Eagle Rock and Parker Mesa Overlook (Topanga State Park)

From the Topanga State Park entrance we have a couple of options for hikes. If you like ocean view 7-mile fairly easy hike, go to the right. If you love nature and want to climb upon a massive "rock" then head to your left for a shorter hike of about 4.5-miles.

Neither of these hikes are extremely challenging from elevation gain, just can be tiring due to length. Mesa Overlook is one of my favorite hikes to in this area. Mostly due to it is ease(to me) and pretty simple to persuade friends to join, when they understand it's not a "hike" hike.

And by this, I mean..limited elevation gain and never really much steep grade at one time. It is a continuous up and down flow until you get to the end. Some uphill some downhill, roller-coaster like. Not to forget the view at the end is amazing. On a clear day you can see Santa Monica and it’s infamous pier, L.A.X.(airport) and the coastline towards Palos Verdes. A perfect trail for those who love trail running.

If you go left towards Eagle Rock, the ginormous rock is a beast of its own. A shorter distance but seems like you just go up the whole way to Eagle Rock. Thankfully a friend of mine was able to capture us on the rock to show how small us humans are in relation to how big this rock is.

I recommend both of these hikes, but decide based on the destination. Do you want an ocean coastal view or do you want to climb upon a sky scraper type rock and see what nature is capable of carving out? It’s possible to do both in one day, but I wouldn’t recommend it.

Bring plenty of water and sun protection. No trees or coverage so will be exposed to the sun the majority of the time. No dogs allowed.