LA hiking trails are recovering from the fires

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

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Wildfire smoke from the Palisades and Eaton fires blankets Los Angeles County in January 2025. LOS ANGELES TIMES

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By Jaclyn Cosgrove

Los Angeles Times

Eaton Canyon and adjacent federal land that burned in the January wildfires in L.A. County will remain closed through 2026 and maybe longer given the extensive damage caused by the Eaton fire and subsequent flooding, county officials said during a recent news conference.

One of the most popular hiking areas in L.A. County, Eaton Canyon previously saw a million visitors per year. Officials said they’ve seen a spate of trespassers in the park since the fire, including one hiker who tried to reach Echo Mountain only to get lost and require rescue. Officials are pleading with the public to stay out of the area and let the land heal.

“With apologies to James Taylor, we’ve seen fire and we’ve seen rain, and I’ll tell you what, we’ve also seen a fair amount of air in the form of wind coming through the canyon,” said Karen Mateer, vice president of the Eaton Canyon Nature Center Associates. “Those are three of the basic elements of nature, and now we really need to focus on the fourth, the earth.”

Although it will take time for the land most damaged by the L.A. fires to heal, there are some areas of the burn scars that have recently reopened or will reopen soon.

Recently, I hiked with Rachel Glegg, volunteer coordinator with the Santa Monica Mountains Task Force, who took me around Topanga State Park to see the trail work that the Sierra Club Angeles Chapter’s trail crew, state park workers and other volunteers have completed.

Thanks to those efforts, Glegg said, officials aim to open the following trails in the next few weeks:

• East Topanga Fire Road from Trippet Ranch to Parker Mesa, although anything beyond the Parker Mesa junction will likely remain closed to keep the public away from neighborhoods burned in the fire

• Eagle Rock Fire Road, Eagle Springs Fire Road and Fire Road #30 to the Hub Junction in Topanga State Park

• The Garapito Trail in Topanga State Park, which Glegg’s crew is still working on, but is close to repairing fully

On my trip with Glegg, I just kept saying, “This is so beautiful,” as I took in the views of the surrounding city and ocean. We spotted loads of wildflowers, including phacelia grandiflora and a small patch of California poppies. Like you, I am eager to return and make more memories in this beautiful, resilient landscape.