Toyon / Mineral Wells Trail

The Toyon/ Mineral Wells Trail is a 5.5 mile loop and includes Mt. Hollywood Drive, Amir’s Garden, The North Trail, Cathy’s Corner, and The Haunted Picnic Table! The 800′ elevation gain is spread out and all trails are wide and well used. The views are from Warner Brothers Studios all the way to Burbank.

The Parking – The 12 dirt spots at the very end of the Mineral Well Picnic Area are my favorites but any of the 100 street parking spots along Mineral Wells is fine.

The Best Thing – The Haunted Picnic Table is along this route and I love a good ghost story, especially one that feels like complete bullshit.

The Route – From the dirt lot there is a trail that heads toward Toyon Canyon. Start there, run towards the skater punks, and then turn right uphill on the dirt trail. This will take you back towards Griffith Park Drive and you will run parallel to that, past the composting area, and to an uphill intersection. Uphill to the left is Toyon Trail but we are continuing forward and down hill.

At the bottom of the incline is a gated off road to your left. This is Mt. Hollywood Drive and the Mecca of all Griffith Park cyclists.  Turn left because you are joining the cyclists today. You are going to run up on this Asphalt road for 2 miles and it’s actually mostly shaded and nice. Just before you reach the top, the Hauted Picnic Table is on your right. It’s not much to look at but the story is pretty great.

At the top there is a rare asphalt road – asphalt road intersection. Turn left, downhill, and you are now on Vista Del Valle Drive. Not for long because the next trail on your left is the North Trail and you will take that. The North Trail drops down to run along Toyo Canyon. In the middle of the canyon there is a significant right turn past a large Water Tank. Turn Right here.

You will now run straight into Amir’s Garden but before you do, turn left and the trail will take you back to the Mineral Well Picnic Area. However, you’ve parked on the far side so take the trail to your left and that is a fantastic flat and shady ¼ mile cool down. 5.5 miles. Boom.