Hidden Gems in Anaheim
6 spots in Anaheim, CA that locals know about and most visitors walk straight past.
2 of these you cannot simply turn up to — docent-led hikes, scheduled access days, or a few open hours a month.
Every location below was checked against Google Maps; anything that could not be verified was left out rather than guessed. Descriptions come from the sources credited under each entry.
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Oak Canyon Nature Center
Trail · Easy
A 58-acre Anaheim Hills canyon with "four miles of hiking trails" and the John J. Collier Interpretive Center, "a small museum with live animals and regional natural history exhibits." Grounds and trails open sunrise to sunset daily while the interpretive center opens Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday 10am to 4pm; no entry fee, and no dogs or horses.
- Hours: Grounds and trails open sunrise to sunset daily. The interpretive centre opens Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday, 10am to 4pm.
- Dogs: No dogs, horses or other pets, service animals excepted.
Described from anaheim.net
Deer Canyon Park Preserve
Trail · Moderate
The city describes a "103 acre wilderness area in the Anaheim Hills [that] provides numerous trails for both hiking and horse riding." Listed amenities are picnic tables and restrooms; the city page does not post hours or trail mileage.
- Access: The trailhead is difficult to locate. It sits behind a residential street.
- Parking: Residential street parking only.
Described from anaheim.net
Brookhurst Community Park Gaudi Playground
Oddity · Easy
A concrete playground of "wavering stone walkways and other organic forms" - stalagmites, bridges, arches and craters - that Atlas Obscura calls "less like the work of a municipal planning community and more like the dreams of Dr. Seuss in cement." Accounts of its origin differ: Atlas Obscura names no designer or date, while the blog Suburban Pop dates it to 1974 and ties it to the Kodak Pavilion roof at the 1964 World's Fair.
Described from atlasobscura.com, suburbanpop.com
Stephen Hillenburg Memorial
Landmark · Easy
A yellow bench and bronze plaque at Savanna High School honour SpongeBob SquarePants creator and 1979 Savanna graduate Stephen Hillenburg, who died of ALS in 2018 at 57. It was dedicated in November 2021 in a ceremony attended by his widow and son and by voice actors including Tom Kenny and Clancy Brown.
- Access: It sits inside an active high school campus. Arrange a visit with the school rather than turning up.
Described from atlasobscura.com, nickalive.net
Jack Norworth Memorial Marker
Oddity · Easy
At Melrose Abbey Cemetery, "a large piece of black granite now stands about 100 feet from his headstone, with a photo of the songwriter, and the lyrics to his beloved song" - Jack Norworth's 1908 "Take Me Out to the Ball Game," which he wrote without ever having attended a baseball game. Fans raised the marker in 2010.
Described from atlasobscura.com
Ramon Peralta Adobe
Landmark · Easy
Built around 1871 by Ramon Peralta on land once part of Rancho Santiago de Santa Ana; OC Parks notes it was not the canyon's oldest adobe but "it is the only one still standing in the canyon today."
- Hours: Open the first Saturday of each month, 12pm to 1pm, except May. One hour a month - check before you go or you will find it locked.
Described from parks.oc.gov, socallandmarks.com
These places change and we do not get to visit them all. If something here is closed, moved, or just wrong, tell us and we will fix it.
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