The back story
Wild Los Angeles: Mountain Lions, Gray Whales and the Malibu Coast
Mountain lions, grey whales and lagoon birds: wild LA.
Photo Credit
Image courtesy of © National Park Service · Public domain via Wikimedia CommonsThe natural side of Los Angeles, from the mountain lions of the Santa Monica Mountains and Griffith Park, made famous by P-22, to the grey whales that pass Point Dume and the birds of Malibu Lagoon, with a directory of the parks and beaches in our guide.
Los Angeles is a city of freeways, but the Santa Monica Mountains run right through it, and in them live mountain lions. According to the National Park Service, Los Angeles is one of only two megacities in the world, with Mumbai, to have big cats living within the city limits; along the coast, grey whales pass the Malibu headlands on their great migration.
This is a short, honest guide to LA’s wild side: the mountains, the lions that live in them and the coast. You are very unlikely to see a lion, but you will walk the same canyons; bring water, start early, and stay on the trails.
The mountain lions
The National Park Service has studied the mountain lions of the Santa Monica Mountains for years, fitting them with tracking collars and following them by camera traps; each is known by a number. The most famous, P-22, crossed two of the busiest freeways in the world, the 101 and the 405, to reach Griffith Park, where he lived for years below the Hollywood sign and became the face of the study, until his death in December 2022.
Photo Credit
Image courtesy of © National Park Service · Public domain via Wikimedia CommonsThe lions’ greatest danger is the roads that cut their mountains into islands. Collared lions have been tracked using culverts and tunnels to cross under them, and the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing over the 101 Freeway at Liberty Canyon was designed to reconnect the Santa Monica Mountains with the wild country to the north.
Whales and the coast
California State Parks calls Point Dume, the headland at Malibu, a perfect place to watch California grey whales during their migration, from December to mid-April. Malibu Lagoon State Beach, beside Malibu Pier and Surfrider Beach, has a lagoon that draws birds, and the cliffs and coves of El Matador and Zuma run on to the west.
Los Angeles is one of only two megacities in the world with big cats living inside its limits.
Feature: P-22, the Hollywood lion
P-22 was probably born in the Santa Monica Mountains and found his way east across the 101 and the 405 to Griffith Park, a world of canyons in the middle of the city. First collared in 2012, he lived there for a decade, photographed below the Hollywood sign and followed by the whole city; his story helped to build the case for the great wildlife bridge over the 101. Griffith Park still holds an annual P-22 Day in his honour.
Did you know? To reach Griffith Park, the mountain lion P-22 crossed both the 101 and the 405, two of the busiest freeways in the world.
Our advice
Our advice: hike Griffith Park or Runyon Canyon early in the morning, with water, and stay on the trails; if you ever meet a mountain lion, do not run: stand tall, make noise and back away slowly, and keep children close. Watch for grey whales from Point Dume between December and mid-April, and note that dogs are not allowed at Point Dume State Beach.
Why it's on our list
- The mountain lions
- Whales and the coast
- Feature: P-22, the Hollywood lion
- Our advice
Location
The map comes from Google Maps, which sets its own cookies once it loads.
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