Santa Monica Mountains
Malibu / LA · near Los Angeles / Malibu · Los Angeles / SoCal
Gravel & Bikepacking · Mountain Biking
At a glance
- Difficulty
- intermediate
- Best season
- Fall–spring (hot summers, fire closures)
- Skill level
- intermediate
- Trail miles
- 500+ miles of trail throughout the NRA
- Elevation
- Moderate rolling terrain · Maximum around 3,000ft · No extreme DH
- Best season
- Fall and spring · Summer can be hot and dry · Avoid muddy winter trails
What is here
- Terrain
- coastal
- Amenities
- Coastal-mountain fire roads · Ocean-view ridgelines · Sullivan Canyon & Backbone country · State/national rec-area camping
- Best for
- Accessible coastal-mountain fire-road riding
- Features
- Fire roads above LA & Malibu · Chaparral ridges with ocean views · Sullivan Canyon classic · Backbone Trail country
Worth knowing
- Hazards
- Summer heat & fire closures · Busy shared-use trails · Exposed, little shade/water · Ticks, rattlesnakes, poison oak
- Good for a first timer
- Yes
Gravel & Bikepacking detail
- Ride types
- day-gravel · singletrack
- Surface
- mixed
- Remoteness
- 1
- Riding
- Fire roads across coastal mountains between LA and Malibu — chaparral ridges and canyon doubletrack (Sullivan, Backbone country) with ocean views, right in the city's backyard
- Terrain note
- Sea level to ~3,000 ft; mixed fire roads; hot, dry chaparral; ocean-view ridges
- Camping
- Yes
- Intl tip
- Coastal chaparral mountains between LA and Malibu — fire roads and canyon doubletrack (Sullivan Canyon, Backbone Trail country) climbing to ocean-view ridges, right in the metropolis. Accessible, scenic riding (good for a range of levels) minutes from the city. Hot, dry, exposed: fall–spring best (summer heat/fire closures), little shade/water, busy shared trails, ticks/rattlesnakes/poison oak. Rec-area coastal camping. A beloved LA-backyard classic.
- Trip lengths
- day
Mountain Biking detail
- Ride types
- xc · all-mountain
- Signature trails
- Backbone Trail · Cheeseboro Loop · Zuma-Trancas Canyon to Backbone
- Ebike
- Yes
- Ebike note
- E-bikes permitted on fire roads throughout the Santa Monica Mountains NRA. Check individual trail restrictions as some singletrack remains non-motorized.
- Intl tip
- The Santa Monica Mountains divide LA's San Fernando Valley from the Pacific coast, meaning a west-to-east ride drops you from mountains into Malibu. Zuma Beach parking, a post-ride swim, and then lunch at Nobu Malibu is an absurdly good combination that only works in Southern California.
The guide
The Santa Monica Mountains — the range of coastal chaparral peaks running from Los Angeles out to Malibu and Point Mugu — put a…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Santa Monica Mountains — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 34.09, -118.7