Temescal Gateway Park is one of the ways to access Topanga and its myriad hiking trails and fire roads. The entrance to Temescal is right off of Sunset, which is probably one of the reasons why the place was so damned crowded.
The entrance to Temescal Gateway Park. Be warned, there is a parking fee.
The park has several trail heads. The ridge/canyon loop is very popular. If you start on the ridge trail all of the elevation is at the beginning of the hike. We took the canyon trail first, past the waterfall and then back on the ridge.
Wildflowers were in abundance this weekend. Just a week ago in the Pacific Palisades we saw almost none.
Temescal park has several outbuildings, including a general store, a conference center, and some seemingly abandoned buildings along the canyon trail.
Lots of lovely conglomerate rocks to gaze at along the way.
The waterfall is about a mile up the canyon trail. Right after the waterfall the hike gets HARD. Switchback after switchback, up up up! Thought I was gonna die, but I made it.
This is the payoff. Check out that view.
And this one. Amazing.
Thank god for trail markers.
A bevy of yellow beauty. 
This was one of the easier parts of the downhill hike. My toes were totally shoved into the toes of my boots the last half hour. 
And purple flowers too!
This one was my favorite flower. She was all by herself on the side of the trail. Big and bright!
Overall great hike if you can stand to be hiking with plenty of other people. Short but plenty of different things to see and if you choose not to do the loop you can keep heading out the canyon trail to a place called "Skull Rock," which I most certainly plan on checking out next time.
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