Monrovia Canyon Park552

It's a wonder that such a vibrant forest exists five minutes above the urban din of the San Gabriel Valley. Monrovia Canyon Park - an oak woodland, chapparal, and riparian forest - is home to bears, grey foxes, bobcats, raccoons, coyotes, and Virginia opossums, most of whom thankfully visit the park only after hours. The Nature Center is a bright building, staffed by friendly volunteers who love to introduce young visitors to the snakes and bugs kept in terrariums. Displays of local wildlife and plant communities are found throughout the center; picnic areas and barbeque pits can be found just outside. Kids can easily handle the 1.5-mile roundtrip Monrovia Falls hike, which brings them to a waterfall with giant boulders to climb. On the way, they'll marvel at small caves, the trickling stream just begging for dipped bare toes, and "The Cathedral" - an area in which the oaks bend to create a domed "room." The hike starts right behind the Nature Center.