Long before the 14 freeway existed, the only way to travel north past the Santa Susana and San…read moreGabriel Mountains to central and northern California was through a narrow 70 foot tall pass called Beale's Cut (also known as both the San Fernando Pass and the Newhall Pass). Completed in 1859, this pass was used up to 1910 until it was abandoned after the Newhall Tunnel was built located ¼ mile to the west of the site. Through the years the site has been used for a number of western movies. William S Hart supposedly jumped his horse across the gap. The land around Beale's Cut was used by a refinery until the 1980's. The land currently remains vacant. You can still see various concrete foundations and pipes from the oil refinery. In the spring of 1998 a massive landslide filled in nearly half of the cut. This site was designated as California Registered Historic Landmark No. 1006 on May 11, 1992. A marker base and plaque for this historical landmark was unfortunately never erected. The entrance to the site is located 1 mile south of Eternal Valley Cemetery. You'll see a metal fence on the east side of the road. From there you walk up the hill for another 1,000 ft.

If you like odd bits of history this is a fun one. Only takes a minute to get find, and you don't…read morehave to hike. From Sierra Highway and the first instersection with Highway 14 go north and stop just short of the Welcome to Santa Clarita sign. There will be the remains of a stone monument on your right. Walk back down the road and look back. You will see the cut.

** Dog friendly My Betty would have had fun here…read more Please bring water, a bowl and poop bags for your pup Please pick up after yourselves First off no cell service for me anyway, I have Spectrum. Large empty parking lot available at 10am on a Thursday. Note: posted no off road parking. I didn't have any cash on me and parking meter was not working, so unfortunately I had to turn right around and leave. Payment is $5 in an envelope that you put into the "iron ranger". I wouldn't make a special trip out there but if I am ever nearby again I'd probably check this out. Note: my cell was "off line" until 2.4 miles away on Pico Canyon Rd from Mentryville parking lot.

Mentryville was a pretty cool experience. We got to visit it through Parapod's haunted tour. Has…read moresome history and people claim it is haunted. The pictures I posted pretty much describe it. It was fun to travel back in time for a bit and imagine how life was back in the day.

Bowers Cave, also known as Cave of the San Martins, is a little-known cave that sits high near the…read moretop of a steep mountain at the northeastern border of the Chiquita Canyon Landfill located in Castaic. It has been described as the most significant archaeological site on the North American continent. In 1884 two brothers, McCoy and Everette Pyle, discovered a "treasure trove" of Native American artifacts that had been hidden away by Tataviam Indians hundreds of years earlier. Shortly after the discovery the items were sold to Stephen Bowers who later resold most of the collection to the Peabody Museum at Harvard where it is still kept today. Why the cave is named after the person who purchased the artifacts and not the people who discovered them is beyond me. Nevertheless, it is still an interesting piece of history in the most unexpected place. The location can be seen from a distance from inside the landfill. I would never advise visiting the site without permission, but if you did, I would hike from a northern approach, preferably on a Sunday. Make your way towards the large water tanks and you will eventually spot a path that will take you to the backside of the mountain. The climb to the cave looked way too steep for me so I chose to appreciate it from a distance. I am really curious whether or not the sandstone carvings seen in historic photographs are still present. You can read a lot more about the cave on SCVTV's web site and there is also a very odd 20 minute documentary that you can find online.

Thank you for the information. My great-grandfather was McCoy Pyle, so it was interesting to find…read moreout why he didn't get credit for the collection at Harvard. I didn't realize the artifacts were sold first!

Heritage Junction Historic Park hosts various community events throughout the year, most notably…read morethe Halloween Heritage Haunt. It's a nice place to visit with the kids when combined with a trip to the William S. Hart Museum. Visit the train and the historic buildings. It's also a nice location to hike or jog. Continue down the dirt road, past the historic houses on the right, and you will reach Hart Park Campgrounds. From there the path connects to Lisbeth Trail which leads to various other fire roads and the backside of William S. Hart Museum.

