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 Reporter |
Summary: This is a fun hike with quite a bit of diversity. The hike starts out on Sunset Ridge, with great views of Millard Canyon and a 50 foot waterfall. The trail then drops sharply into a dark and heavily wooded canyon with an abandoned gold mine to add an interesting twist to the trek. The hike through the canyon has many lovely spots with gentle pools and small cascades. Bring along a camera. Note that the route show in the topo map was from the hike outlined in 101 Hikes in Southern California. Route finding was a little challenging, so hikers should make sure to have a map when hitting the trail. Trailhead: From Loma Alta Drive in Altadena, drive up the Chaney Trail (past a locked gate that opens at 6am) to the top of sunset ridge, where there's parking by the roadside. The trail starts east on the gated paved sunset Ridge fire road. (Lat:34.2148 Lon:-118.1477) Trail Guides for Millard Canyon - Dawn Mine: 101 Hikes in Southern California by Jerry Schad (Wilderness Press) Day Hikers Guide to Southern California by John McKinney (Olympus Press) Hike Los Angeles Volume 2 by Dennis Gagnon (Western Tanager Press) Best Seasons: Fall, Winter, Spring User Groups: Hikers, Dogs Ranger Contact: US Forest Service, 818-790-1151 Localhikes Reporter: This hike was submitted by Jim Zuber, who has posted 104 other hikes on this site Trail Reviews Page 2 of 11 Submit your own review 
Reviewed by Anil on 4/19/2009 Great Hike. Had a lot of fun. Some challenging spots in between which made the hike interesting. Finding the mine is difficult but I followed the picture trail by S.S. http://budurl.com/dawnmine. (Thanks S.S.!). Bring your Adventure pass for parking. No one sells it there. That is the only thing I didn't like. We had to waste an hour or so to go back and get the pass. I saw a lot of people who parked there without the pass and got tickets. 
Reviewed by Rachit on 4/19/2009 We almost didn't do this hike 'coz the trail wasn't clearly marked after the falls. The trail goes almost vertically up about 50 feet before the falls to get you to the top of the falls. That point is marked by a single white pole. After that an easier method to reach the mine is to just follow the water stream up to the mine. This is pretty strenuous. Plan to sleep the rest of the day after you get home!
Reviewed by kf on 4/16/2009 This is a beautiful hike, but not an easy one to follow. I tried it a couple of weeks ago and enjoyed the beautiful stream and boulder hopping, but I never found the mine. I'm still not sure where we went wrong, but have seen on other web reviews that there are many false trails, and that the more faint trail is often the right path. There are so many tall boulders, it's hard to get a clear view of the path ahead. I didn't think it was possible to get lost, but on the way out, we realized we were going a different way and emerged at the Millard Falls campground. We ended up walking along the road back to the trailhead. Oh well, I guess I need a gps. Any hints on landmarks would be greatly appreciated!! 
Reviewed by S.S. on 4/3/2009 I agree with Joe. This is a beautiful hike. Rather than hike from sunset ridge, take the road down to Millard campground and park there. Then you can hike up the creek to Millard falls. Once you get above the falls the trail is not crowded. The canyon offers sun and shade and the creek is peaceful. A great outing! http://budurl.com/dawnmine
Reviewed by JOE on 3/23/2009 This is my favorite hike. Not alot of people once you get past the falls. Just before the falls there is a white steel post across the river, this is the trail head for the mine. Follow the river up until the water disappears, there will be several large boulders here. Stay all the way to the left,there is a trail. Once you get to the mine you will need a strong flashlight to enter. If you make it to the end of the main shaft you will be greeted with Candyland the board game. We thought it was very random, but we played anyways. Watch for the water filled 50 ft deep pit just to the right after entering the mine. Be safe have fun, dont forget your forest adventure pass. You can get one at Websters on Lake for $5 (it will save you a $100 fine
Reviewed by TPG on 3/3/2009 This was as awesome as I hoped. Great views, beautiful scenery in the canyon, and a safe but exhilarating experience inside the mineshaft. The mine was very easy to find. Highly recommended.
Reviewed by mp on 2/25/2009 Awesome hike, but very hard to stay on the trail, it winds through a gorge were a lot of rock slides have covered it up. But the mine makes it all worth it, bring flashlights. For those of you trying to find the mine, look for an old steel pump jutting ot of a rock face on two steel I-beams. The cave entrance is a few feet past it.
Reviewed by MELI on 9/2/2008 WENT HERE 8/31/08. THE MINE WAS HARD TO FIND. i hiked to the waterfall and the mountain side to the right of the waterfall must be climbed to get above the falls where the trail to the mine begins. follow this and you will the mine. the trail breaks off into 2 directions keep right. you will also find ruins of tracks pipes along the way. its about 2-4 miles and you will soon find that theres no trail left you even go out of the wooded area into what seems to be a desert terrain. keep left at that point, lots of boulder hopping too, then you will see the big wheel on a track about eye level, to the left of that is the mine entrance. be careful entering!! hope this helps! Notice: Traveling in the backcountry can be hazardous. You are responsible for informing yourself about these hazards and taking necessary precautions. Information on this web site comes from volunteer reporters and may contain errors or omissions. A current guidebook and proper equipment are essential for safe enjoyment of the hikes posted on this site. Keys: California Hiking, California Trails, California Hikes, Los Angeles County Hiking, Los Angeles County Trails, Los Angeles County Hikes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||