Santa Monica Mountains

Mountain Lion Has Deer For Breakfast on Mulholland (PHOTOS)

It was a once-in-a-lifetime moment. And a motorcyclist who happened to be cruising on Mulholland Highway in the Santa Monica Mountains stopped in his tracks to snap this photo. Kate Kuykendall of the National Park Service told the Weekly that of hundreds of mountain lion "kills" that have been exam ... More >>

How 6 SoCal Places Got Their Really Weird Names

There are all sorts of unusual places names in this part of the country we call "The Southland." We have names of historic English derivation, not so unlike what you'd find back in the civilized East (Whittier, Torrance, Hawthorne, Glendale). We have place names of Spanish derivation (Tujunga, Rese ... More >>

Black Ice and Frozen Bird Baths in Stunned Los Angeles -- Could Recode Cold Snap Bring Snow?

Commuters whose cars piled up in Beverly Glen Canyon today had no idea the dark smear on the road wasn't sprinkler water -- it was black ice, not seen in decades by most Los Angeles urbanites. Residents of the San Fernando Valley were baffled today to see birds pecking at water in birdbaths -- unti ... More >>

Top 5 WTF Stories Of 2012

It's been a banner year for WTF stories, a category we helped define a few years back with "Today In WTF" headlines. If you enjoy head-scratching stories, you really couldn't ask for a better front-row seat than the one journalists get in Los Angeles. We have it all -- victims set on fire (accide ... More >>

Deer Being Cut Up In Pacific Palisades Mistaken For Bloody Crime Scene

A Pacific Palisades local who spotted a blood-spattered man with a knife phoned 911, and responding police, seeing much of the same, called for backup. Was it a real-life Silence of the Lambs in the making? Not exactly: Turns out the guy was legally "dressing down" a deer that had been fatally str ... More >>

90 Degrees-Plus in Los Angeles Today As New Heat Records Expected

Updated at the bottom: We did it! First posted at 6:08 a.m. Anybody look at the calendar lately? Yeah, November. Someone forgot to tell Mother Nature, because temperatures in the L.A. basin were expected to sneak into the 90s today and could break records, says the National Weather Service. Look ... More >>

What Makes the Hollywood Bowl So Perfect?

Is the Hollywood Bowl southern California's most beloved performance space? Quite possibly. Where else do folks brag not just about seeing an act, but about attending a venue itself? Seating 17,376 patrons, it hosts shows six-out-of-seven nights a week --Tuesdays and Thursdays are classical, Wednesd ... More >>

Stop Sign Camera Tickets in L.A. Lead to Demands to See Drivers' Bank Accounts

Mountains Authority takes money-grubbing to a new low

Democratic War for L.A.'s Richest

Betsy Butler and Torie Osborn woo the carbon-counting strata of Assembly District 50

Baby Mountain Lion Killed by Santa Monica Cops After Wandering Into 2nd Street Courtyard

Updated at the bottom with a photo of the poor thing before it died. News helicopters swarmed above a glass business courtyard on Santa Monica's swanky 2nd Street all morning -- visible from rush hour on the PCH -- as Santa Monica police worked with Department of Fish and Game officials to round up ... More >>

Stop-Sign Cameras Ticket 70,000 in Los Angeles Parks

Map of $175 Stop-Sign Cameras to Avoid in Los Angeles and Santa Monica Mountains Parks

As Michael Goldstein reports in "Parks Agency Money Grab" in the print L.A. Weekly, the Santa Monica Mountains, a free Los Angeles treasure beloved by hikers and dog-walkers, are not as free as they seem. Seven "stop sign cameras" have been placed by the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Autho ... More >>

Koreatown Roars Against Gerrymander

Sleeping tiger says no more splitting

Snow in Los Angeles Region Sends Riders to Mountain High Over Weekend

​Updated at the bottom: Following Mountain High's early opening Saturday, Bear Mountain Resort will open Wednesday, and Snow Summit Mountain Resort will kick in on Thursday. First posted at 12:45 p.m. Friday. Wait, you ask, summer's over? Yeah, look at the calendar. It passed more than 30 day ... More >>

Mountain Lion Killed on 405 Freeway: Photos From Before & After

National Park Service​When the 15-month-old mountain lion known by National Park Service animal trackers as "P-18" (real cute) was killed on the 405 last Tuesday morning, adorable photos circulated of little P-body in his prime kitten years. So sweet! And so young, to die! (See, right.) But ... More >>

