Tourism
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Located in the Crescenta Valley, La Cañada Flintridge is a city in the foothills of the Verdugo
mountains, just 13 miles north of Los Angeles. Surrounded by breathtaking, scenic views including the
San Gabriel Mountains and the Angeles National Forest to the north, and the San Rafael Hills to the
south, the area is a popular one for hikers, bicyclists, equestrians and nature lovers.
One top La Cañada Flintridge attraction is the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Today, approximately 5,500 engineers, scientists and support personnel
are employed at JPL. At the laboratory, space enthusiasts, as well as those with an interest in rocketry
and science in general can visit to get a glimpse into the world of NASA.
The JPL Public Services Office offers a limited number of onsite, in-person tours, free of charge on an
advance reservation basis. The tour lasts between 2 and 2.5 hours. The walking distance for the tour is
approximately 0.9 miles with multiple flights of stairs.
How to visit
An onsite, in-person tour for individuals, organizations and groups of 20 to 80 individuals can be
booked online at www.jpl.nasa.gov/
events/tours.
Tours commonly include a multimedia presentation on JPL, “Journey to the Planets and
Beyond,” which provides an overview of the laboratory’s activities and accomplishments.
Guests may also visit the von Karman Visitor Center, the Space Flight Operations Facility and the
Spacecra Assembly Facility.
The laboratory also offers a virtual tour experience where a JPL tour guide will guide you through the
facility and answer questions. These tours can also be booked through the JPL website.
In addition, the virtual tour without the ability to interact with the guide can be viewed any time at
www.jpl.nasa.gov/virtual-tour/.
JPL history
• Year local rocket work began – 1936
• A group of Caltech students and experimenters tested rocket engines in the Arroyo
Seco on the border of what is today La Cañada Flintridge. During World War II, their tiny effort grew
into the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
• During the 1940s and 1950s, JPL developed missiles for the Army and then created
America’s first satellite (and entry into space) –Explorer 1, launched in 1958.
• Explorer 1 confirmed the existence of the Van Allen radiation belt around Earth.
• When NASA was born, JPL took on the role of robotic exploration to the moon, planets and
beyond.
• JPL eventually switched its emphasis to planetary voyages, starting with lunar missions to
survey and photograph the moon, and then moving on to explore planets, starting with Venus and later
moving on to Mars, Saturn and other planets of our solar system.
• JPL scientists have also used orbiting infrared telescopes to study star and planet
formation and planets orbiting other stars beyond our solar system.
• Robotic explorers including Mariner II, Voyager, Viking, Cassini and all of NASA’s
Mars rovers were developed in La Cañada Flintridge.
• Space technology is also being used to study Earth from space, studying everything from
moisture in the soil to carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
For additional information on the history of JPL, visit:
www.jpl.nasa.gov/who-we-are/history.
WHEN YOU VISIT
Address: 4800 Oak Grove Drive
Phone: (818) 949-4200 or (818) 354-4321
Admission: Free
Schedule a tour at: www.jpl.nasa.gov/events/tours/. The tours
involve lots of walking and stairs and must be scheduled in advance. The average wait can run three to
five months.
Descanso Gardens
Touted to be “a botanical garden, living museum and urban oasis 20 minutes from downtown Los
Angeles,” Descanso Gardens is one of La Cañada Flintridge’s best-known attractions,
welcoming almost 1 million visitors each year.
Accredited by the American Association of Museums as a museum of living collections, the gardens are
open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, showcasing wild, natural landscapes that highlight the diversity and
stunning beauty of Southern California plants.
You will find here a rose garden, Japanese garden and oak and ancient forests along with legendary
lilacs and a unique, winter blooming camellia collection.
Among what you can see and do
• Enjoy family friendly programs, concerts, classes for all ages.
• Tour the Sturt Haaga Gallery and historic Boddy House.
• Take a train ride or watch the model trains at Descanso Railroad.
• Enjoy the popular Enchanted Forest of Light, an interactive, nighttime experience
featuring a one-mile walk through unique lighting experiences in the Gardens.
• Stop at the Mulberry Pond and Lakeside Lookout to catch a glimpse of fish, birds and
numerous other wild creatures.
Descanso history
• Descanso Gardens is a story of plants and the people who loved them for their
life-giving utility and great natural beauty.
• While the tale unfolds over centuries, the connecting thread — from the
indigenous people who relied on the plentiful oaks for food and their way of life to the 20th-century
entrepreneur who sowed the seeds of a cultural institution — is a deep-seated love for
this distinctive place.
WHEN YOU VISIT
Address: 1418 Descanso Drive
Phone: (818) 949-4200
Open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily (closed Christmas Day). Special evening hours in spring and
summer.
Admission: $15 (general); $11 for seniors 65 and older, as well as
students with I.D.; $5 for children ages 5-12; and free for children 4 and younger.
