Hike-in Required
No
ADA accessible
No
Guided tours
No
Please respect the outdoors by practicing Leave No Trace. Learn more about how to apply the principles of Leave No Trace on your next outdoor adventure here.

Located near the community of Lake Los Angeles at the eastern fringe of the Antelope Valley, Alpine Butte Wildlife Sanctuary is an unexpected corner of rich ecologic features in what many would consider the barren high desert.

There are no roads or facilities within the sanctuary. Instead, visitors must park and walk through the soft sand into the heart of the sanctuary. The further one gets from the roads, traffic noise, and litter, the deeper one gets into the Joshua trees and creosote scrub along small sand dunes. Animal tracks are easily visible in the silty sand: Mojave sidewinder rattlesnakes, zebra-tailed lizards, and Mojave desert tortoises all make their homes here. During the spring, wildflower blooms give the sanctuary some color. 

The colorful sunrises and sunsets of the Antelope Valley make this an area of note to photographers, and there are several movie sets nearby that also take advantage of the colorful desert light.

There are no trails or any facilities here, making it less of an area to hike and more of an area to walk. It is about a half mile from the Avenue O along the sanctuary's northern end to the wash and the wind-blown dunes near the heart of the sanctuary.

Alpine Butte Wildlife Sanctuary is free and open to the public between sunrise and sunset daily.

Logistics + Planning

Preferable season(s)

Winter
Spring
Summer
Fall

Congestion

Low

Parking Pass

Not Required

Pros

No crowds. Photogenic environment.

Cons

Traffic noise. Lots of litter blown from nearby roads.

Pets allowed

Allowed with Restrictions

Features

Wildflowers

Location

Nearby Lodging + Camping

Angeles National Forest, San Gabriel Mountains
Angeles National Forest, San Gabriel Mountains
Angeles National Forest, San Gabriel Mountains

Comments

07/07/2018
Be careful parking along Ave O as the side of the road can be deep sand.
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