San Gabriel Tapestries

At a recent art fair someone said they were moving from the area, and asked if I had any images of our local mountains, the San Gabriel Mountains. I said I'd taken many over the years, but never published any. I told them I'd look through my inventory and post a good one. Here it is, taken in January, 2008, after a storm had passed through. This was taken from the rim of the Santa Fe Dam, around sunset.

The San Gabriel Valley is one of the principal valleys of Metro Los Angeles. It's a fascinating region and I made a new map of it for a post about 626 Day (26 June), also known as San Gabriel Valley Day. https://ericbrightwell.com/2022/06/17/happy-626-or-san-gabriel-valley-day/

The San Gabriel East Fork River Trail is a popular hiking and fishing spot within the Angeles National Forest. Show your love for this local favorite with a shirt or sticker!

Arcadia is a suburb of the San Gabriel Valley which now has a population that is roughly two-thirds Asian-American (mostly Chinese and Taiwanese). It is thus often jokingly referred to as "Arcasia." I explored it in my series, "California Fool's Gold' in 2011. https://ericbrightwell.com/2011/01/04/california-fools-gold-exploring-arcadia-the-san-gabriel-valleys-community-of-homes/

Broadway, San Gabriel, California by Mistah Wilson

San Gabriel Boulevard & Broadway, San Gabriel, California by Mistah Wilson

San Gabriel is a suburban city in the San Gabriel Valley. The majority of its populace are foreign-born -- mostly in Vietnam and China -- lead to it's affectionately being nicknamed "Chan Gabriel." Its official name is derived from Mission San Gabriel Arcángel, a Spanish mission built in 1776. I explored it for my series, "California Fool's Gold," in 2011. https://ericbrightwell.com/2011/11/10/california-fools-gold-exploring-san-gabriel-a-city-with-a-mission/

Canyon Inn San Gabriel Retro Defunct Motel California

Groundbreaking for Metro's Foothill Extension Phase 2A took place in 2010. I walked its length, exploring along the way, for my series, "Nobody Drives in LA" in 2013. The line opened in 2015. https://ericbrightwell.com/2013/02/27/nobody-drives-in-la-exploring-the-gold-lines-foothill-extension-phase-2a/

San Gabriel Boulevard, San Gabriel, California by Mistah Wilson

Scrutinizing what it would be like in the San Gabriel Mountains from a car driving on the freeway in Pasadena.

The San Gabriel National Monument provides green space to millions of residents of Los Angeles. The forest provides a respite from the crowded life below and many Angelinos enjoy getting away from the bustle of the city by taking day trips and camping trips up to the mountians. Show your love for the Angeles National Forest and the San Gabriel National Monument with a sticker or a shirt!

It does not matter where St Gabriel is portrait he always looks gentle and kind. He is always call "The messenger" but the word angel already holds that meaning, all angels are messengers. I love how he is always easy to recognize because he always carries a branch of lilies in his hand.

San Marino is a city in the San Gabriel Valley. Due to its large Taiwanese American population, it's sometimes affectionately referred to as "Chan Marino." It's also known for being home to the famed Huntington Library and Botanical Gardens. I explored it for my series, "California Fool's Gold," in 2008. https://ericbrightwell.com/2008/04/29/852/

Hacienda Heights is an unincorporated suburban community in the San Gabriel Valley. It is home to a large Taiwanese population and is home to the biggest Buddhist temple in the Western Hemisphere. I explored it for my series, "California Fool's Gold," in 2011. https://ericbrightwell.com/2011/06/19/california-fools-gold-exploring-hacienda-heights/

The Metro Silver Line is a bus with Bus Rapid Transit characteristics. The El Monte Busway portion opened in 1973 and in 2012 I decided to explore the route for my series, "Nobody Drives in LA." https://ericbrightwell.com/2012/11/20/nobody-drives-in-la-silver-line-stroll-from-union-station-to-el-monte/

Industry -- often referred to as the "City of Industry" -- is a vaguely seahorse-shaped tax shelter pretending to be a city. This "city" in name only, counts a mere 204 residents. It is a strange place -- home to warehouses, Taiwanese restaurants, and a McDonald's used only for filming television commercials and the film, "Mac & Me." I explored and drew this map for my series, "California Fool's Gold," in 2010. https://ericbrightwell.com/2010/01/25/california-fools-gold-exploring-the-city-of-industry-2/

Covine is a suburban city in Los Angeles County's San Gabriel Valley. I drew this map around 2010 -- but have still yet to explore the community for my series, "California Fool's Gold." Once I do, I'll probably make additions to this version.

