Two Hikes, or Meeting Strangers in Dusty Places

Over the last week I went on two night hikes in the LA are.  One near Malibu, the other in Griffith Park.  The most intersting difference was not the terrain or the views, both of which were phenomenal.  It was the people who organized and led the hikes that made each feel so different.  I found both of these groups through Meetup.com (a fantastic group probably worth a post by itself).

The first hike was on a Friday night, started at 9pm and was about 6 miles out to a spot called Parker Mesa.  This is a beautiful spot overlooking Malibu, Santa Monica and the greater LA area.  The hike was awe inspiring.  A marine layer drifts in at night filling the valleys on wither side of the trail with an ethereal blanket of white mist lit by the lights below.  Once at the point, the mist began to roll back and reveal the entire coast from Topanga Canyon to LAX.  The moon was full and one adventurous fellow brought a telescope so we could watch the moon and stars.

The second hike was this evening, starting at the Griffith Park Merry-Go-Round, up to the woods ET was filmed in, then down and back up to Lookout Point.  We had great views of Burbank and Glendale to the north, Downtown LA and the Griffith Observatory to the south.  While not as remote as Parker Mesa, it was still a very pretty gem tucked away between the Valley and the City.

But more importantly, Parker Mesa was a miserable slog through uncertainty, whereas Griffith was a great time, and may lead to some new friends to explore other hikes and events with.  It all came down to the people running the show.

Out in Parker Mesa parking was a nightmare compounded by odd park rules and no streetlights within 5 miles of the trail head.  It took many of us a good fifteen minutes to figure out we were in the right place and then make our way to the trail head.  The group leader left 5 minutes past the meeting time, and the remaining two thirds of us made our way by guessing and luck to the overlook, only two find a man who complained that we got there late.  I could have had fun, but I spent the whole time running back and forth between the fast lead group who would not wait and the slower group that was lost.  I hoofed it out a few minutes at the top and will not be back to that group again.

Tonight was amazing.  One man who lead the hike chaperoned over 60 people together across four and a half miles, and even helped out a few people who got some unlucky bee stings by popping out a first aid kit.  He gave out chocolates to everyone who wanted them at the top of the hike.  He waited and made sure everyone was accounted for each leg of the way.  Most importantly he made everyone feel welcome and made sure everyone knew what was going on.  SO on this hike I got to enjoy conversation, meet some new people, and have a relaxing time taking in the strange beauty of LA lights at night, especially when compared to the beast it can be when the sun is up.

So in the end, two very similar groups set out on two different nights to accomplish the same goals: Enjoy nature, meet some new people, and relax for a few precious hours.  Over each evening, one person completely changed the atmosphere in hugely different ways.  I know I will go to another hike with Bob.  I have already forgotten the other man's name.