Jan. 17, 2009A cliff edge perch and towering rock formations where two faults meet
| Devils Chair, Devils Punchbowl
San Gabriel mountains, Los Angeles countyJan. 17, 2009 A cliff edge perch and towering rock formations where two faults meet |
| The fanciful names
Devils Punch Bowl and Devils Chair conjure up frightful danger and
hellish geology. Situated atop the collision of several faults 60 miles out of
Los Angeles in the San Gabriel mountain high country, Devils Punch Bowl
Natural Area is a unique landscape of massive stones pushed upright and mountainsides twisted and scarred by geologic upheaval. Contrary to the name, there is no chair-like rock formation, just a precarious high perch with a spectacular 180 degree view across the high desert to the Sierra. A 3.5 mile hike up the mountain brings you to this narrow,
craggy promontory that juts out of a cliff with drop-offs of hundreds
of feet on 3 sides. The unique twisted, tortured white rock formations and expansive view of the high desert inspired the name Devils Chair. Devils Punch Bowl Natural Area, managed by Los Angeles County Dept. of Parks and Recreation, lies at the very northern edge of the San Gabriel mountains below a town called Pearblossom. The park offers a staffed Visitors Center with small snakes and other indigenous animals on exhibit, a cage with owls, an interpretive path, picnic area, restrooms and free parking. It's the starting point for a number of trails into the wilderness. Devils Punch Bowl is a large canyon filled with mountainous rock formations that jut up to create a unique landscape of massive, stacked obelisks. There is no "punch bowl" geology – deep, water-carved pools – here, just some creative naming of a canyon. The Punch Bowl canyon can be enjoyed from above via a viewpoint just a few steps from the parking lot or accessed by a one mile loop trail that winds down among the giant rocks. It's an easy walk and popular with families but has some steep sections climbing in and out that will give you a workout. |
Several miles away,
Devils Chair is a narrow, high rocky promontory, carved by erosion from
a unique white rock cliff, accessible only by a 3.5 mile trail up the
mountain. The steep drop-offs may have led to bedeviling past accidents
as there is now a system of steel railing and eroded steel steps erected
along the cliffs. The rails and steps detract from the natural setting
but they're sturdy and secure and the narrow, rockslide-prone cliff that makes up the Chair would be risky to venture out on without them. The last 1/8 cliffside mile to the Chair is enclosed by narrow rails and theres only one small mound
to climb where you can sit and relax without blocking the pathway, so it's not much of place for a picnic. From the parking lot to the Chair is about 1.5 - 2 hours. Arrive early if you want the best light for photographing the chair, or lunching in the sunshine, as the sun drops behind the ridge in early afternoon. The stars of the park are two Great Horned owls in pens outside the building beyond the Visitor Center. These two big raptors were injured or raised by humans and apparently can't survive in the wild. It's impressive to see these enigmatic birds up close, but sad they are permanently imprisoned in small cages right here in their native habitat, subject to the harassment of tourons. There's also a barn owl in a third cage. This is high country and even though January down below in LA is disarmingly hot and sunny, the northern San Gabriel mountains are cool and capped with snow. I wore a T but packed jackets, hat and gloves just in case. |
| Devils Chair is reached
by the Burkhart trail, which begins at the right side of the parking
lot when facing the Visitor Center. There are no signs for Devils Chair
until you are 1.5 miles up the mountain, but there is a sign for Burkhart
trail at the parking lot. It's also referred to as the "high trail" on a wooden map near
the Visitor Center. After about 1.5 miles, the Burkhart trail turns off and you continue on an unnamed trail which may or may not be called Devils Chair trail. The Devils Chair trail is in decent condition but has had extensive shoring up work done in numerous places to due to ongoing landslides. There were several trees fallen across the trail and places where it gets narrow with tricky footing, so trek poles were helpful, especially because of the ice and snow on the trail like this January hike. Start up the Burkhart trail, which is at the right side of the parking lot when looking towards the Visitor Center, right of the picnic area. After a short distance, the loop trail down to the Punchbowl turns off to the left. You'll see the stone benches. Continue past a water tank and after about 1 mi., the trail turns left on to a fire road. Stay left when the road splits - there are no signs. As you walk up the road, look left across the canyon and you can see the path you'll be climbing. After 1.5 mi., there is a green building and the road splits again at a turnaround. Continue straight/uphill for the Devils Chair trail. In a few minutes, you'll reach the footpath to Devils Chair on the left, clearly marked with signs. The Burkhart trail splits to the right and becomes a 28 mi. loop over the mountains. From this intersection, it's 2.8 miles up the mountain on the Devils Chair trail. |
Elevation gain on the Devils Chair hike is close to 1000 ft. over 3.5 miles. There are some steep sections that make this a moderately strenuous hike. The Devils PunchBowl Loop trail descends 300 ft. in to the canyon below the parking area and then back up, a distance of 1 mi. This trail begins (or ends) between the Visitor Center and the owl cage building (T/R past the large wooden map sign) and comes out on the Burkhart trail about .25 mi. above the parking lot. There is also a .25 mi. interpretive loop trail with signs identifying some of the local flora. This trail starts by going left/straight at the wooden map sign mentioned above. |
| Devils Punchbowl Natural Area is 60 miles from the northeast part of Los Angeles' San Fernando valley (I-5 and Hwy. 118) in rural northern Los Angeles county. Take I-5 north, go east on Hwy. 14 about 30 mi. up the mountain to Hwy. 138/Pearblossom Hwy. Go north on 138, which turns right at a stop light after 5 miles. About 5 miles past the town of Little Rock is Pearblossom. Look for the sign for the park and turn right at Longview Rd. It's 8 mi. from this intersection to the park. On Longview, follow the park sign staying left at a split. At a stop sign, T/L onto Ft. Tejon Rd. for a few hundred yards, then T/R back onto Longview again. The park is a couple of miles at the top of the hill. |
On the way out of the
park, and back on Longview,
Parking is free. Park hours are 8am to sunset. |
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 Devils Punch Bowl Park is at the north end of the San Gabriel mountains |
 You can see the giant rocks as you approach the park |
 Two great horned owls are kept near the Visitor Center |
 As you climb the trail, the view north across the Punch Bowl rocks to the high desert |
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 Expansive views north |
 You approach the Chair (white rock, center) from above & climb down to it |
 Atop the Chairs' peninsula, there are dramatic, craggy dropoffs on 3 sides. |
 The rails and replacement-aged steps detract from the natural setting, but climbing to the very end of the Chair would be scary dangerous without them. It's a long ways down! |
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 Devils Chair |
 Hikers atop the Chair. The sun drops behind the mountain in early afternoon, making for tricky lighting. |
 This angle shows more of the dramatic dropoff and scale of the cliff with people on it. |
 Checking out the Punch Bowl Canyon loop trail after hiking back down. |
 The scale of these sculptured giants is impressive |
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