Malibu Creek State Park
Calabasas / Santa Monica Mtns · near Calabasas · Los Angeles / SoCal
Hiking
At a glance
- Difficulty
- moderate
- Route type
- out-and-back
- Distance
- 4.75 miles
- Elevation gain
- 400 ft
- Time needed
- day
- Best season
- Late fall–spring · Creek and Rock Pool fullest winter–spring; hot and exposed in summer
Permits and booking
- Permit required
- No
- How the permit works
- $12/vehicle California State Park day-use fee at the main lot; free via the South Grassland or Cistern trails (adds ~0.9 mi each way). Dogs are NOT allowed on trails.
- How hard the permit is to get
- 1 of 5
What is here
- Features
- M*A*S*H filming site with rusted vehicles · Rock Pool volcanic gorge · Century Lake · Goat Buttes rock climbing
Worth knowing
- Dogs
- Not permitted
- Good for a first timer
- No
Hiking detail
- Intl tip
- Pay for the main lot or use the free Grassland trailhead to dodge the fee; leave the dog at home — this is one of the strictest no-dogs parks in the area.
The guide
The film-industry heart of the range: Crags Road leads past the dramatic Rock Pool gorge — seen in countless movies — and Centu…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Malibu Creek State Park — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 34.0964, -118.71673