Down the canyon below Brentwood lies the ruins of once was grand plans for a self-sustaining farm, Murphy Ranch. Now all that’s left are graffitied stairs, dilapidated buildings and a water tower. It makes for a pretty interesting 3-4 mile hike.

If you’re looking for some good books for hiking or nature in Los Angeles, try Wild LA: Explore the Amazing Nature in and Around Los Angeles (Amazon) or Best Hikes Los Angeles: The Greatest Trails in the LA Mountains, Beaches, and Canyons (Amazon).

Hiking Info

You’ll drive through a neighborhood in Brentwood filled with lush yards and massive homes. Start this walk by parking near the corner of Capri and Casale Road. Walk north on Casale until you see the fire road with a yellow gate as the entrance. Wander past the sign and onto a wide concrete trail. This is the start of the hike.

Trailhead location: Corner of Capri and Casale Road
Loop Trail Hike: 3-4 miles
Rated: Moderate
There is free street parking but check the signs, some areas are permits only
No bathrooms on this trail

The History

Over the years there have been a lot of stories that swirl around what Murphy Ranch was intended for. Some say it was meant to be a self sustaining utopia, and some say it was being built by Nazi sympathizers for the coming of the Third Reich. It’s all speculation, but here is some of the paraphrased myth behind the ruins.

According to the only first hand account, during WWII a wealthy couple named Norman and Winona purchased the 50-acre property after a persuasive man named Herr Schmidt convinced them that Germany would defeat the U.S. soon during WWII and they needed to build a self sustained farm based on National Socialist ideals.

The couple spent approx. 4 million to build a power station, water tower, a cold locker for food storage and more to make the self-sustaining dream a reality.

The architecture drawings for the ranch are now located in the Lloyd Wright collection at UCLA’s Young Research Library. There are several drawing of the plan, but most have common features like a four-story mansion with several social rooms and an indoor pool. (Source: Curbed LA)

Hiking Murphy Ranch

Once you get to the fire road, follow the wide concrete trail that overlooks the canyon below. The trail usually pretty busy and has lots of graffiti to observe along the way.

After about 30-35 minutes of total walking time you should come to a wide dirt trail on your left side, turn left onto this trail that heads downward into the canyon through lots of trees and foliage.

Tip: Bring water and snacks, there aren’t any restrooms or restaurants in the area.

The dirt trail leads down a winding path with a lot of plant life.

At the bottom, there are some remains of one of the old structures. Since this photo was taken in 2020 much of it has been torn down. Now it’s just a pile of rubble surrounded by a chain-linked fence.

Take the path that heads to the left along the river bed. It’s an overgrown path, but as long as you’re along the water you’re heading in the right direction. Along the way you’ll some more graffitied structures like the ones below.

The finale of this hike is the most well preserved structure shown in the image below. The artwork is in a constant state of change so at any given time you go on this hike it will most likely look quite different than before. It’s now an ever-evolving piece of artwork in the middle of a lush canyon.

There is another maze-like concrete building just past this that you can explore.

Once you’ve covered this area, take this winding staircase up, up, up.

At the top you’ll hit another fire road, turn right on this path until you get to another staircase on your left. There are more stairs up to this old water graffitied water tower with great views of the ocean and the canyon below.

From the water tower there is one more staircase to the top, this one is much shorter than the two previous. Once at the top, turn right back onto the fire road you started on.

Take the fire road back to the start, and stop to take in the views of the vast Pacific Ocean along the way.

There are some interesting concrete benches towards the beginning of the hike where you can have a seat and look out.

Do you have any other tips or interesting facts about Murphy Ranch? Write them in the comments below.

Athletic apparel featured is by Vuori Clothing.

Like this Post? Pin it.