Portuguese Bend Reserve (Rancho Palos Verdes)
Portuguese Bend Reserve, one of the best hiking spots in L.A. for dramatic city views, is a 399-acre park with a maze of trails, and almost every one of them offers a stunning, expansive view of the Pacific Ocean with Catalina Island in the background. These trails are part of a Nature Preserve with lots of wildflowers and wildlife to see.
Start by walking down Burma Road from the street into the park, past the Dr. Ibrahim El-Hefni Vista Point. After turning left onto Eagle's Nest Trail, continue traveling along it for almost two miles until it intersects with Burma Road once more. Here, you have the option of returning up the hill or continuing on the lower loop by turning right down Toyon Trail. When you reach the end of Toyon Trail, turn right onto Peppertree Trail and continue on the left.
Following a literal fence, keep going on this trail and turn left to ascend Klondike Canyon Trail. At a fork in the trail, you can choose either direction, but stay on the left for the simpler route. Once you reach Burma Road, turn left after continuing up Barn Owl Trail. You will reach the lower loop's closure as a result of this. Instead of turning around and returning the way you came, take a right at the intersection with Toyon Trail and continue on Ishibashi Trail. This will take you back to Burma Road, where you will turn right and proceed back to the trailhead. Get lost? You won't get lost because all of these trails will take you back to your starting point.
- Address: Crenshaw Blvd and Burrell Ln, Rancho Palos Verdes
- Hours: One hour before sunrise to one hour after sunset.
- Parking: Look for limited street parking, available by a prohibitive reservation system only, along Crenshaw. Shuttle service also available.
- Pets? Dogs and horses allowed.
- Length: 5.15 miles (a shorter, 3-mile hike is possibile by ommitting lower loop).
- Time: 2.5–3.5 hrs
