Stone Canyon Park in Deervale
Posted on 18-01-2023 12:48 AM
Stone Canyon Park in Deervale
Location: Sherman Oaks. To get to Van Nuys Boulevard, take the 101 freeway. exit. Taking Valley Vista will take you 07 miles south (if you're coming from Los Angeles, right if you're coming from the west valley). Continue straight as Valley Vista merges with Beverly Glen for two miles, then turn right to remain on Beverly Glen. Follow Deervale Drive for 7 miles and turn right. Turn left on Deervale Place after 02 miles. You will need to drive 04 miles and park at the end of the street.
Department of Parks & Recreation, City of Los Angeles
Distance: 16 miles
Elevation gain: 400 feet
Suggested time: 1 hour
Difficulty Rating: PG
Season: All year (hot during the summer).
USGS topo map: Van Nuys
Recommended gear: Hiking Poles
This article about the history of access to the park is here; this Everytrail report is here.
Rating: 5
Hikers in L.A. are unfamiliar with the 80-acre Deervale-Stone Canyon Park, hidden in the hills above the Valley. It has been a source of contention among local property owners to get access to the park. The park is currently managed by the City of Los Angeles, but it may change in the future. Deervale Place ends at the top of this park, as of this writing. Hikers are permitted as long as they stay on the trail as it passes through private property.
Follow the sometimes obscure trail downhill from Deervale (it was created just through years of hiker trample before any formal route was established). There are great views of the Valley on clear days. The path follows a ridge, sometimes shaded and sometimes exposed. In a pleasant grove of green grass and trees, the trail makes a steep dip, levels out for a while, then makes another steep dip. From the top of the hill, it ends at a private driveway. The lower end is not accessible to the public, so the trip must be reversed.
Deervale-Stone Canyon is an enjoyable destination, a nice little pocket of nature close to the urban edge of the Valley and Hollywood. It is hoped that the 80-acre parcel will remain accessible to hikers, as well as that some new trails might be created on it.
The trail is about 2 miles round trip, but we were looking for something short on this particular weekend. The choice wasn't the best for a few reasons, which I'll explain below.
In Sherman Oaks, the trail begins between two residential properties. On Crisp Canyon Road, despite being a narrow and steep road in Los Angeles hillside communities, there was plenty of street parking.
The unassuming trailhead
A steep section will get your heart rate up right away. One other steep section is about three quarters of the way up. Apart from those two sections, the incline doesn't pose too many difficulties.
On the hike, you will have the best views at the beginning and in the middle. In the park, you get a pretty decent view of the valley on your way up (if you look backwards).
The trail also had some cute features including a cairn city and a painted guitar.
Wildflowers are also abundant along the path. But what about all those wildflowers? There were SO MANY bugs. Not just bugs, but bees as well. A tree on the trail had an entire beehive in it with hundreds of bees sitting on top of each other, something we hadn't noticed until we were standing next to it. It was a little unnerving.
Due to the short uphill portion, you'll hit the end of the park and trail pretty quickly. At the top, you are actually unable to see the valley because trees obscure it, so all you can see is a canyon with some nice houses to the west. In another part of the neighborhood, you'll find yourself at the end of a trail that ends at a residential street up the hillside from where you started. It is here that you turn around.
There is a point where the trail terminates and the houses begin
Here's what happened. The descent began, however, a couple with a dog walked up the trail and said that a rattle snake just slithered across the path not too far down. It made rattling sounds and was agitated. As a result, instead of continuing on down the trail, we ended up going back up the top of the trail and walking through the hillside neighborhood back to our car. Taking this route added about a mile to our hike.
Our experience on this trail wasn't the best, as there were bees, bugs, and rattlesnakes. For locals, this was a decent option, however better trails are nearby.
Summary: A short trail that sounds like a good workout spot for locals, but isn't really worth the drive for other travelers.