Thanks to support from Bronco Wild Fund and Southern California Edison, the NFF worked with Angeles National Forest to complete improvements and renovations at Messenger Flats Campground.

Located in Los Angeles County and near the Pacific Crest Trail, this campground is a popular rest area for northbound thru-hikers in the spring and is near millions of residents in the communities of Palmdale and the San Fernando Valley.

With its scenic and high-elevation setting, Messenger Flats Campground offers a sense of solitude and provides numerous recreation opportunities that include hiking, camping, bird watching, and auto-touring.

Under the guidance of Forest Service staff, improvements to Messenger Flats Campground included:

• Removing old, damaged infrastructure;
• Installing new picnic tables;
• Installing new bearproof food lockers in a central location; and
• Fabricating a new gate entrance for visitors from the parking lot.

Due to previous wildfires, Messenger Flats Campground sustained damage to its infrastructure that posed various safety concerns for visitors. The recent infrastructure improvements have added overall value for locals and tourists alike.

The new picnic tables allow for comfortable seating while the bearproof food lockers provide safe, responsible recreation. The new gate entrance will allow wheelchair users access to the campground while restricting off-highway vehicles from entering, further promoting safe and responsible recreation in the Forest.

Cover photo by Maria Luna.

--------

We hope you agree that getting outdoors with family, friends, or solo is a huge benefit of healthy and welcoming National Forests. Our work on campgrounds, trails, docks, overlooks, signs, and more ensures millions can enjoy the great outdoors each year. But it requires generosity from people like you to keep our work going. Your unrestricted gift allows us to direct funds to the greatest need. Please consider giving today. Thank you!