Best backpacking trips near Glendale, CA

Ranked by straight-line distance from Glendale (population ~196,543) to each trip's trailhead. Drive times are rough estimates — mountain roads are slower than they look.

Glendale backpacking at a glance

La Jolla Trail is the closest documented backpacking trip to Glendale — the La Jolla Trail Trailhead trailhead sits roughly 5 miles away, about 5 minutes by car. Of the 12 closest routes, 12 are within a two-hour drive of town, spanning Los Padres backcountry, Channel Islands, Sespe Wilderness, San Gorgonio Wilderness, Sequoia NF backcountry and San Jacinto MountainsTrailheads for these trips sit between 26 and 11,499 feet, so you can pick a low, warm-season start or a high alpine route depending on the month.

4 of these 12 routes need no wilderness permit — useful for spontaneous weekends. Across the twelve closest trips, the months hikers rate best are October, May, June.If you want the gentlest introduction, Forsee Creek to Johns Meadow climbs only 1,600 feet over 7.8 miles; the biggest single-trip climb nearby is Vivian Creek Trail to San Gorgonio at 10,800 feet of total gain over 15.6 miles.

#	Trip	Miles away	Est. drive	Distance	Gain	Difficulty	Permit
1	La Jolla Trail Los Padres backcountry	5 mi	~5 min	9 mi	—	10	None
2	Buck Creek Trail Los Padres backcountry	49 mi	~55 min	22.4 mi	—	45	None
3	Trans-Catalina Trail Channel Islands	57 mi	~64 min	38.5 mi	7,638 ft	49	Required
4	Gene Marshall–Piedra Blanca Trail Sespe Wilderness	70 mi	~78 min	18.6 mi	4,000 ft	36	None
5	San Bernardino Peak Trail San Gorgonio Wilderness	73 mi	~81 min	17.8 mi	9,300 ft	55	Required
6	Forsee Creek to Johns Meadow San Gorgonio Wilderness	76 mi	~84 min	7.8 mi	1,600 ft	12	Required
7	Momyer Creek to Dollar Lake Saddle San Gorgonio Wilderness	77 mi	~85 min	18.4 mi	4,560 ft	44	Required
8	Vivian Creek Trail to San Gorgonio San Gorgonio Wilderness	77 mi	~86 min	15.6 mi	10,800 ft	61	Required
9	South Fork Trail to Dry Lake San Gorgonio Wilderness	79 mi	~88 min	11.4 mi	4,400 ft	31	Required
10	Matias Potrero Trail Los Padres backcountry	87 mi	~97 min	9.5 mi	—	25	None
11	Liebel Peak Trail Sequoia NF backcountry	93 mi	~104 min	16.2 mi	—	40	Required
12	Devil's Slide to Wellman Divide San Jacinto Mountains	94 mi	~104 min	10.6 mi	3,300 ft	38	Required

Three ways to start backpacking from Glendale

Closest trailhead: La Jolla Trail — about 5 miles / 5 minutes from town.
Gentlest outing: La Jolla Trail — difficulty 10/100 (Easy), 2–2 days.
Biggest adventure: Vivian Creek Trail to San Gorgonio — 15.6 miles and 10,800 ft of climbing.

Distances are great-circle miles from Glendale to trailhead coordinates; actual road distances will be longer. Town data: Wikidata SPARQL (CC0), population values derived from U.S. Census Bureau estimates.

Backpacking near Glendale: common questions

What is the closest backpacking trip to Glendale?

La Jolla Trail is the closest documented trip to Glendale at roughly 5 miles (about 5 minutes of driving) from the La Jolla Trail Trailhead trailhead.

Do I need a permit to backpack near Glendale?

The closest documented trip, La Jolla Trail, does not require a wilderness permit — but many other California routes do, so always check.

When is the best season to backpack near Glendale?

For La Jolla Trail — the closest trip to Glendale — the best months are March, April, May, October, November.