Even After the Fires, Los Angeles Is the Greatest Road-Trip City

Los Angeles is a great American road trip unto itself. Here, you don’t need to leave town to explore beaches, or mountains, or little hidden villages full of character. You simply have to drive around and dig in. I’ve never been anywhere that loves its own offbeat history, its bizarro lore, more than this place—a place that has decided that there is nothing in this life more alluring than a funky little backstory.

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Which is largely what made the losses amounting from the wildfires across LA County in January so indescribable, hard to quantify. Some of the areas most affected were pockets of cultural history, diverse ecology and multigenerational community: Storybook communities carved optimistically into canyons and foothills, beautifully sustained by generations who protected a sort of unspoken shared dream of the California good life. 

The fires changed life for those of us, like me, who love to explore L.A. When I first took stock of the devastation, I felt unraveled—so many places lost or closed for months, to years, to who really knows.

But after all of the heartbreaking news, some rays of light began to break through. Word came of beloved places that survived—places that capture the hodge-podge history of a city built between hills and sea. LA gets a bad rap for constantly reinventing itself, but I’ve never been in any city on the West Coast that cherished its history more.

In the spirit of celebrating how much of what we love remains, I did some exploring and asked around for hyper-local intel. 

With the caveat to check all road conditions day-of any travel, use this as a guide not just to remember what is so special about LA, but to help sustain it.

The drive through Topanga to Malibu is one of the most delightful LA days you can muster—but currently, Hwy 27/Topanga Canyon Blvd. is closed from Grand View Blvd. all the way down to the Pacific Coast Highway. That doesn’t mean that some of the best destinations in town are closed, though. Instead, take this rare opportunity to make a daytrip of Topanga itself, to help support these delightful businesses, while visitors aren’t streaming through at the usual volumes.

A stop at Inn at the Seventh Ray, which can best be described as a fairy garden, for their fabulous brunch buffet before you wind down to the beach is truly one of the great romantic experiences of Southern California. Or, shop at iconic vintage emporium Hidden Treasures and grab a gluten-free pizza and glass of natural wine across the street at Endless Color. 

As it stands, the PCH is closed between Topanga Beach, and just east of the Malibu Pier. Word on the street is that some of the most breathtaking beaches in the craggy cliffs of western Malibu (El Matador Beach, Leo Carillo State Park, etc.) further away from the destruction are wide open–and as quiet as some locals have ever seen them. 

Another famed route from the valley to the beach that was out of this year’s fire zone takes you through Kanan Road, a blessedly underdeveloped series of canyons and ocean vistas studded with rugged history. The Old Place is a limited-menu rustic steakhouse nestled into the surprisingly remote-feeling mountains above Malibu. The building was originally built as a stop on the Pony Express, and was purchased by coal heir Tom Runyon (of Runyon Canyon fame) and opened as a restaurant in 1970. It's open only a few days a week and for a couple seatings a night, so plan ahead–but even if you don’t get a table, you can grab a drink or food to-go and sit outside and watch the peacocks strut around. If you’ve got the constitution for a no-frills biker bar people watching experience, the Rock Store can be a blast.

Some wonderful news in light of the crushing loss of Reel Inn—two other historic beachside seafood shacks, Malibu Seafood (closer to central Malibu) and the legendary biker stop Neptune’s Net (western Malibu) await with frosty beer, fried fish, and impeccable vintage beach day vibes.

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In the mountains north of Pasadena and Altadena, where the Eaton fire threatened the Mount Wilson Observatory, I recently hiked Josephine Peak after it got some snow (!), which was a restorative delight. The fire reached just one ridge over, but you wouldn’t have been able to tell. In addition, nearby Strawberry Peak is still open, giving us classic hikes along the Angeles Crest Highway that are accessible while much of the Angeles Crest Forest remains closed. On Instagram, @lahikes are translating the sometimes dense language of the Forest Service website, offering up to date options of open trails. 

Armen Market was a lighthouse in the storm, open throughout the fires, serving their community. A gourmet Armenian import market that has treats and specialty ingredients from cuisines around the world, they also have a deli case bar none, with some of the best hummus, baba ghanoush, and other Middle Eastern accoutrements to stock your fridge with. Afterwards, down on Lincoln in the Pasadena/Altadena border, a flurry of new businesses remain open: the delicious Kismet Rotisserie, next to Ferranzi’s Pasta + Market, where you can pick up fresh-made pasta alongside gourmet sandwiches, and grab an espresso across the street at Highlight Coffee. In Pasadena, Octavia’s Bookshelf, a bookstore highlighting BIPOC authors, pivoted into a thoughtful mutual aid hub during the crisis and deserves lots of support. Keep your eyes peeled for reopenings of beloved neighborhood spots Bulgarini Gelato, a true hidden gem of an Italian restaurant, and Altaeats, a lovely neighborhood bistro, who are focused on reopening as soon as they can. Altadena’s Good Neighbor Bar has been holding down the fort: a great cocktail bar by the folks behind Silverlake Wine, who also have been keeping tabs on businesses needing support. Grab a cocktail and tap in. 

To ensure these things survive the depression of business that follows disasters like this—bookmark them! And when you get out there, ask the proprietors who else in their community needs business and support. They’re plugged in and can guide you to your next favorite discovery.