If Southern California had less light pollution, you might indeed get a good view of the the Milky Way or some other galaxy from this park, but the name comes from the fact that it sits on the eastern side of Galaxy Drive, so the view is *from* a Galaxy, not *of* a galaxy. And what a view it is! You can see much of the Back Bay from here, including those charming and mysterious sandbars Middle Island and Shell Maker Island.
Beware of marauding hordes of Orange County middle schoolers. When I was here, I noticed a bunch of unlocked, expensive-looking e-bikes in a pile near the southern edge of the park, and I heard snarky tween/early teenage laughter and bragging and mocking from what seemed like below me. Sure enough, when I looked down the side of the hill, I saw a group of tweens and young teenagers converged on a trail that traverses the hill. I could see other groups of middle schoolers walking or standing farther away on what looked like different trails in either direction, so this must be an embarkation point onto those trails, which look like legit trails but whose association with said groups of nouveau-riche ruffians would make me think twice about using them outside of school hours.
It's a small neighborhood park, but there's plenty of flat, lush green space to spread out your beach towel or picnic blanket on. There are also interesting plants and birds everywhere. It's small, but one could spend a great deal of time just enjoying the view here. There are many benches just for this purpose. read more