U2's Edge Sees His Malibu Hilltop Mansions Rejected: He 'Can't be Serious About Being an Environmentalist'

The 'bu-hoo-tee.​U2 guitarist The Edge finally found what he's looking for: Five mansions along a ridge he owns in the Santa Monica Mountains above Malibu's Surfrider Beach. But even though there are no sacred Joshua trees along the ridge, the California Coastal Commission rejected the develo ... More >>

Al Gore is Wrong: Global Cooling Could be on The Horizon as a Result of Solar Slumber (Maybe)

NASADon't go changin'.​Al Gore is wrong. So go ahead, pack up your things and move back to the coast. Global warming might not happen. Not that we haven't tried our best to ruin the planet. We have. And we had a good run there with the ozone layer, the great pacific garbage patch and The Edge ... More >>

Topanga Canyon Studio Tour Yields Stunning Scenery, Cool Glassware, Pretty Good Paintings and Sanctioned Street Art

Carol ChehE. Kim Bolanowski shows off her brand new glass-blowing furnace and oven, built by her husband​ Just as Topanga Canyon lies on the outskirts of Los Angeles, the art that is shown there tends to exist outside of the dominant art dialogue that takes place in the city's museums, art sp ... More >>

Snow, Record Cold Possible For L.A. This Weekend: Thank God It's Freezing

johnwilliamsphdSnow could be en route to L.A.​Update: L.A. County announced mountain road closures, after the jump. East Coasters like to make fun of us for complaining about brisk winter temps in the low 60s this time of year. But we do get real "weather," and this weekend is about to prove ... More >>

Manhunt For Omar Armando Loera, Suspect In Murder Of Cheree Osmanhodzic, Underway In Coldwater Canyon

Loera.​A city worker reported spotting an at-large parolee wanted in the brutal murder of a Valley Village woman who had been planning for her upcoming wedding. Authorities urged residnets in Coldwater Canyon area to stay inside and lock windows and doors as they searched the Valley side of th ... More >>

'Excessive Heat Watch' Issued For L.A. This Week: Record Temps Expected

​An "excessive heat watch" has been issued by the National Weather Service for much of Los Angeles Tuesday and Wednesday, with "dangerous heat possible" and even record temperatures for the San Fernando Valley, the San Gabriel Valley, and the Santa Monica Mountains. A high-pressure system is ... More >>

View From the Top: Santa Monica Place & Rooftop Market to Open This Fall

Since the closing of the original Santa Monica Place in 2008, passers-by near the south end of Third Street Promenade have been wondering at the dark and mysterious tarp-covered space. The first week of August, the tarp will be lifted to reveal a newly constructed Santa Monica Place featuring a roof ... More >>

Foundation Seeks to Operate Will Rogers Ranch

In a sign of how quickly the economic crisis is loosening California's grip on its natural resources and historical heritage, the Will Rogers Ranch Foundation is, according to the L.A. Times, seeking to take control of the operation of Pacific Palisade's Will Rogers State Historical Park. The park i ... More >>

Pot Farms Found in Santa Monica Mountains

An LAist report on a pair of pot plantations discovered in the Santa Monica Mountains underscores concerns we raised this morning about the shutting down of state parks because of budget cuts. While not every park is set in the middle of a wilderness, it's unknown as to which parks will be closed du ... More >>

I Wanna Be Elated: Meghan McCain's Ramones Connection

Meghan McCain, the daughter of Senator John McCain, has been emoting about her post-election blues lately on her blog and at the Daily Beast, from which CNN.com has been quoting at length this week. One of Meghan's pet peeves, we learn is other people -- not just those who "openly voted for Barack O ... More >>

Today in Photographs: February 26, 1965

The gloves and hats go on for the fight to create parkland in the Santa Monica Mountains.Photo: L.A. Times/UCLA CollectionClick image to englarge

Our N-Word Mountains

Today's L.A. Times reports that "authorities" have decided to rebrand Malibu's Negrohead Mountain with a more palatable designation. (No, not African American Dome.) The idea is to rename the 2,000-plus-foot peak for the name of its original inspiration, John Ballard. Ballard was a former slave who ... More >>

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