We had such a great time! This was my daughter's first field trip and all the children had such a…read moregreat time. We will definitely go back. The school was my favorite part of the whole tour!!

Who doesn't love the Cascades of the L.A. aqueduct? The rushing white water flowing down the…read morehillside is iconic and if you've driven the I-5 anytime during the last several decades it's there prominent and historic; you can't miss it. Something about the cascading water is mesmerizing and when the cascade is dry it's almost downright eerie. These days it's flowing like Niagara, okay maybe not but you get my drift. I've never exited the freeway or stopped to make the walk next to the aqueduct, but I understand it's worth the visit and maybe a few photos. As I get older these So Cal historic sites pique my interest more and more and this one is on my list. I'm not in this area very often but when I am I always like to gaze...knowing the water is flowing all the way from the Sierra Nevada's is kinda cool, am I right? Do pause to ponder what's going on here the next time you're on the I-5. Snap a few shots and share 'em.

I have been by the Cascades on three occasions including this one. I always wanted to stop and see…read moreit closer knowing the history of the building of the Los Angeles Aqueduct from the Owens Valley to Los Angeles. This also contains water that comes across Southern California in the California Aqueduct that you can see cross the 15 Freeway in the Hesperia area. Knowing how this engineering marvel came about and the water grab from the Owens Valley in Central California, view the video Chinatown and you see what Mulholland and others were up to in bringing water to turn LA from a desert to a green, thriving city. Know also that the voters of LA were promised this would bring water to the city and they voted for the bonds. In fact, the plan all along was to terminate it in the San Fernando Valley where Mulholland, Colonel Otis (then owner of the LA Times), and others had purchased large tracts of arid land and this opened the valley to development and of course they made a fortune. This is a marvel and it should also act as a reminder how precious and sometimes scare water is.

I have to say that the history of Rancho San Francisco is definitely a lot more interesting than…read morethe location of this historical landmark. The history of Rancho San Francisco tells the history of the City of Santa Clarita. Most of the information listed below was obtained from various Wikapedia pages. Mission San Fernando Rey de Espana, established in 1797, was the 17th of 21 Spanish missions established in Alta California, the land controlled by Spain and later Mexico before it became a territory of the United States. The mission needed more land for crops and livestock so they looked north to the Santa Clarita Valley. They created a "mission ranch" (or as the plaque states, a "granary" which is a place to store grain). They names the mission ranch Mission Rancho San Francisco. In the process they had to relocate the Tataviam Indians who were living on the lands at the time. They moved them to the mission and used them for labor. The missions were later taken over by the Mexican government. In 1839, Lt Del Valle was the person in charge of inventorying the property of Mission San Fernando Rey de Espana. Instead of returning the land back to the Tataviam Indians, the then Mexican Governor, Juan B. Alvarado, deeded it to his friend Del Valle. Del Valle later died and his son, Ygnacio, took control over the land. Del Valle's wife, Jacoba Feliz, had an uncle named Francisco Lopez. He was the first person to find gold in California at the Oak of the Golden Dream, located in Placerita Canyon. This started a mini gold rush with the much larger California Gold Rush taking place several years later. Jacoba later sued for control of Rancho San Francisco. The land later was split between the Del Valle's son and his wife. The land was later sold to a petroleum company and then to Henry Newhall. Henry Newhall granted the land to Southern Pacific Railroad and which led to the town of Newhall and later Saugus. The plaque inscription reads: NO. 556 RANCHO SAN FRANCISCO - Approximately one-half mile south of the point was the adobe headquarters of Rancho San Francisco, originally built about 1804 as a granary of Mission San Fernando. The rancho was granted to Antonio de Valle in 1839. Here, in January 1850, William Lewis Manly and John Rogers obtained supplies and animals to rescue their comrades in a California-bound gold-seeking emigrant party that was stranded and starving in Death Valley, some 250 miles to the northeast. Location: SW corner of 'The Old Road' and Henry Mayo Drive, 0.2 mi S of I-5 and State Hwy 126 interchange, Valencia

This place was so amazing great place to get close to ostrich. The own himself gave my family a…read moreprivate tour it was so informative and all the details he gave us have me so amazed. The location it self it's beautiful near mountains. They also have restrooms and playground for kids. They also have little shop they sell ostrich eggs which are huge and they even have home made honey. Amazing place would definitely be going back!!

