Photos (clockwise from left): Via Backbone Trail; Via Eaton Canyon; Exposition Rose Garden, Photographed by Molly Cranna

Backbone Trail Hikes
You may know Temescal, Topanga, and Will Rogers like the back of your hand, but did you know that the Santa Monica Mountains are all connected by a 68-mile trail? Or that the Mediterranean eco-system surrounding those great outdoors is only found five places in the world? You can choose to do day-hike legs of your choosing (leaving one set of wheels at the start, the other for your stopping collapsing point), but starting November 1st you can sign up to complete the entire journey with a knowledgeable ranger in a series of eight day hikes. Or, you could just pack a sleeping bag, do a piece of it, and doze off under the stars with pals in one of the many designated areas! (The Musch Trail Camp at Topanga is our personal favorite).
Backbone Trail

Eaton Canyon Waterfall
In our desert climate, there's plenty of weak-sauce waterfalls — especially in the summer — but we've yet to hit this one when the agua wasn't fully flowing (that's not to say it hasn't happened, of course!). It's either a .5- or 1.5-mile hike depending on where you park, but we hadn't come across this path in all of our years trekking the mountains around our town until recently.
Eaton Canyon Waterfall, 1750 North Altadena Drive (at North Veranada Avenue); 626-398-5420.

Exposition Park Rose Garden
Just about every weekend, whilst en route to the Coliseum, USC fans and foes trample right through this freshly scented park in the heart of the concrete jungle — and some others just simply aren't aware of its existence. Surrounding a stunning central fountain, there are over 200 varieties of roses and 200,000 bushes that make for ideal peace-and-quiet time, or a lazy-day date. Even if you're not a botanical buff, this space has Facebook photo-shoot fun embedded into every patch of grass!
Exposition Park Rose Garden, 701 State Drive (at South Figueroa); 213-763-0114.

Other Notables:
Southern California's Wafarers Chapel, 6118 Palos Verdes Drive South (near Sea Cove Drive); 310-377-1650.
The Gamble House, 4 Westmoreland Place (near North Orange Grove Boulevard); 626-793-3334.