Great Ascot!

Ascot Hills Park Sunset

Sometimes the skyline’s the limit, and that’s a good thing if you’re visiting Ascot Hills Park, an 83-acre urban respite that offers autumn and winter sunsets to remember.

A 1-mile loop passes over the park’s highest hill—an excellent spot for seeing the sun sink behind LA’s downtown skyline, creating a fiery silhouette. Get there a bit before the magic hour because the iconic views are mapped to bucket-list precision, including the San Gabriel Mountains and the white domes atop the Mount Wilson Observatory as well as the Hollywood Sign above the Griffith Park Observatory. As daylight slips away, the glowing orange orb to the west thins across the horizon and becomes eclipsed by skyscrapers. Simply sun-sational.

TIP: Ascot Hills Park closes at sunset, so be sure to make your way back before it’s too dark.

From I-10 east of downtown LA, take exit 19 onto Soto St. and drive north for 1.2 miles to Multnomah St. Turn right, drive 0.3 mile and make a left into Ascot Hills Park, located at 4371 Multnomah St. (map). Drive up to the parking lot on the right and hike north between the park’s two ridges. After 0.2 mile, turn right up a draw in the eastern ridge. Turn right at the top, hiking along the spine of the ridge to the sunset view at the top of the hill. Descend another quarter mile south down the ridge back to the parking lot.

Trending Stories NorCal

View all Stories
  1. Sequoia Re-opens Crystal Cave

    Step inside Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park's hidden world by visiting the newly re-opened Crystal Cave—the only cave in the parks open to the public. Closed for four years, this rare marble karst cavern is welcoming visitors once again, but only through the summer season!

    View
  2. Afternoon on the Island

    What is it about tiny islands in the middle of lakes? There’s something that just draws you in. It’s even more fun when getting there is half the adventure because you have to reach it by canoe, kayak, paddleboat, or a ranger-guided boat tour!

    View
  3. Easiest Best Hike in the World

    Choose the easiest and most view-rewarding hike in Yosemite. Okay, we’ll go first: the combination of hiking to Sentinel Dome and Taft Point. Both of these lookouts are within a couple miles of each other on Glacier Point Road

    View
  4. Hiker in the forest at Mount Sutro in San Francisco

    San Francisco's Middle Earth

    No need to travel to New Zealand to visit Middle Earth. San Francisco’s Mount Sutro Open Space is practically Hobbiton—a hidden “shire” in the middle of the city. Okay, maybe not quite as magical, but still an incredible place to take a hike in city limits.

    View

Trending Stories SoCal

View all Stories
  1. Locals' Feature: Jim Litchfield, Owner of Reno Fly Shop

    If there's a river, you're likely to find Jim Litchfield there. As the owner of Reno Fly Shop, Nevada's premier fly fishing outfitter and shop, Jim's passion for rivers knows no bounds: he's fished in places near and far, including Alaska, Bolivia and Christmas Island. But home is beautiful Reno, where he has been running Reno Fly Shop and leading tailored river float and fly fishing adventures (including beginner-friendly options) for over a decade.

    View
  2. Can't Top This

    San Francisco’s Presidio was already a fantastic place to hang out for the afternoon, a beautiful site within the largest urban national park in the United States (the Golden Gate National Recreation Area). And Presidio Tunnel Tops is like a cherry on top. Make that two cherries on top, with the newly opened (July 2025) Outpost Meadow, a 1.5-acre green space located at Old Mason Street across from the Crissy Field Marsh in the Presidio.

    View
  3. Volcanic Activity

    Northern California is home to one of the most unique ecosystems in the country: Lassen Volcanic National Park. The region features geothermal areas, including the largest dome volcano in the world, Lassen Peak. Hike to the top of this active volcano on a 5-mile out-and-back.  

    View
  4. Oh Ryan

    Sure, it’s those whimsical trees that give Joshua Tree National Park its marquee billing; but this beautiful landscape also has surrounding mountains and its night sky—one of the darkest in Southern California and designated an International Dark Sky Park. Joshua Tree has four allowable stargazing parking lots, and a newly opened haven for spending the night nearby...

    View