Southern California's vast mountain forest above Los Angeles, spanning the San Gabriel and Sierra Pelona ranges.
Angeles National Forest
Angeles National Forest is the largest and most heavily used national forest in California, draped across the rugged San Gabriel Mountains and Sierra Pelona Mountains directly north of the Los Angeles metropolitan area. Managed by the U.S. Forest Service, it protects a wide elevation band of Mediterranean-type mountain terrain, from chaparral slopes and oak woodlands up to pine and mixed conifer forests, and it encompasses much of the San Gabriel Mountains National Monument.
The forest serves as a critical backyard wilderness for millions of Southern California residents, offering hiking, camping, fishing, and skiing within sight of one of America's largest cities. It also supplies vital watershed functions for downstream communities, with rivers such as the San Gabriel feeding aqueducts and reservoirs that supply urban water. Beyond recreation and water, the forest is an ecological bridge between coastal California ecosystems and the drier interior Mojave Desert, making it a key zone for chaparral and montane wildlife.
With its deep Native American, Spanish mission, Mexican rancho, and American conservation history, Angeles National Forest is more than open space; it is a culturally layered landscape that has shaped Southern California's identity for well over a century.
