Hike Sandstone Peak and Tri-Peaks Loop Santa Monica Mountain National Recreation Area, CA

Apr 30, 2023 — Sandstone Peak is the high point of the Santa Monica Mountains, and it rightfully gets a lot of attention. Nearby Tri-Peaks is often included as an outing combined with Sandstone Peak since this allows for a really pretty loop and makes the hike well-rounded. You can hike this loop by starting at the Sandstone Peak Trailhead like we did, or from the Mishe Mokwa Trailhead just to the east. After a fantastic drive up through the wildflower-covered mountains, Austin and I set out using the wide and well-maintained trail toward Sandstone Peak. Wildflowers persisted up here, but we unfortunately wouldn't be getting great views today due to the marine layer covering the ocean below. I vaguely remembered this being a nice hike, and after a late night out raving in LA, we were both looking forward to a tame outing.

After less than a half mile, we met a junction with the Backbone Trail, where we'd be returning from later. We kept left and continued along the slope, the portion of our hike leading to Sandstone Peak being the steepest part of the loop. We could see the named Balanced Rock feature below on the Backbone Trail, as well as the cool rock formations surrounding Sandstone Peak above. The slopes are mostly covered by coastal chaparral, so the views are great for the hike's entirety.

We passed around on the north side of Sandstone Peak, where a clearly eroded social trail leads directly to the summit. I believe the official route to the peak comes up from the west side, so we instead continued along the trail and started up from that direction using the clearer trail. The rock is a bit slick at times and convoluted social trails lead up the slope, but there's really not any scrambling required. Views stretched in all directions, and a small monument dedicated to a land donor was constructed at the high point. We could see Tri-Peaks to the west and after taking in the scenery for a bit, we backtracked to the Backbone Trail. The majority of vertical gain was done for the hike, the remainder spattered throughout its remainder.

We followed the Backbone Trail as it descended away from Sandstone Peak and through a chapparal garden complete with gorgeous monoliths poking out. After descending into a more open landscape at the base of Tri-Peaks, we located the marked junction pointing to our second peak. This trail was a bit less well-maintained, but still in excellent condition. For some reason I didn't realize this summit requires a Class 5 set of moves to reach, but the SoCal hiking standard seems to be to get to just below the summit block and call it good, so that's what we did, too.

Back along the Mishe Mokwa Trail, we headed generally back east now. There were more neat rock formations and wildflowers, plus wider views of the rolling landscape. It was a really excellent time of day to choose to do this hike, despite the low-hanging clouds blocking our views into the distance. The trail followed the side of a drainage and continued down to a little picnic area labeled Split Rock which was named for, well, a split rock nearby. The Mishe Mokwa Trail continued skirting around the slope, losing and gaining small amount of elevation. The landscape to the north dropped away into Carlisle Canyon and a beautiful cliff hung over the drainage, with Balanced Rock perched on top.

The Mishe Mokwa Trail reached a junction, where we kept right to rejoin the Sandstone Peak Trail and get back to our car.