Will Rogers State Historic Park

"We went to this historic park last weekend and were VERY surprised by it. Not only is it nice to step away from the hustle of the city, but it's both beautiful and educational. Atop a hill, you sit on acres of Will Rogers's former property, which includes his ranch style home (there are tours Thursdays and Fridays between 11 and 3 pm for free!), the stables (with horses and horseback-riding lessons) and of course the hiking trails. The hiking trail, which starts at the end of Will Rogers's massive green front lawn is a two-mile loop to the top of Inspiration Point. You can go on other hikes from there as well – the tour guide told us you can actually walk to Reseda Blvd in the Valley from there! – but Inspiration Point was a fairly short walk uphill and the views were really unbelievable. From the top of Inspiration Point, on a clear day, you can see Catalina Island, Santa Barbara Island, downtown L.A., Santa Monica and Venice beaches and all of the mansions in the Palisades / Santa Monica! Believe me, it's really cool to get this birds-eye view. We spent a total of 3.5 hours doing the tour and then taking the hike! That includes a lot of stops for photos. Who is Will Rogers? He was one of the highest paid Hollywood actors in history; he was a cowboy and professional roper, he had his own talk show among many other feats. He once owned much of Santa Monica and the Palisades! Imagine what these areas would like today if he hadn't sold! You can watch a 10-minute video about his life in the Visitor's center, right next to his home. Entry is free, you just need to pay for parking. "