Canyon Roads of the Greater LA Area

"Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)" (rduncan5678)
10/29/2015 at 22:18 • Filed to: None

Since my girlfriend is working in Glendale, CA while I am still back home in NJ, I have been making frequent trips out to the west coast over the last year and a half. Through this time, I have gotten to know the LA area and I have certainly been trying out many of the canyon roads out there. Although I would much rather have my Miata on these roads, the roads are so good that ANY car could be fun there. Anyways, I want to put together a quick synopsis of the roads I have really enjoyed so far and if anyone has input on them, I would love to hear it! Also, I am of course always looking for more roads to enjoy in the area. The routes below are in no particular order.

Mulholland Drive (LA)

Other roads in the immediate area I have driven: Laurel Canyon Blvd, Stone Canyon Road

The Route: !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

This one is the first “good” road that I drove in California. Gets a bit busy and there are quite a few houses along it, so you can’t (safely) hoon this road too much. It is mostly nice just because of how accessible it is to LA.

Mulholland Highway (Ventura-Malibu)

Other roads in the immediate area I have driven: Yerba Buena Road, Encinal Canyon Road, Kanan Dume Road, Latigo Canyon Road, Tuna Canyon Road

The route: !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

Definitely my new favorite! The turn pictured above is obviously a ton of fun but there a lot of smaller ones that just are pure joy to motor around. I will be back again and again when I get out to LA again.

Angeles Crest Highway (North of LA)

Other roads in the immediate area I have driven: Angeles Forest Hwy, Big Tujunga Canyon Road, Mount Wilson Red Box Rd

The route: !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

I have yet to drive the whole thing since it always seems to have closures, but I will be exploring it much more when I move out there. Always great fun mid-morning on a weekday! Very much feels like wilderness.

Mount Wilson Access Road (off of Angeles Crest)

Other roads: see Angeles Crest Highway

The route: !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

This one in particular is special because of how empty it is and the tightness of the turns. It is a much slower road than the rest of Angeles Crest which is why I like it so much. You never need to get above 30 (and it would probably be dangerous anyways) in order to enjoy it.

Highway 33 (Ojai)

Other roads in the immediate area I have driven: HWY 150, N. St Marcos Rd, HWY 154, Painted Cave Rd

The Route: !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

Ortega Highway (North of San Diego)

Other roads in the immediate area I have driven: Japatul Lions Valley Road, HWY 79, Otay Lakes Road, Harbison Canyon Road

The route: !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

It would be nice to write up a review about all of these but there would be too much writing and not enough driving then! I highly recommend almost all of these but I know specifically, I will be on Mulholland Hwy and the Mount Wilson Rd MANY, MANY, MANY more times. By far my favorites just because of how tight some of the turns get. I would love to drive something manual through these, definitely my next goal!

And last but not least, don’t forget about the PCH! I have driven from LA to Monterey via that road. My SUPER goal is to some day drive that again but with my Miata. Hopefully still with the NJ plates on it too.

DISCUSSION (9)

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
10/30/2015 at 02:35

I was going to mention Santiago, Modjeska and Trabuco Canyons in South Orange County, but after looking at the satellite views and all of the development (and highways!) that are now there I have changed my mind. 30+ years ago these areas were remote and empty, so this is where I went for fun in my Rabbit GTI. Many a night was spent driving these roads over and over, much to the chagrin of my girlfriend who was expecting me to take her out on a date instead of zipping solo through canyon roads.

After the first time I drove Santiago Canyon Road I turned around and drove it back the other way. I had so much fun I did another U-turn and drove it again. And again. Never before, and probably never since, did I have as much fun on the road as I did tossing that 90 HP rocket through those curves.

S H: now with more letters! > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
10/30/2015 at 03:32

You have hit most of the good roads!

Since you mention a lot of San Diego/Inland Empire roads, the ones I’d add would be: 76 east of I-15, 78 east of I-15, 74 east of Hemet (up to Idyllwild and then all the way down to Palm Desert [feels like another planet heading down into the desert]), 243 from Banning to Idyllwild, South and East Grade Roads on Palomar (ridiculously tight curves the whole way up-and-down the mountain), Sunrise Highway, and any sections of 79 from I-8 all the way to I-15. Every single numbered road in the San Bernardino NF is awesome.

For LA area, GMR and Highway 39 standout as missing from the list (Highway 39 used to connect through to Highway 2, but it was too costly to keep in repair due to landslides, so now it only goes to Crystal Lake).

You’ve probably hit a few of these, but if you have a chance, all are worth a drive (and every mention is gorgeous!).

S H: now with more letters! > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing.
10/30/2015 at 03:34

All definitely good additions!

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > S H: now with more letters!
10/30/2015 at 08:06

Excellent, I will definitely have to try all of these. I have only been down to San Diego once but hopefully I will get sent there again for work travel at some point. Always fun to canyon carve with a rental car! I had no idea where I was going last time really and just kinda looked at google maps and tried roads that looked fun on Satellite view. What is GMR?

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing.
10/30/2015 at 08:09

Low power cars are fun in canyons! Makes everything more visceral and somewhat challenging. I know that feeling very well of making U-turns just to drive a road again and again. And I am glad my girlfriend enjoys coming along with me on some of the drives so I don't ever feel like I am abandoning her.

S H: now with more letters! > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
10/30/2015 at 14:20

Sorry, GMR is Glendora Mountain Road, another one of Angeles NF’s legendary scenic roads.

A lot of the roads I mentioned are a bit far off the beaten path from San Diego or LA, but make sense for a camping weekend (of course, all the best [and free] camping is off the roads listed).

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > S H: now with more letters!
10/30/2015 at 15:00

Well camping will have to wait until I move out there, but definitely good to keep in mind! I have found GMR and HWY 39 on the map so I will check those out next time. Between Angeles Crest and Mulholland HWY, which do you think is more entertaining? Of course this is ignoring the construction problems on the Angeles Crest right now.

S H: now with more letters! > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
10/30/2015 at 15:54

I definitely prefer Mulholland Highway, just because the scenery in the Malibu-area canyons is so different compared to the rest of my favorite roads. That and the fact that the roads branching off it go so many awesome places.

Generally, if I am in Angeles NF, I am in the foothills, as I don’t drive too much without a destination and most of the best hiking is in the foothills, whether on the North or South side of the NF. So I rarely do the whole stretch of the 2 (four or so times, I guess). I live an hour-and-a-half from either end, so it makes for a huge loop.

Spoilt for choice, so to speak!

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > S H: now with more letters!
10/30/2015 at 19:42

What is a good hike to check out in that area? I’ve got hiking boots and I enjoy medium-challenging stuff with rewarding views. I just did a hike up to tri peaks and now I want to check out some of the Angeles NF hiking.