California

Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail

in California · centroid 12 mi from Los Angeles

Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail is hiking trail in California. This page summarises what we have from public sources (OpenStreetMap and trail-association data); always verify current conditions and trail status with the maintaining organisation before heading out.

Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail
Photo via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0).
States
California
Network
Regional (rwn)
Centroid nearest city
Los Angeles, CA · 12 mi · ~20 min drive
Centroid coords
33.9799°, -118.0451°
OSM relation
11909886
From Wikipedia: The Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail is a 1,210-mile (1,950 km) trail extending from Nogales on the U.S.-Mexico border in Arizona, through the California desert and coastal areas in Southern California and the Central Coast region to San Francisco. The trail commemorates the 1775–1776 land route that Spanish commander Juan Bautista de Anza took from the Sonora y Sinaloa Province of New Spain in Colonial Mexico through to Las Californias Province. The goal of the trip was to establish a mission and presidio on San Francisco Bay. The trail was an attempt to ease the course of Spanish colonization of California by establishing a major land route north for many to follow. It was used for about five years before being closed by the Quechan (Yuma) Indians in 1781 and kept closed for the next 40 years. It is a National Historic Trail administered by the National Park Service and was also designated a National Millennium Trail. Excerpt from the Wikipedia article on Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Plan your hike

Practical notes

Maps + permits: long-distance trails like this often require permits for through-hiking, backcountry camping, or specific sections (especially in National Parks). Check with the maintaining organisation listed above and the relevant land manager before booking travel.

Water + supplies: water sources vary seasonally on most U.S. trails. Carry a filter and consult current trail-condition reports — through-hiker journals (PCT-L, AT Reddit, etc.) and the maintaining organisation publish regular updates.

When to go: hiking seasons vary widely with elevation, latitude, and snowpack. Through-hikers traditionally start the AT in March-April (Springer northbound) and the PCT in late April (Campo northbound). High-elevation western trails (CDT, JMT, Wonderland) generally aren't passable until July.

If you've hiked Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail and have current notes (water sources, trail closures, permit changes), tell us at /contact — we update pages as we learn.

Stay nearby

Affiliate · disclosed
Driving in? The nearest documented metro is Los Angeles, CA — 12 miles away (~20 min drive). See accommodation in Los Angeles on Booking.com → RoamFound earns a small commission if you book through this link, at no extra cost to you. How we handle affiliate links.

Other trails within 50 miles

9 nearby

California · 35 mi

San Gabriel River Trail

3 miles from this trail's centroid

California · 30 mi

Schabarum-Skyline Trail

7 miles from this trail's centroid

California

California Mission Trail - stage 03 San Juan Capistrano to Mission San Gabriel Arcangel

15 miles from this trail's centroid

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Mount Wilson Toll Road

16 miles from this trail's centroid

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Gabrielino Trail

18 miles from this trail's centroid

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California Mission Trail - stage 04 Mission San Gabriel Arcangel to Mission San Fernando, Rey de Espana

20 miles from this trail's centroid

Sources

Public data + curation

Trail data on this page is compiled from OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), the maintaining organisation's public-facing materials, and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA where excerpts are quoted). Distance, terminus, and descriptive text for nationally-designated trails are hand-curated from federal land-manager websites and trail-association sources. We do not modify the underlying data; this page presents what is already publicly recorded. To suggest corrections, see our methodology page.