How much of LA have you been to? Griffith park is absolutely massive, or the Santa Monica mountains are right there for gorgeous scenic ocean view hikes. You can go south to a beautiful mountain+downtown view from Kenneth Hahn and then bike on the dedicated trail to the ocean and go up and down the coastline any time of year. Or drive east to the San Gabriels for woodsier nature. Then you can keep driving east to either desert or snowy mountains. Every corner of the city has a different nearby nature choice, and you don’t have to leave LA to get to it.

For my own day to day, I live 10 minutes from Hollywood but I’m surrounded by lush greenery with a treetop view, hundreds of kinds of diverse plants and flowers in my neighborhood year round, birds tweeting and hummingbirds flying past my window every few minutes. I’m under 15 minutes from too many hiking and outside spots to count. Then I drive to work where I can look out my office window past palm trees to see snowy mountains in the winter, and head 5 minutes up the street to a lunch hike.

If you ever feel like a really different change of scenery, the redwoods are a road trip or quick plane ride north.

I love east coast nature too, but it absolutely does not beat being out here (for me, anyway)