Bee Rock / Mount Bell Trail

The Bee Rock/ Mount Bell Trail is 5.5 mile trail is a double loop. A “snowman” if you will. It has a ton of elevation gain (550′ to 1550′) and more than three confusing intersections. I tried to clarify the difference between Mount Bell and Taco Peak but honestly… I got them mixed up so often I’m not really sure if it makes a difference that you know the difference. Views forever and if you make a wrong turn, you could end up at the Cahuenga onramp to the 101 freeway.

The Parking – You can park anywhere near the carousel in Griffith Park and then make your way over to the playground area. We just parked at the Old Zoo Picnic area just above the main Griffith Park playground. (34.13539, -118.28653) Even on a crowded day if you just keep circling something will open up. Have faith!…and some patience.

The Best Thing – Depending upon falcon mating season you can walk out from asphalt Vista Del Valle Drive onto the Bee Rock precipice. It’s surrounded with chain link fence but it’s still cool in a futuristic Escape from New York kind of way.

The Route – Start your run up from the paved parking area with the main playground on your left. You can look up and see you are headed to Bee Rock. At the end of the road it is fenced but there is a gate to your right. Enter there and continue straight ahead uphill toward Bee Rock on Bee Rock trail. There is a trailhead sign and you will have an intermittent creek to your right.

You will arrive at a ‘T’ and the left turn allows you to climb directly toward Bee Rock. It’s not a straight shot by any means. A couple detours here and there but you will eventually arrive at the summit of Bee Rock. However, they close it off for months if the falcons are mating so… good luck.

From here you are at Vista Del Valle Drive and you will turn right uphill on that asphalt road. Quickly, the first dirt trail to your left is yours. Take it! It heads up and arrives quickly at another intersection. We are choosing to turn left and that will take us up to Mt. Bell…. Ultimately. Thing is, there is a trail to your right that  heads up to a significant peak with some old cement  foundations and you will feel like you are at the top of Mt. Bell but… this is actually just Taco Peak. Did I say “just?” Honestly, Taco Peak is better than Mt. Bell.

Return to the main trail and continue forward towards Mt. Hollywood. Before you reach the messy intersection at the plateau of Mt. Hollywood you will turn right and downhill taking the hairpin right turn trail sometimes called the 3-mile trail. You will hit asphalt Mt. Hollywood Drive at a cool grassy picnic area but no time for that now, continue to your right.

Pass the busy Brush Canyon Trail on your left and continue to the next uphill dirt trail to your right. Heading uphill you will pass a trail to your right that runs atop the ridge that leads back to Taco Peak. Sure you could have skipped the previous summiting and bagged Taco Peak from this direction but that’s not today’s route, okay? However, just look up to your left and you will see another peak that doesn’t have a real significant trail to it’s peak. This is Mt. Bell. Scramble up there just because. It’s just rude not to summit a peak if you are right there anyway.

Back to the connector trail that heads downhill towards the North Trail. At the next intersection turn left and you will head downhill and arrive at asphalt Vista Del Valle Drive where you will turn right. Running along the asphalt for a bit and you will arrive at the well-traveled Bill Eckart to your left. Head downhill here and in a few hundred yards there is a spur trail to your right that goes to a nice overlook. From here we are going to continue down the steep, scrambly short cut trail that returns to Bill Eckart. Continue down Bill Eckart Trail to the gate in the fence where this all began. 5.5 miles. Boom.