Website: Descansogardens.org
Lanterman House
The impressive restored home of Dr. Roy Lanterman and his wife, Emily, which is listed on the National
Register of Historic Places, is owned by the City of La Cañada Flintridge and maintained and
administered as a museum by a nonprofit foundation.
The museum offers docent-led tours of the house and sponsors a variety of educational and
family-friendly events.
Lanterman House history
• Year built – 1915
• This was one of the earliest totally reinforced concrete homes built west of the
Mississippi River. Roy Lanterman had witnessed the San Francisco fire after the 1906 earthquake and
feared another fire.
• The home is a U-shaped Mexican Colonial hacienda design with a fountain courtyard in the
middle, pergolas with plantings on all four sides and English Arts and Crafts design elements
throughout.
• Roy Lanterman’s parents initially settled in the Crescenta-Cañada Valley in 1875.
After a career in medicine, Roy decided to retire there with his wife, Emily, and two teenage sons.
• Emily Lanterman was from a wealthy Santa Monica family and was reluctant to move out to
the rural and isolated location.
• This lavish house was Dr. Lanterman’s way of persuading her that life in La Cañada
could still be comfortable. He even included a ballroom on the second story of the house.
• Roy and Emily lived in the home from 1915 until their deaths in 1948 and 1949,
respectively.
• Their son, Frank, was an accomplished silent movie organist until “talkies”
ruined that gig. Then, in 1950 he was elected to the California State Assembly, where he served for 28
years.
• Their other son, Lloyd, was a mechanical engineer who was known for designing race car
engines.
• Lloyd left the family home and all of its original furnishings to the city in 1987. It
opened as a museum in 1993.
WHEN YOU VISIT
Address: 4420 Encinas Drive
Phone: (818) 790-1421
Website: www.lantermanhouse.org
Admission: $5 for adults, $3 for students and seniors, and free for those under 12.
Hours: Tours by reservation on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons and
the 1st and 3rd Sunday afternoon, except for major holidays.
Its extensive archives are open for research by appointment. Request archive research assistance by
emailing [email protected]
The Trails of La Cañada Flintridge
La Cañada Flintridge boasts a unique and extensive 23-mile trail system, a hidden gem that is popular
with equestrians, hikers, runners, mountain bikers and dog walkers. It consists of a series of easements
through private property, public roads, public paths and bridges that are maintained by both the City
and County of Los Angeles. It is protected for the future by the city’s master plan and even
connects to the Pacific Crest Trail.
The La Cañada Flintridge Trails Council, a nonprofit volunteer organization formed in 1974, is
dedicated to developing, preserving and promoting the trails. The Trails Council has worked with the
City of La Cañada Flintridge, County of Los Angeles, Southern California Edison, Santa Monica Mountains
Conservancy and citizens of LCF to preserve, extend and improve the multi-use, multi-ability trails,
creating an uninterrupted 12.7-mile loop around the community as well as many connected trails.
A new trail opened in 2024 called the Sister City Friendship Path. It gently rises on the west side of
Descanso Gardens, providing additional access to Cherry Canyon for horses, cyclists and walkers.
The Trails’ history
• U.S. Senator Frank P. Flint, founder of Flintridge, built approximately 35 miles of bridle
paths through his land in the early 1900s.
• Will D. Gould did the same on his neighboring land and opened his trails to the public
shortly before his death in the 1920s.
• Throughout the Depression and World War II, local residents enjoyed the use of the
extensive trails that Flint and Gould had created.
• Post-War expansion and the Baby Boom caused much of the area’s open space to be
replaced by homes during the 1950s and 60s.
• By the late 1960s, the Trails system had become fragmented as developers built over them
and landowners fenced them off because of worries about liability and privacy.
• Since the Trails Council was established, an old flume over the 210 Freeway has been
enhanced to provide a trail crossing over that impediment; retaining walls and drainage pipes have been
installed to stabilize hillsides; and court cases have been fought and won.
• In addition, the 40-acre Cherry Canyon parcel has been purchased by the city and preserved
as open space. A tree-shaded water station for both horses and people has been established at the
Ultimate Destination Point there.
WHEN YOU VISIT
Website and interactive trail map: LCFTrails.org.
Donations are welcome and can be made on the
website.
All funds go to preserving the trails. Facebook.com/LCFTrails
• All trails are multi-use for equestrians, hikers and bikers.
All should yield to
equestrians, and bikers should also yield
to hikers.
• Please consider donating to LCFtrails.org to support new
and existing trails.
• Printed maps and a historical DVD, “The Trails of
La Cañada Flintridge”
are available for purchase at the
La Cañada Flintridge Chamber of Commerce and the Flintridge
Bookstore.
• Please do not leave pet waste bags on the trail.
Dispose in the appropriate container.
