Unbeknownst even to many locals, L.A. features an impressive amount of federal, state, and locally managed open space, including Topanga State Park in the Santa Monica Mountains, the largest chunk of wild land located entirely within the borders of a major city. Over the past decade, I've spent countless hours on narrow trails through thick forests filled with sycamore and live oak trees, as well as on wide, dusty fire roads along ridges overlooking the vast Pacific Ocean. Deer are an almost everyday sight in some places; toward dusk and at night, the sound of coyotes howling is common; a rarer treat is to see one of the few mountain lions or bobcats that live in the Santa Monica Mountains. A constant marvel is just how much trail time can be spent in solitude. On weekdays, in particular, it's possible to walk for hours without bumping into another person - this in a city with more than 3.8 million residents.

It would be impossible to detail all the worthwhile hikes within easy reach of metropolitan Los Angeles, let alone the many challenging climbs nearby in the San Gabriel Mountains, Angeles National Forest, and Joshua Tree National Park. Still, if you're looking to trade asphalt for a waterfall or a rearview mirror clogged with SUVs for a wide-open vista, here are a handful of our favorite treks.

Will Rogers State Historic Park
It's hard to go very far in west Los Angeles without running into the name Will Rogers: a beach, a park, and an elementary school are all named after the cowboy humorist, who in the 1920s and '30s was one of the most popular and highly paid actors in Hollywood. Rogers used some of that wealth to purchase a sprawling 186-acre ranch in the hills of Pacific Palisades, just above Sunset Boulevard. The ranch, which became a state park after Rogers's widow died in 1944, has horse stables, a riding and roping arena, and a large, lush polo field, where matches are still held on weekends from April to October.