Such a great little place! We did a tour in the morning with five kids under 7, and the gentleman…read moregiving the tour was so accommodating to antsy little bodies needing to move around. I'm so sorry I didn't catch his name, but he was very knowledgeable and so kind. I'll absolutely be recommending Quail Run Ranch to every one!

The first commercially successful oil well in the western United States and also the…read morelongest-running oil well in the world up until 1990. I wouldn't make a separate trip to view it unless you're an oil history buff. If your visit includes Mentryville and Pico Canyon trail then it's well worth the trip. California Historical Landmark No. 516 WELL, CSO 4 (PICO 4) - The inscription reads: On this site stands CSO-4 (Pico No. 4), California's first commercially productive well. It was spudded in early 1876 under direction of Demetrious G. Scofield who later became the first president of Standard Oil Company of California, and was completed at a depth of 300 feet on September 26, 1876, for an initial flow of 30 barrels of oil a day. Later that year, after the well was deepened to 600 feet with what was perhaps the first steam rig employed in oil well drilling in California, it produced at a rate of 150 barrels a day - it is still producing after 77 years (1953). The success of this well prompted formation of the Pacific Coast Oil Company, a predecessor of Standard Oil Company of California, and led to the construction of the state's first refinery nearby. It was not only the discovery well of the Newhall Field, but was a powerful stimulus to the subsequent development of the California petroleum industry. Location: On W Pico Canyon Rd, 3.3 mi W of I-5, Newhall

California Historic Landmark number 516. This was California's first commercially productive oil…read morewell. You'll have to walk to the site from Mentryville.

I loved this hike. I was really surprised how much fun it was. I generally don't expect great…read morethings, in regards to views, with the local hikes...drought. However, This one may cause me to reconsider such low expectations... Due to lack of time..I'll have to plan another day to come back and go further... However we still managed to explore 5miles...But this is the type of trail that makes you want to keep going. And from the looks if it, you could keep going for days. Keep in mind that this is the hike that is past mentryville, they have a $5 parking fee, bring cash. So the first part if the hike is a paved road (which makes jogging a really nice option) there are two places where you have the option to take a left which would lead to picnic tables... However if you keep going straight you will get a nice photo op. Of the Pico Canyon plaques where the first oil well once was. Right past this you can begin your climb up the mountain. The incline is perfect... It offed a great workout opportunity... And it's not too hard where it makes you feel like you may die if you continue. The view is surprisingly gorgeous.. Seriously, I have lived out in Santa Clarita my entire life and I never would have guessed such views existed. It is a hike that you should not attempt on your own, only because it's pretty secluded, my partner and I did not see another single hiker. I definitely look forward to coming back, the path seems endless and I would love to continue on... It also helps that the weather was in our favor today... Couldn't have asked for a better day. I thoroughly enjoyed this hike today

Does it really count as a hiking when the trail is mostly a paved road? Nevertheless, the Pico…read moreCanyon trail is still a fun and exciting trek. The trail starts at Mentryville, an interesting old and historically significant town that has been used for a number of movies. Further up the road you'll encounter a mini trail on the left. It's a great trail for kids. It has some small bridges and ends with a picnic bench on a hill. Continuing up the paved road you will encounter a neat little area on the left that has some old oil field relicts. Further up the road on the right you will encounter Well #4, the first commercial oil well in California. The paved road will eventually end and then you will start the trek up the mountain. Even though there is a fairly wide path, when you start to get high up the mountain the height can be a little intimidating. The views at the top of the mountain are probably the best in Santa Clarita.