Playing on a Moreton Bay fig tree

      BOUNDARIES: Montana Ave., 17th St., La Mesa Dr., 26th St.

      DISTANCE: About 3 miles

      DIFFICULTY: Easy

      PARKING: Free street parking is available on 17th St., but please read posted signs for parking restrictions.

      This route travels the northernmost reaches of the city of Santa Monica before briefly crossing into the LA neighborhood of Brentwood to check out the rustic-looking yet upscale Brentwood Country Mart shopping center. But the main draw of this area has nothing to do with retail, but rather what very well may be the most incredible trees you’ve ever seen. The quiet residential La Mesa Drive was planted with Moreton Bay fig trees back in the 1920s (rumor has it the saplings were mistaken for magnolias) that have since grown to mammoth yet regal proportions, offering a special horticultural treat that visitors to this wealthy enclave can marvel at from the sidewalk.

      Walk Description

      Begin on 17th Street just north of Montana Avenue. Sweet Lady Jane, renowned purveyor of all things sugary and delicious, anchors the northwest corner of the intersection. Start walking northwest away from Montana along the pretty, magnolia-lined street. The houses—predominantly Spanish in style with some traditional homes thrown in—range in size from modest to palatial and boast a mix of manicured lawns and tasteful, drought-tolerant landscaping.

      Right after you cross Carlyle Avenue, a couple of houses on the right stand out: a large, boxy Spanish home with pretty tile work adorning the second story and a wood-paneled home with a stone chimney and sloped roof that brings to mind a ski lodge. Another interesting structure appears on the left as you approach the intersection with Georgina Avenue; this one is almost fortresslike, with its plain stucco walls and high windows, and it has a cool domed metal kids’ climbing structure in the front yard.

      Turn right on San Vicente Boulevard. Twisted coral trees line the median of the wide boulevard, blooming bright reddish orange in the spring.

      Look for the crosswalk at the intersection with 19th Street, and cross over to the north side of San Vicente. Here the street becomes La Mesa Drive, home to those magnificent Moreton Bay fig trees. Follow La Mesa as it curves to the right.

      With their massive trunks, snaking roots, and twisting limbs, the trees almost appear to be primordial. Their canopies spread out to keep the street permanently shaded, and in the summer, the sidewalks become littered with their fallen fruit. Perhaps the most fascinating feature of the Moreton Bay fig is its roots, which on some trees reach chest-high. It’s almost impossible to resist hopping up and walking along them, balance beam–style, following their meandering path around the base of the tree, so have a little fun and go for it. While arboreal enthusiasts will likely be too caught up by the trees to notice, architecture buffs will appreciate the range in styles of the uniformly enormous homes on this street: Tudor, Spanish, modern, French château, Cape Cod, Tuscan villa—really quite a mix.

      About halfway down the block, keep your eyes peeled in front of the home at 2209 La Mesa; you’ll notice a whimsical etching of a castle and a mountain in the sidewalk.

      Cross 24th Street and then keep right at the split in the road to follow La Mesa Way.

      You’ll pass under the thick branch of one last Moreton Bay fig before turning right on 26th Street.

      Cross San Vicente Boulevard and then cross again to the east side of the street, turning right to continue south on 26th.

      You will presently come to the Brentwood Country Mart. The distinctive red clapboard structure, built in 1948, houses a collection of upscale boutiques, a barber shop, a toy store, and both casual and upscale eateries, all arranged around a central courtyard with picnic tables and quarter-operated rides for the kids. Notable food purveyors here include the Farmshop market, restaurant, and bakery and Sweet Rose Creamery, which churns out delectable ice cream in both classic and unexpected flavors.

      After you’ve explored the Country Mart, continue south on 26th Street until you come to Georgina Avenue, where you’ll turn right and leave the busy commercial street behind to return to bucolic residential surroundings—bucolic, that is, apart from the seemingly ongoing construction that seems to occur in upscale neighborhoods like this one.

      Turn left on 23rd Street, enjoying the pleasing variety of foliage and interesting amalgams of residential architecture. The home at 624 23rd St. is particularly notable, its curved roof reminiscent of the inverted hull of a boat.

      Turn right on Alta Avenue, enjoying the alpine scent of the pine trees lining the sidewalk.

      Turn left on 17th Street to return to your starting point just north of Montana Avenue.