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SAN GABRIEL MISSION

In 1781, a small group of settlers set out from this mission (Map; 626-457-3035; www.sangabrielmission.org; 428 S Mission Dr; adult/child 6-17/senior $5/3/4; 9am-4:30pm; ) to found El Pueblo de Los Angeles in today’s Downtown area. About 3 miles southeast of Pasadena in the city of San Gabriel, it’s the fourth in the chain of 21 missions in California and one of the prettiest. Its church boasts Spanish Moorish flourishes, a copper baptismal font, carved statues of saints and a 1790 altar made in Mexico City. On the grounds you’ll discover the cemetery, original soap-and-tallow vats and fountains. The small museum has historic Bibles, religious robes and Native American artifacts.

The mission surroundings are also well worth a quick stroll. Following Mission Dr takes you past the 1927 Civic Auditorium, the Civic Center, a historical museum and galleries.

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DETOUR: ANGELES NATIONAL FOREST

The San Gabriel mountain range that hems in the northern edge of urban LA is part of the Angeles National Forest (Map; 626-574-1613; www.fs.fed.us/r5/angeles) whose creeks, canyons and campgrounds provide quick city getaways year-round. It’s particularly pretty during the spring wildflower season and even gets decent fall color. Traffic can be insane on busy weekends, especially in summer with people trying to escape the heat, and after decent snowfall in winter, which brings skiing in the higher elevations. Motorcyclists love the smooth and curvy road.

Access is via the two-lane Angeles Crest Scenic Byway (Hwy 2; www.byways.org/explore/byways/10245/travel.html), which treats you to fabulous views of big-shouldered mountains, the Mojave Desert and deep valleys on its 55-mile meander from La Cañada to the resort town of Wrightwood. The road skirts LA County’s tallest mountain, officially called Mt San Antonio (10,064ft) but better known as Old Baldy for its treeless top. You’ll pass ranger stations along the way, but the main Chilao Visitor Center (Map; 626-796-5541; admission free; 8am-4pm Sat & Sun mid-Apr–mid-Oct) with natural exhibits and trails is about 27 miles from the turnoff.

By then, you will have passed the junction (after about 15 miles) to Red Box Rd which, 5 miles later, dead-ends at the Mt Wilson Observatory (Map; 626-793-3100; www.mtwilson.edu; admission free; 10am-4pm Apr-Oct, weather permitting) atop 5715ft Mt Wilson. Operating since 1904, it was the world’s top astronomical research facility in the early 20th century and is still in use today. You can walk around the grounds (download a handy self-guided tour from the website) and visit the museum. Free guided tours run at 1pm on Saturdays and Sundays. The website also has details on how to schedule a viewing session for the 1908 60-inch telescope (half-/full-night $650/1200 for groups of up to 25 people).

Note that visiting the Angeles National Forest requires a National Forest Adventure Pass. Places to pick one up in La Cañada at the start of the drive are Sport Chalet (Map; 818-790-9800; 920 Foothill Blvd) or Jay’s Shell Station (Map; 818-790-3836; 4530 Angeles Crest Hwy).

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LOS ANGELES COUNTY ARBORETUM & BOTANIC GARDEN

It’s easy to spend hours amid the global vegetation, waterfalls, spring-fed lake and historic buildings of this fantastic, rambling park (Map; 626-821-3222; www.arboretum.org; 301 N Baldwin Ave; adult/student & senior/child 5-12 $7/5/2.50, 3rd Tue of month free; 9am-5pm). Originally the private estate of real-estate tycoon Elias ‘Lucky’ Baldwin, it’s so huge, there’s even a tram to take around those who are foot-weary. The grounds are often used in filming, for instance standing in for the African jungle in African Queen and as Central Park in End of Days. It’s in Arcadia, about 5 miles east of central Pasadena, right by the Santa Anita Park racetrack (see below).

SANTA ANITA PARK

Home of the legendary Seabiscuit, the art deco thoroughbred racetrack (Map; 626-574-7223; www.santaanita.com; 285