in the greater LA area. As a reward for donating 20 hours of your time, the festival is offering two free tickets and a "care package" of freebies. The exchange program has already proven popular with almost two dozen local organizations benefiting like the Union Rescue Mission, Northeast Trees, Reading to Kids LA and many more. Spaces have filled up fast, but slots still remain open for those who'd like to volunteer for film non-profit CineFamily. more ›

Talk about opposites. An Orange County man who owns 320 acres abut the internationally famous poppy reserve in the Antelope Valley wants to build a 3.6-mile course race track. The owner says there won't be much of an impact as it will be built for car clubs and racing organizations with no grandstand for spectators. Still, there are other concerns, explains the LA Times in a feature story: more ›

Over the last forty years, the California State Parks Foundation along with its 100,000 members has grown into a powerhouse advocacy group on behalf of keeping nature available to us. Now in their 40th year, they are celebrating by producing 40 short podcasts, each with a resident sharing their favorite trail. more ›

Just 130 miles north of Los Angeles lies some spectacular desert scenery. Red Rock Canyon State Park, in Kern County bears the mark of prehistoric lakes, rivers and glaciers in the colorful striations on the cliffs and the rock formations that rise out from the forest of Joshua trees more ›

The La Jolla Fire, eponymously named after the canyon currently ablaze in Point Mugu State Park north of Malibu, has grown to 32 acres, but firefighters have 50% of the blaze contained, according to the Ventura County Fire Department's webpage. Downed power lines, most likely due to winds, are suspected to be the cause of the Sesnon Fire, according to "sources close to the investigation," per ABC7's Twitter. Additionally, all evacuations for the Marek Fire have been lifted. more ›

UPDATE, 1:02 P.M.: The fire has grown, but is 50% contained. Updated information can be found here.

Though it may not have the scenic majesty of Morro Bay or the woodsy seclusion of Big Sur, San Simeon State Park is one of the quiet wonders of the California seaside. Located just a few miles south of fabled Hearst Castle, San Simeon offers two campground sites (San Simeon or Washburn) where you can set up home base for a long weekend. It's a short walk to cool, lightly populated beaches where you might stumble across an entire pack of elephant seals stretching out in the sun. You can also hike several miles of trails, some of which descend into seasonal wetlands, and others that plateau on top of vast seaside vistas. more ›