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 Reporter |
Summary: This is a relatively easy hike into one of the loveliest sections of the San Gabriel mountains. The hike meanders back and across the stream running down the spectacular Arroyo Seco Canyon. The stream is lined with oaks and alder, with the water cascading over granite into mirror-like pools. The hike travels high above the 50 foot high Switzer falls, then drops back to the stream, where hikers can double back to stand at the base of the falls. After seeing the falls, travel down stream to the intersection with Bear Canyon, and travel up this spectacularly wild, steep walled canyon for another half mile or so to enjoy its wonders. More adventuresome hikes can continue up Bear Canyon for 2 miles to Bear Camp (not shown on my topo). Trailhead: From Interstate 210 in La Canada, take Highway 2 north and drive 10 miles to Switzer picnic area on the right. Descend to the parking area outside the campground. You will see a footbridge over the stream leading to the trail head. (Lat:34.2663 Lon:-118.1436) Trail Guides for Switzer Falls - Bear Canyon: Trails of the Angles - 100 Hikes in the San Gabriels by John W. Robinson (Wilderness Press) Day Hikers Guide to Southern California by John McKinney (Olympus Press) California Hiking by Tom Stienstra & Ann Marie Brown (Foghorn Press) Best Seasons: Year-Round User Groups: Hikers, Dogs, Bikes, Horses Ranger Contact: Angeles National Forest - (818) 790-1151 Localhikes Reporter: This hike was submitted by Jim Zuber, who has posted 104 other hikes on this site Trail Reviews Page 1 of 17 Submit your own review 
Reviewed by benn on 8/3/2008 did this hike on a sunday morning. have done this hike multiple times before, and this time i enjoyed it just as much. the trek there was not too bad..but the trail to the falls is a little confusing. justremember that you start at switzer picnic, and that you want to goto the falls. (the left route after the white rocky part in the sun leads to the falls) the water was nice, but a little colder than i remember. a lot of trash nearby, mostly dog feces in bags owners just didnt want to pick up. (please remove your dogs' business..if you dont want to..dont bring your dog..) the trek back was a little tiring, having spent so much time resting..it was somewhat tiring to go back up..but its definetly doable. enjoyed this short hike! 
Reviewed by dt on 7/19/2008 get there early when there's more people because my friend's car got broken into around 4 pm and not many people were there. just to be safe, leave your valuables at home and not in your car. otherwise, a good hike and good memories. 
Reviewed by CSolis on 7/17/2008 Beautiful hike! Loved the trail and offers lots of shade! Only bad thing I noticed was trash in the creek and trail. People, we need to pick up after ourselves.
Reviewed by TK on 7/15/2008 My husband and I hiked this trail on a warm Saturday. My personal view on nature is that you keep it natural. While hiking down to the falls there were a few people blasting their rap music. It was very annoying and distracting in the parking lot. However, I was very pleased to see that this was not on the trail. People were very respectful of nature and the walk was very peaceful. The trail is shady making the day seem more like a walk in the park than a hike. We would definetly do this again.
Reviewed by CMH on 7/1/2008 Great hike. Enjoyable alone or with friends. Did pick up some litter along trail (do your part), water was flowing nicely, and I will be back. Please do not litter or grafitti our parks. Keep them nice for all to enjoy.
Reviewed by Leo on 6/11/2008 I've done the hike a couple of times. I recommend planning on getting a little wet at the falls and some of the pools along Bear Canyon. There were a couple of people jumping twenty feet off the rocks into some of the deeper pools. If you closely, you can even find some fish. Plenty to stream crossings along the way to make the adventure interesting.
Reviewed by ArrowTerv on 4/13/2008 Hiked this today with a small group of people and dogs. The trail was clean and the shade kept the temperature moderate, even though the rest of So. Cal was in the 90s. Not especially crowded for a Sunday, though the lower parking lots were full. Come early or you'll park at the top of the ridge and have to hike down and back up to get to the trail.
Reviewed by Ron on 3/27/2008 Wife, two boys 10 & 7, and I hiked this today (3-26-08). The boys enjoyed the many stream crossings and all the lizards. The bugs weren't to bad but a lot of bottles and trash from some recent partying. It's sad that people can't log in on their cpu to tell you they were there rather than tagging everything! Another fun family hike but saw more people than we care to, must be the spring break crowd. 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 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||