SGT Steve Owen Bench Trail

Over Thanksgiving weekend I wanted to get some fresh air and burn off a few holiday indulgences, so I found this great trail to hike with an excellent view of the Quartz Hill/Palmdale area.This is also a trail that memorializes a local hero (Sgt Steve Owen of the LA County Sheriff's Dept) that was gunned down and then executed by a parolee with a stolen gun during an attempted robbery. https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-sergeant-steve-owen-killed-20161006-snap-story.html The trail begins along the Palmdale aqueduct (a section really popular with runners and dog walkers) and then veers off to the right at about the 0.5 mile mark to begin the ascent to the first memorial bench on top of a lookout point. The out and back hike in total is short at 3.5 miles, with all of the elevation gain in little over a mile, so consider this more of a mini peak hike to get some morning exercise and take in a great view of the AV. There's ample free parking across the street from the trailhead and a porta potty. If you don't want to hike the hill, there's also the paved side of the Palmdale Aqueduct trail that's also accessible from this trailhead.

Nice little hike. Lots of trails. Good place for dogs. Watch out for snakes during season

Great views of the Antelope Valley and beyond. Lots of Joshua's, nice scenery. The DM 1 trail is great and will take you to the Dave and Mike chairs where you can relax and take in the panoramic views. Watch the sun rise in the early morning. Continue up to the main trail to the Sgt. Steve Owen's top bench. His sign is back up after someone tried to destroy it. Never could understand why someone would do something like that. Heard Dave and Mike found the sign, restored it and placed it back where it belongs on top bench, one of Steve's favorite spots, Thank you. Mountain bike trails everywhere , very nice place .