East Monk's Trail

Dogs Leashed

Features Birding · Views · Wildflowers · Wildlife

Paralleling Monk's Trail on the opposite side of Palisades Canyon's main arroyo, East Monk's allows trail users to complete a loop back to either southwest Franklin trailhead.

The southern end of East Monk's can be found off of the Monk's Trail about one hundred feet west of Palisades Sidetrack. Look for a rocky singletrack branching to the north as Monk's crosses the arroyo. The path heads in a northerly direction, hugging the contour of the ridges rising up to the Franklin Mountains.

East Monk's makes a similar climb to its cousin to the west, but the path tends to be a little more rugged, similar to Palisades Canyon Loop. Watch for rocky segments littered with scree that has eroded off the mountain during thunderstorms. The ascent stays at a fairly steady grade throughout the route, only leveling off when it turns west for the final segment. East Monk's ends back on Monk's Trail, just south of the spaghetti bowl intersection with Vertigo Ridge and Thousand Steps Trail.

This area has typical desert vegetation. Yuccas, agaves and cacti.