AllTrails Reservoir Trail to East Meadow Trail Loop, 2.3 miles.
Barbara and I covered six trails to complete this loop around the southern side of Charmlee Wilderness Park, the 532-acre coastal wilderness park high on a bluff above PCH in the Santa Monica Mountains west of Point Dume and Zuma. Today was our third Charmlee hike and our first on the east side of the tip. (Charmlee sits on that odd point where the Pacific is south, not west of California. In the photo above, I'm shooting south to the Pacific.) The park has eight miles of hiking trails with, on this hike at least, maybe a block of shade so dress light and wear your sunglasses and sunblock. Why hike here? Because every trail has a breathtaking, "oh-wow" view of the coast. On really clear day you can see from Catalina to the Channel Islands. The first half of our hike was a straight, flat, sometimes rocky shot south toward the ocean. Wildflowers bordered the trail, lizards followed us, birdsong entertained. The second half of the hike, played with the elevation—up a hill, down the hill on slippery, narrow, rocky trails. Challenging but not hard. We heard rumors in the parking lot about an aggressive coyote, but he or she stayed away. So did the bobcats, foxes, coyote deer, rattlesnakes, and skunks who live here. After suffering severe damage during the 2018 Woolsey fire, Charmlee too far away to suffer in the Palisades fire. Light trail traffic in the early morning, leashed dogs are welcome—just watch for the poison oak and rattlesnakes. Simple to moderate, the views are GORGEOUS and worth the effort. Go! On PCH, off Encinal Canyon Road.
- October 05, 2025
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