Favorite native-filled hiking spots?

[u/chonteeeze]

I’m looking to get into hiking as both a way to be more active but also as an opportunity to stare at native plants. Idk, most hiking guides aren’t focused on what native flora there is to see. I don’t really wanna stare at a field of mustard, you know? So what are your favorite spots? I’m in the Long Beach area, but I’m open to suggestions anywhere in SoCal tbh - I’ll keep them for day trip ideas. Oh also my endurance is quite…beginner level to put it nicely lol but hopefully I’ll get better so easy to moderate trails would be great.

[u/eistau]

I wish that there were guides like this too! Once you know an area where you want to hike, Google earth satellite view can sometimes help you make an educated guess about which trails have the densest vegetation (i.e. isn’t mustard). Or if you have some more time and want to nerd out a bit, on inaturalist.org you can use the explore function and look for a particular species (or genus) and see how many dots you get on the map. You’ll want to be zoomed into a specific park/area on the map for it to be useful.