Building a Trail

A work in progress. That is what the Santa Monica Mountains’ Backbone Trail has been for nearly 20 years.

Early plans for the trail included having it extend from Griffith Park west to Point Mugu. But because of development and high land prices along the proposed path, the next best alternative was to begin the trail well west of Griffith Park, at Will Rogers State Historic Park.

For 10 years, money was regularly appropriated by Congress to purchase private land for the trail. But funding has since dwindled. Through key acquisitions and creative financing by the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, about 64 of the 70 miles of scenic trail are complete.

Now the conservancy is working with the nonprofit Mountains Conservancy Foundation to raise private funds to help pay 20 landowners for the remaining acreage needed to complete the trail. The foundation even has a fund-raising campaign for individuals who want to purchase pieces of the trail--for example, $100 for one foot of trail.

Backbone Trail supporters also hope for the passage of Proposition A2, formerly known as the Los Angeles County Park, Beach and Recreation Act of 1996, which would provide $270 million to acquire parkland in the county. The conservancy would be entitled to $23 million of that amount.

Regardless of the convoluted land deals and its six-mile gap, the Backbone Trail provides an unbroken route through unique mountain habitat for hikers, cyclists and riders.

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Backbone by the Numbers

* Started: 1978

* Eventual length: 70 miles

* Remaining acreage to be purchased: 460 acres from 20 private landowners

* Cost of remaining acreage: About $4 million

* Agencies that have acquired land along trail: National Park Service, California Department of Parks and Recreation, Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy

Rocks on the Trail

Some purchases of parkland for the Backbone Trail have gone smoothly. Others have run into trouble:

* 1978: Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area is formed. First acquisition for proposed Backbone Trail is made: Pepperdine University sells 145-acre site in Topanga.

* 1979: State Department of Parks and Recreation concludes that it may be necessary to condemn private property to complete the portion of the trail between Topanga State Park and Malibu Creek State Park.

* 1981: The land linking Topanga State Park and Malibu Creek State Park is purchased for $6 million.

* 1992: Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority agrees to purchase four miles of property along the trail, expecting the National Park Service to eventually reimburse the authority for the acquisitions.

* February 1996: Because of federal budget cuts, the conservation authority is unable to get funds from the National Park Service to close escrow on the land.

* June 1996: The National Park Service and the Trust for Public Land, a national land conservation group, agree to buy the overdue properties.

* July 1996: Assemblywoman Sheila J. Kuehl (D-Santa Monica) introduces an item in the state budget to purchase part of late movie director Frank Capra’s estate, which falls along the Backbone Trail. But later that month, Gov. Pete Wilson vetoes the funding.

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Sources: Mountains Conservancy Foundation; Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy; “Guide to the Backbone Trail,” by Milt McAuley; Researched by JULIE SHEER / Los Angeles Times