Rediscovering LA, part 2

Grapes @ Gainey Vineyard

In part 1 of Rediscovering LA, I ended my post with Gainey's Vineyard. In this post, I will start with a hike at Malibu.

Because I am not very familiar with hikes in LA, my cousin chose the place to hike. She chose Solstice Canyon Deer Valley Loop Trail with a short side trip to the Robert's Ranch House Ruins. The hike is 6-mile round trip with 1000 ft elevation gain. The trail winds through chaparral, coastal sage, oak woodlands, and grassy meadows. 

Oak Woodland at Solstice Canyon, Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area

To access the Sostomo Deer Valley loop trail, we started at Solstice Canyon trail and took a side trip to Robert's Ranch House Ruin.

Ranch House Ruin

What called my attention other than the ruins was the group of banana plants, I wonder if they were part of the plantation before that were left in this area. This is the first time I saw banana with fruit and blossom here in CA, and it so reminds me of home since we have banana in our backyard in the Philippines.

Banana

While taking a picture of the banana plant, I saw a tiger swallowtail butterfly fluttering around, so I followed it with my gaze at first. The swallowtail landed on a yellow flower, so, while the butterfly was enjoying sipping the nectar of the flower, I came closer to get this picture. 

Swallowtail Butterfly

There was also a very small waterfall at the ruins that spills down a creek. 

Waterfall at the Ruins

The waterfall and the ruins are the main points of the hike, however, if hiking only to this point, it would be a short, almost level hike. Going up the ridge of Deer Valley Loop Trail added more distance and elevation, and of course, sweeping vistas of Point Dume from a higher elevation standpoint. 

Point Dume from the peak of Deer Valley Loop Trail @ Solstice Canyon

It was still all gray while we were at the peak of Deer Valley Loop trail, however, as we ascended, the burning sun came out. After our hike at Solstice Canyon, I wanted to check out Point Dume, so we had lunch first at The Sunset Restaurant which is at the foot of Point Dume right next to Zuma Beach. While waiting for our lunch, we saw several dolphins playing and jumping around. Right after our lunch, my cousin and I took a short hike/walk to Point Dume.

Me, above Point Dume

The hike to Point Dume winds through thick coreopsis ( tree sunflowers) that were already past peak and had wilted dry. I could just imagine how beautiful the slopes would be in spring. 

Rock Climbers at Point Dume

Zuma Beach from Point Dume

After Point Dume, we separated ways, my cousin stayed for a while with her boyfriend in Sunset Restaurant, while I and my friend went back to Los Angeles for a much needed shower since we were wet with sweat after the Solstice Canyon hike. After shower, we took a stroll at Little Tokyo in Downtown Los Angeles, it sure felt we were in Tokyo with the many Japanese restaurants and shops in the area. :)

@ Little Tokyo

We had dinner at The Rolling Sushi Bar, and again, it was another food feast until our stomach could no longer expand to entertain food. From Filipino to Italian to American to Japanese, we were laughing since next in line for us was dimsum for breakfast, which is Chinese. :)

After our heavy dinner in Little Tokyo, we took a stroll at Grand Park, also in downtown Los Angeles. 

Fountain at Grand Park

Fountain @ Grand Park

Fountain @ Grand Park

There were a lot of fountains in the Grand Park area, it was such a delightful moment watching them change shape and colors.

Me @ one of the Fountains with LA Skyline

The next day, after hearing mass, as promised to myself ( I had been craving for dimsum), we had dimsum for breakfast, which again was another food feast. After breakfast, we went to Disney Hall for some fun photography.

Disney Hall

Me, Looking at My Reflection

LA is such a huge city, so, there is no way I could show you more in 4 days of being there. Besides, we explored the backroads of LA, to strike a balance between a busy city and its quiet nature escapes nearby. 

♥♥