Echo Mountain is a mountain promontory of the San Gabriel Mountains, in the

Angeles National Forest The Angeles National Forest (ANF) of the U.S. Forest Service is located in the San Gabriel Mountains and Sierra Pelona Mountains, primarily within Los Angeles County in southern California. The ANF manages a majority of the San Gabriel Mounta ...

above

Altadena Altadena () ("Alta", Spanish for "Upper", and "dena" from Pasadena) is an unincorporated area and census-designated place in the Verdugo Mountains region of Los Angeles County, California, approximately 14 miles (23 km) from the downtown ...

, in Los Angeles County, California.

Geography

Echo Mountain was shaped from an

alluvial fan An alluvial fan is an accumulation of sediments that fans outwards from a concentrated source of sediments, such as a narrow canyon emerging from an escarpment. They are characteristic of mountainous terrain in arid to semiarid climates, but a ...

between Rubio and Las Flores canyons. It is geographically defined by Castle Canyon to its leeward side, Rubio Canyon at its foot, and Las Flores Canyon on its windward side. Echo has a mean elevation of . It is most visible as a short mountain extension whose ridge protrudes below the peak of Inspiration Point. Echo Mountain's name is derived from the number of repetitions one's voice could emit into Castle Canyon. Boy Scout projects were made to find the "sweet spot" where the largest number of repetitions could be heard. During the days of the

Mount Lowe Railway The Mount Lowe Railway was the third in a series of scenic mountain railroads in the United States created as a tourist attraction on Echo Mountain and Mount Lowe, north of Los Angeles, California. The railway, originally incorporated by Thadd ...

"echophones" were set up to assist in voice projections near the best sweet spots.

History

On 6 January 1993, Echo Mountain, also referred to as Mount Echo, was delineated as part of the Mount Lowe Railway monument area listed by the U.S. Forest Service on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

. On top of the mountain are the ruins of "White City", a resort along the scenic

, which could easily be seen from the valley below. From its point and down an incline to its foot in Rubio Canyon was the Great Incline

funicular A funicular (, , ) is a type of cable railway system that connects points along a railway track laid on a steep slope. The system is characterized by two counterbalanced carriages (also called cars or trains) permanently attached to opposite e ...

of the Mount Lowe Railway, whose white cars could be seen ascending and descending Echo.

Trail access

Echo Mountain can be reached by the Sam Merrill Trail located at the top of Lake Avenue, or via the fire road which extends from Millard Canyon to a point along the old right of way, which will lead to the backside of the promontory.

References

External links

* * * {{cite web , url=http://www.mtlowe.co , title=Mount Lowe Volunteers , accessdate=2012-02-22 San Gabriel Mountains Mountains of Los Angeles County, California Altadena, California Angeles National Forest Mountains of Southern California