I drew this map of Asian American-dominated suburbs of the San Gabriel Valley in the style of 18th Century Chinese Cartographer, Mo Yi Tong. As communities have grown more Asian, demographically, I've added them to the original map. https://ericbrightwell.com/2013/05/14/east-of-the-eastside-the-far-eastside-at-the-amoeblog/

South Pasadena is a small suburban city located, naturally, to the south of Pasadena. It, however improbably, retains and exudes a rather small-town feel which leads to its often portraying small towns in the Midwest on television and in film. I explored it for my series, "California Fool's Gold,' in 2011. https://ericbrightwell.com/2011/01/08/california-fools-gold-exploring-south-pasadena-where-the-past-is-the-present/

Rowland Heights is a suburb in the east San Gabriel Valley. Home to a large Taiwanese population, it's sometimes referred to as "Little Taipei" -- a nickname formerly applied to the suburb of Monterey Park, although that city is now home to more Hong Kongers and mainland Chinese. I explored for my series, "California Fool's Gold," in 2010. https://ericbrightwell.com/2010/05/28/california-fools-gold-exploring-rowland-heights-los-angeless-little-taipei/

East Pasadena is a small, unincorporated community to the east of Pasadena -- which is slowly nibbling away at its edges. To be honest, it's not known for a whole lot and more folks use "East Pasadena" to refer to the eastern neighborhoods of Pasadena than they do this tiny community, which I explored for "California Fool's Gold" in 2013. https://ericbrightwell.com/2013/07/25/to-see-my-home-in-east-pasadena/

Angeles Forest, in the forest sense, is a wilderness area that extends from Los Angeles into neighboring counties. It's also, in the sense here, a sparsely-populated region of Los Angeles County. I wrote a primer about it for my series, "California Fool's Gold," and drew this map in 2011. https://ericbrightwell.com/2011/03/29/california-fools-gold-an-angeles-forest-primer/

Amazing!

The National Parks are great but it's our local parks that give us joy day to day! Hahamongna Watershed Park is a gem of park along the Arroyo Seco. It is one of the last alluvial plains in LA and has five distinct habitats that you can walk through in under 3 miles! Show that you support local parks with a t-shirt, sticker, pin, and more! Public parks are what make city thrive and are necessary for public health. Hahamongna Watershed Park provides a place to hike, walk, bird watch, ride horses, play disc golf, recreate on a sports field, and so much more! Show your love!

The Angeles National Forest provides green space to millions of residents of Los Angeles. The forest provides a respite from the crowded life below and many Angelinos enjoy getting away from the bustle of the city by taking day trips and camping trips up to the mountians. Show your love for the Angeles National Forest with a sticker or a shirt!

Monterey Park is a suburban city in the San Gabriel Valley. It is notable for it's Chinese American majority, although it has undergone changes over the years, from a predominantly Taiwanese Chinese population to a mainland Chinese and Hong Konger population. I explored it for my series, "California Fool's Gold," in 2010. https://ericbrightwell.com/2010/09/23/california-fools-gold-exploring-monterey-park-%e8%92%99%e7%89%b9%e5%88%a9%e5%85%ac%e5%9b%ad/

The Bell Tower (Campanile) of Sty Mark's Square, Venice showing the sun glinting off the gold statue of Archangel Gabriel and the winged lion, the symbol of Venice.

El Monte is a suburban city located in the middle of the San Gabriel Valley. It's something of a transit hub, with that valley's only private airport and the largest bus station in the west. I explored it for my series, "California Fool's Gold," in 2013. https://ericbrightwell.com/2013/01/23/california-fools-gold-exploring-el-monte-the-end-of-the-santa-fe-trail-or-at-least-some-trails/

Diamond Bar is a community in the San Gabriel Valley. I drew this map of it around 2010.

The theme song to the West Covina-set television series Crazy Ex-Girlfriend described West Covina is "the pride of the Inland Empire." It coule be said that that show put West Covina "on the map." Unfortunately, that map is not at all accurate. West Covina is in an altogether different county, Los Angeles, to be precise -- not the Inland Empire (i.e. Riverside and San Bernardino counties). I put it on the map in the correct place -- in the San Gabriel Valley.

Walnut is a small suburb in the eastern part of the San Gabriel Valley. It is named, I expect, after the Black Walnut, a tree indigenous to Los Angeles. I explored it for my series, "California Fool's Gold," in 2009.

Rosemead is a suburb of the San Gabriel Valley. It has a large Chinese, Vietnamese, and ethnically Chinese Vietnamese (Hoa) populations. It's notable for its numerous bánh mì joints. I explored it for my series, "California Fool's Gold," in 2008. https://ericbrightwell.com/2008/03/01/848/

Altadena is an unincorporated community located in the foothills and flats beneath the San Gabriel Mountains in the San Gabriel Valley. I explored and mapped it in 2012 for my series, "California Fool's Gold." https://ericbrightwell.com/2012/07/17/california-fools-gold-exploring-altadena-the-community-of-the-deodars-2/

The Angeles National Forest provides green space to millions of residents of Los Angeles. The forest provides a respite from the crowded life below and many Angelinos enjoy getting away from the bustle of the city by taking day trips and camping trips up to the mountians. Show your love for the Angeles National Forest with a sticker or a shirt!

Alhambra is a suburb of Los Angeles County's San Gabriel Valley. It was one of the first neighborhoods that I explored for my series, "California Fool's Gold," back in 2007. In fact, I didn't even have a name for the series yet -- and I drew the map (rather quickly) a couple of years later. https://ericbrightwell.com/2007/11/05/alhambra-the-gateway-to-the-san-gabriel-valley/