You are here

Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area

National Parks Traveler Episode 127: Santa Monica Mountains Wildlife Corridor

Mountain lions in California, in and around Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, have many challenges they must overcome to survive. The species faces a continuous onslaught of threats -- from poaching, disease and poisoning to drought and wildland fires.  But one threat tops them all -- a fragmented habitat that prevents this stealthy and solitary creature from safely accessing the huge territory it needs to find genetically diverse mates.  

bootstrap

National Parks Traveler Episode 126: Saving Santa Monica Mountains' Mountain Lions

A whopping $38 million has been raised to date for the construction of a wildlife corridor over the 101 Freeway west of Los Angeles.  When completed, the overpass will be the largest in the world, spanning 10 lanes of highway and access roads and connecting the fragmented wildlife habitat around the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area. It will benefit all wildlife in southern California’s richly diverse ecosystem, but especially the declining mountain lion population.  

bootstrap

Two Separate Populations Of Threatened Frogs Breeding At Santa Monica Mountains

California red-legged frogs might be a threatened species, but those in the Santa Monica Mountains of California are proving to be a resilient species, as well. While the November 2018 Woolsey Fire swept across most of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area there, two separate populations of the frogs have been found breeding in the area burned by the fire.

Bobcat Turns Charred Oak Tree At Santa Monica Mountains NRA Into Nursery

While the Woolsey Fire that swept through Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area back in 2018 charred much of the landscape, not all was entirely destroyed, and in fact has provided shelter for a pregnant bobcat. Park staff say a bobcat that was fitted with a radio collar more than a year after the fire turned a charred oak tree into a nursery for her three kittens.

Traveler Special Report: Coping With 21st Century Wildfires

The 1988 wildfires that drew the nation's attention to the world's first national park were considered simply part of the fire regime that historically has existed in Yellowstone National Park. But in the aftermath of the fires, "climate change" entered the country's lexicon and increasingly intense wildfires have forced the National Park Service in the West to both evaluate and refine its approach to battling flames that are arriving with greater and greater ferocity.

The Essential RVing Guide

The Essential RVing Guide to the National Parks

The National Parks RVing Guide, aka the Essential RVing Guide To The National Parks, is the definitive guide for RVers seeking information on campgrounds in the National Park System where they can park their rigs. It's available for free for both iPhones and Android models.

This app is packed with RVing specific details on more than 250 campgrounds in more than 70 parks.

You'll also find stories about RVing in the parks, some tips if you've just recently turned into an RVer, and some planning suggestions. A bonus that wasn't in the previous eBook or PDF versions of this guide are feeds of Traveler content: you'll find our latest stories as well as our most recent podcasts just a click away.

So whether you have an iPhone or an Android, download this app and start exploring the campgrounds in the National Park System where you can park your rig.