Barbara and I headed out to Cherry Canyon in La Cañada Flintridge to do Weekend Sherpa's hike through the park Barbara and I had partially explored in April 2018. Our 2018, L.A. Walks hike took us down the woodsy Owl Trail; today we hiked up, up, up the Cherry Canyon Motorway to an old fire tower and the "Ultimate Destination." And really, who could resist a spot with a title like that? It didn't disappoint. La Cañada Flintridge, incorporated 1976, is a young city in relation to the area's first residents, the Shoshonean tribe 2,500 years ago. And because of its youth, props to the City of La Cañada for joining forces with the Santa Monica Mountain Conservancy in 1986 to save Cherry Canyon from development by purchasing its 131 acres and 12-mile loop of trails south of the Foothill Freeway. Our hike began at the Cherry Canyon Motorway Trail gate and we followed the wide fire road up for a half mile to the Five Points junction, and then headed south (left) to ascend the Ridge Motorway fire road. The view became more stunning with each step, and we caught our first look at our destination: the old Cerro Negro fire tower, built by the LA County Fire Dept. in 1934. Glendale Fire took over in 1960, and the tower, featuring a Chrysler Victory Air Raid Siren, is still functional in some capacity. There was nothing complicated about this hike—the La Cañada Flintridge Trails Council clearly marked every junction—but Every. Single. Step. led to an even more jaw-dropping, 360 view from Glendale to the Verdugo Mountains, Mt. Wilson, DTLA, Pasadena, Griffith Park, the Observatory, the San Gabriel Valley. It was glorious, and by the time we reached the tower at the top, we were in awe. On the way back we stopped for a photo at the Ultimate Destination—a bench with an even better view of everything—and then retraced our path back. Though we passed some hikers, dog walkers with happy dogs, and mountain bikers on the trails, the trails weren't nearly as busy as they should be for a payoff like this one. My photos don't do the views justice at all, so you must go there and see it for yourself. AMAZING.