
Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area

26876 Mulholland Highway
Calabasas, CA 91302
United States




Discover Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area
Just outside Los Angeles, Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area offers a rare blend of rugged wilderness and coastal beauty. Stretching from the Pacific Ocean to rolling inland hills, this vast park features scenic hiking trails, historic ranches, and diverse ecosystems teeming with wildlife. Visitors can explore canyons, waterfalls, and oak woodlands, or relax on beaches with breathtaking ocean views. Whether hiking to panoramic summits, spotting wildflowers in spring, or exploring Native American history, the Santa Monica Mountains provide an escape into nature without leaving Southern California.
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Explore Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area
For more than ten thousand years, the Chumash and Tongva people lived in the region that would become Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area. Located just outside Los Angeles, the area covers more than 153,000 acres of mountains, canyons, chaparral, and ocean surf, including 46 miles of California coastline. The area also features stunning mountains, with volcanic Sandstone Peak as its highest point, at 3,111 feet above sea level. The famous Backbone Trail offers a 67-mile hike along the spine of the Santa Monica Mountains. Part of a Mediterranean ecosystem found in only five locations worldwide, the area is home to 450 vertebrate species and 380 species of bird. Santa Monica Mountains’ natural beauty has made it a popular location for filming movies and TV. Twenty thousand acres in the recreation area burned in the Woolsey Fire, in 2018, including a significant portion of Paramount Ranch.


5 days in Santa Monica Mountains & Channel Islands
Discover the best of Southern California's land and sea with this coastal adventure in Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area and Channel Islands National Park.
Visit smart
Hike to Sandstone Peak
The highest point in the range offers incredible 360-degree views of the mountains and ocean.
Visit Malibu’s beaches
Enjoy stunning coastal spots like Leo Carrillo State Park, where you can explore tide pools and sea caves.
Explore Paramount Ranch
Step into Hollywood history at this former movie set, which has been featured in classic Westerns and TV shows.
Watch for wildlife
Keep an eye out for deer, bobcats, and even the occasional mountain lion, which roam the park’s wild landscapes.

Over $162 million
Since our founding in 1938, WNP has provided more than $162 million in aid to our partner parks to fund educational programs, initiatives, and scientific research.
Why stop at just one?
If you love Santa Monica Mountains, check out these other amazing parks.
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