Mt Lowe

Good destination hike. 2.5 miles uphill from Cobb Estate to Echo Mt House hotel ruins and abandoned railway was worth the effort. Intermediate hike. Low clouds prevented a clear view of downtown LA, but beautiful just the same. Good hike for children, but take water and snacks!

I love Mt Lowe. It’s a easy hike with a amazing view. It looks like the cities are all glowing with a perfect orange color. On a lucky day you’ll be above the clouds.

Mount Lowe has an elevation of 5,603′. It is easily accessible from the Red Box parking lot or Eaton Canyon Saddle lot. There are loose rocks under foot on the trail.
The climb to the peak is not very steep from the fire road. Once on the top, there are nice 360 degree views. This climb can be easily combined with hiking to other peaks for a greater challenge.

Mt Lowe is a beautiful place, you have a great view over LA and the San Gab’s from here. There are several trails that lead to the top of Mt Lowe from Inspiration Point or Red Box. The trails are challenging and sun exposed, so take enough water with you if you decide to hike up here.

A hike to Mount Lowe From Eaton Saddle. Great views and interesting history. This is one of my favorite hikes in the front range of the San Gabriel Mountains. You can easily do San Gabriel Peak, Mount Disappointment, Mount Markham & Mount Deception. Check out my videos for these hikes below.
Mount Lowe
Mount Markham
San Gabriel Peak, Mount Disappointment & Mount Deception
Distance: 3.5 miles round trip
Elevation Gain: 500 ft
Hike Time: 2 hours
Difficulty: Moderate
Trail Condition: OK, but a few difficult spots
Hike Type: Out and back
Fee: Adventure Pass
Animals: Dog Friendly
Mountain Bike: Possible and have seen.

Brandon D., Lee A. and I got to take part in the annual drive up Mount Lowe, raising funds and awareness for the Mt. Lowe Volunteers Group. Normally the road is closed off and only for hikers and bicyclists, but the rangers let in a small convoy of vehicles. The drive was a bit harrowing at times with large rocks banging around our undercarriage, no guard rails, and jagged outcroppings. Cars were barely making it up the steep, dirt roads without needing a push to get them out of the holes they were digging nearly burning out.
But the views were AMAZING.
Anyway, our final destination was the Mount Lowe Trail Camp where the Alpine Tavern used to be. The road we’d traveled used to be a scenic trolley line.
Mount Lowe Trail Camp has first-​come/​first-​serve space for setting up tents. A small boy scout troop was set up when we arrived. There’s men and women’s vault toilets. No water. Someone left Lysol wipes for cleaning up.
Around the camp there are signs for what area that used to be tavern you’re standing in. The tavern was dynamited in the late 1930s. By that point it was just a shell left over from the fire that previously devastated it. Hiking around the camp we kept finding debris from what was left of the place.
The camp is a short walk from Inspiration Point, up the hill.
Every now and then we were gathered ’round to hear about the history of the trolley line, the tavern, and Thaddeus Lowe. After a talk on the Union Army Balloon Corps, one of the volunteers said the Forestry Service is thinking about abandoning the road, but with that would mean dropping care of the campsite as well. They say they hope it doesn’t come to that.
The volunteers also said they are looking to recruit. There’s no minimum amount of time to put in, but it would be to help maintain the area.

Awesome hike and amazing views in every direction from the top of Mt. Lowe. Started at Millard Canyon and took the Sunset Ridge Trail up to the Mt Lowe Fire Road. Once you get to the old Alpine Tavern ruins (Mt Lowe Campground) you can take either the West or East Mt Lowe trail, I prefer the West.
You can also continue up the Mt Lowe road to San Gabriel Peak or Mt Wilson, or come back through Inspiration Point or Castle Canyon to Echo Mt. So many options make this one of my favorite trails in the front range.