W always stop here when we visit Mount Laguna, It has a nice parking lot which is never full. Lots…read moreof trails for hikers, bikers and horses. If you walk up through the observatory there is an incredible viewpoint where you can see for miles.

We came up here recently overnight and I hadn't been in years. When I used to come out this way for…read morework I enjoyed coming up to Mount Laguna. I have to say it's still incredibly beautiful in the evening, watching the sunset. It's definitely one of the best views around and getting a chance to see the stars so brilliantly is a must as the pollution is more limited up there, making for clearer skies. The elevation is obviously higher, so dress in layers. I didn't drive up here this time, which was really nice, I had the chance to catch up on my sleep. It's not that bad of a drive though. We stayed nearby overnight, but it's worth the drive either way imo. There aren't that many places like this, especially in underdeveloped areas. The Pine House Cafe & Tavern is nearby on the Sunrise Highway if you get hungry afterwards. Be forewarned there's a bit of a walk to the top of the road from the visitor parking lot to the visitor's center. Adjacent to the visitor's center are the two apartments for visiting astronomers, a lecture hall, a kitchen for public gatherings, and the museum/gift shop. The Mount Laguna Observatory is owned and operated by SDSU under permit from the Cleveland National Forest. It's not unusual to see SDSU or local community college students here working on research projects or school activities. They do have a dedicated visitor's telescope and deck for public viewing. There are other telescope domes that are not available to the general public, but if you're willing to get a graduate degree in astronomy from SDSU I'm guessing you can get in there..

Great telescope accessories!…read more Nice work on what you have created. It is a pain in the butt to worry about where your eyepieces and accessories are.

I bought a Shannon Telescopics EP tray about two years ago. At first I found it useful for my…read moreeyepieces and the hand controller, plus any other accessories I needed while visually observing including filters and flashlights. But since I moved on to imaging, I have not used it much recently. It is a great item if you are into visually observing as it provides numerous holes for you 1.25" and 2" eyepieces. Plus it has to cutouts for the hand controller of your goto Nexstar telescope. As I said, since i moved on to imaging, I have not had the inclination of using the EP tray, but I would recommend it to anyone who is using their telescopes for visual observing. It is a great accessory to have.

Loved the hike and enjoyed the view as well as going all the way up. Quiet on a weekday and not…read moremany traffic with people. You would enjoy it if you love nature and birds.

Family-Friendly Hike…read more There are a few caveats before you start trekking your young kids up and down this trail. I'll start by saying that you should think carefully if your children are under 5 years old if you intend to go all the way up/down. The going "up" can result in a lot of whining and complaining for the younger ones. I walked with several kids and they all made it both ways (ages 5- 9), though they were pretty tuckered out at the end. Remember it's about 4.5 miles down and up. The hike itself is worthwhile as you walk through the surrounding area's oaks and conifer trees. The trail is relatively rock free barring a few boulders that have fallen on the path. If you're planning on taking this hike as part of your observatory experience then just park at the top, have some lunch, visit the actual observatory, then hike down and back up. You can also start your hike "bottom up" from the Observatory campgrounds. Though you have to pay 5 bucks for parking down there. - Remember what time the observation parking lot closes when you take your hike. It usually closes at 3 or 4PM. - There is a bathroom ( yuck) at the campsite at the bottom of the trail.

I was staying in Twentynine Palms near Joshua Tree last weekend and decided to stop by the…read moreobservatory on a whim around 11 PM with a couple of my friends. Little did we know that this would be one of the highlights of our trip. Not only were the stars beautiful but we met a very nice and passionate scientist who decided to chat with us and teach us all about the constellations. It was such a treat. He and his wife were finishing up and packing away their telescopes and he told us that they were going to lock the gate of the parking lot that our cars were parked in, but let us know that we could move our car right outside of the gate and stay all night if we wanted to because it was open 24 hours. He also warned us about the coyotes and cougars. Coyotes stay away with noise and cougars are attracted to noise, so pick your battle lol. We definitely can't wait to come back! And it's free!

So many different little areas to put your telescope on and check out the stars. This area is just…read morefor getting together with other enthusiasts and checking out the night sky. Love that this was built just for that purpose.

So cool! We are such space nerds - how awesome is it that Griffith Observatory is so close??? One…read moreof these days, when my kids can stay up past 7pm, I want to take them back to actually observe the stars. There are many shows and demonstrations throughout the day. Some paid, some not. While my kids aren't quite at the level of making them worth it, they did enjoy the tesla coil demonstration. Other than that, the hits included seeing the pendulum and holding a meteorite! Plus, seeing the huge telescopes. I like how they have an interactive stamp book where we could collect stamps at the different areas of the observatory. It also provided just enough structure to help guide us through the exhibits. Plus, it's full of fun tidbits of information! One of our favorite areas was the planets, where we got to see how much we weighed on each of the other planets while we learned about them and the constellations. There's also a cafe and gift shop inside. I'll say that parking is pretty expensive if you want to park right next to the entrance. There's street parking further down for cheaper, and even cheaper parking if you go further away. Looks like there was also a shuttle bringing people to/from the observatory.

A landmark absolutely worth checking out. It's been featured in so many films, and it's not just a…read morepretty backdrop, it's an actual functioning observatory. Great mix of history, science, and iconic LA views, including views of the Hollywood Sign. One thing to plan for: parking. You can either pay for parking or park at the base and hike up to the observatory. Just know that the parking cost increases the closer you get to the top, so weigh that against your time and energy.

They have a "folded lens " telescope. Basically, a huge telescope that takes up way less space…read more It's a little difficult to find, the gps failed us on that one. But when we called, they knew exactly how to guide us. We had to find the entrance behind a high school football field if I recall. Great tour, the kids had a blast. Wonderful gift shop as well. They treated us wonderfully.

Great little observatory run by passionate and educated locals! Events are paused for COVID but you…read morecan take a free guided tour of the telescope on Saturdays and visit the gift shop.

Came here on 11/25/2023 to find out that they are closed...it seems like they are currently kept…read moreclosed and they are not doing public tours for now according to their website

"Daddy. It looks like a ghost. Or Eva from the movie Wall-E."…read more I love those goofy kids!!