Three SoCal National Parks You Might Not Know Much About That You Must Visit

With 428 national parks in the US, it can be hard to determine which local one to visit.

We have all heard of the big ones: Joshua Tree, Yosemite, Sequoia. But how about some that are not as top of mind that warrant a visit?

I spoke with folks from the National Park Service to find out about some of these lesser known gems.

Here are three national parks, chosen in order of beginner-friendliness to ones that are for serious hikers.

Photo taken from Yerba Buena Rd.

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Santa Monica National Recreation Area

Level: Easy

Factoid you can impress your friends with: Most people didn’t know there’s a national park in Greater L.A. So which is the closest one to the Los Angeles area? It’s the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area.

About the park: The park consists of 500 miles of trails, where visitors can hike, mountain bike, camp, and rock climb.

A view of the Palos Verde Penninsula from Sandstone Peak following a wildfire.

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Traveling: The mountains have multiple entrances, but only a few where parking is free.

The Mishe Mowka entrance has free parking and is less than a mile walk from Sandstone Peak. There is also free two-hour parking at the Santa Monica Visitor Center.

Recommended spots for beginners: 

For beginners, National Park Service regional public affairs spokesperson Ana Beatriz Cholo recommended the trail at Will Rogers State Historic Park.

“It has great views of the ocean and Santa Monica Mountains. It's called Inspiration Point,” she said.

The mountains drop down directly into the Pacific Ocean, and Cholo said there are 41 miles of coastline available for people to take part in activities.

Another recommendation for new hikers is Paramount Ranch. It’s currently being rebuilt after suffering damage from the Woolsey Fire, but Cholo said don't let that keep you from visiting. The site is open, with trails for both hikers and equestrians. If you are a pop culture junkie, you can take a selfie at the chapel where Westworld was filmed. 

Bonus: If you are up for the challenge, Cholo said the Sandstone Peak hike is a rewarding trail for experienced hikers. It reaches the highest point in the Santa Monica Mountains at 3,111 feet and offers breathtaking views.

Sunset with mountains.

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Dave Hursey

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Mojave National Preserve

Level: Medium

Factoid you can impress your friends with: We all know that Joshua Tree National Park is where you can see its namesake plant. But did you know that the Mojave National Preserve was estimated to have over 1 million Joshua trees? 

Joshua Tree in Bloom

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Sierra Willoughby

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Those in Joshua Tree National Park consist of mainly Western Joshua Trees while Mojave National Preserve has mostly Eastern Joshua trees. Sierra Willoughby, public information officer at the Mojave National Preserve, said that while the visual differences are few, the two trees are different species.

“Here at Mojave, the spiky leaves are a little bit shorter. The bark has a slightly different texture in the way they branch out; they tend to branch out more on the eastern Joshua tree species,” he said.

About the park: Created on Oct. 31, 1994, after the passage of the California Desert Protection Act, the Mojave is the third largest national park in the country outside of Alaska, with a size of up to 1.6 million acres.

Traveling: Willoughby said that many of the roads require four-wheel drive, it was possible to travel to some locations with just a regular car.

He recommended beginners take Interstate 40 and then the Essex Road exit. This will lead visitors to the Hole-in-the-Wall Information Center (yes, that's the name!). While the center is only open four days out of the week, brochures and maps can be found to guide new travelers.

Be sure to “drive like a tortoise” Willoughby said. The long stretches of road in the area can cause people to drive at incredibly fast speeds that often lead to crashes.

“If you're coming in, and you're expecting a national park experience that has a lot of visitor centers and paved roads, and a lot of exhibits and museums — this really isn't the place for that. It's for folks that are really self sufficient [and] that plan ahead really well,” he said.

He warned about the lack of gas stations in the area, so be sure to bring plenty of food, water, and fuel.

Recommended spots:  Willoughby suggested that beginners stick to the area near the Hole-in-the-Wall. The location not only has a water fountain and public Wi-Fi, but has easier hiking trails.

“That's where there's a really beautiful one-mile loop trail that goes around and you can see some great petroglyphs and then go up a narrow canyon," he added. "And for folks that are agile enough, [they] can climb up a kind of a dry waterfall where these steel rings are bolted into the side of the mountain and the canyon.”

A lone hiker enjoys spectacular scenery and solitude at Kelso Dunes.

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Bonus: For those looking for a more challenging workout, visitors can hike the Kelso Dune trails up the sand dunes. 

Besides hiking, there are other popular activities, including camping, bird watching and stargazing.

Willoughby said there is currently a $12 camping fee that people can pay online, but there are no reservations except for large parties.

Willoughby said that one of the best experiences at the preserve is to see the sunrise or sunset.

“Those are really great life experiences to see a desert sunrise or a desert sunset,” he said.

Island fox in the wild.

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Tim Coonan

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Channel Islands National Park

Level: Hard

Factoid you can impress your friends with: The islands are also known as the “Galapagos Islands of North America,” according to Channel Islands National Park public information officer Jasmine Reinhardt.

A technician handles a fox pup in captivity.

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“What makes them really unique is that there are nearly 150 endemic species found on the Channel Islands, [that] means they're found nowhere else on Earth,” Reinhardt said.

One such species is the Island Fox. The animal grows to be four or five pounds and about double the size of a house cat.

About the park: The islands are remote. To give you an idea, NPS’s Cholo jokingly calls it “Catalina Island with nothing on it.”

The archipelago consists of eight islands, but only five of the islands are protected as part of the Channel Islands National Park.

The islands are the ancestral homelands of the Chumash people, and home to more than 13,000 years of history.

Traveling: It can take between one to four hours to travel by boat each way, depending the the island you are visiting. Prices start at $66 roundtrip for adults. Check here for prices.

Reinhardt said conditions are constantly changing and that backpackers should make sure to check the weather before traveling.

Before visiting the island, visitors should clean their belongings to prevent the introduction of invasive species, like seeds and bugs.

Recommended spots: 

For beginners looking to visit one of the five islands, Reinhardt recommended Scorpion, a site on Santa Cruz Island. 

Scorpion Ranch Visitor Center

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The location had bathrooms, potable water, and picnics with shade near the campgrounds.

There are also two one-mile roundtrip hikes that are not “too rigorous” according to Reinhardt. Plus, there's access to a variety of activities, from scuba diving, to snorkeling to visiting the sea caves along the island.

“It is also a world class destination for kayaking. So there's a lot of people who come out and they will bring their own kayaks, or the park also has an official kayak concessionaire,” Reinhardt said.

Bonus: More experienced travelers can try backpacking. One recommendation from Reinhardt is to visit the Painted Cave, one of the largest sea caves in the world.

Painted Cave, named after its colorful rock types, lichens, and algaes, is one of the largest known sea caves in the world, measuring nearly a quarter mile long and 100 feet wide, with an entrance ceiling that rises upward to 160 feet.

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“It's this really large and spectacular cave that when you are coming back from Santa Rosa Island, depending if the conditions are right, sometimes island packers will go close and into just the entrance of the cave,” Reinhardt said.

Reinhardt recommended visitors “dress like an onion” when visiting the islands, with an emphasis on bringing sun-protection.

“Most of the islands are pretty exposed," Reinhardt said. "There's very limited shade available depending on where you're at. So wearing a hat, wearing some type of long sleeve, and pants, that's lightweight, that's going to protect your skin is really important.”

For more information to plan out your next trip to a national park, visit the NPS website.