San Rafael Hills
location of San Rafael Hills in California[1]
Highest point
Elevation	1,788 ft (545 m)
Geography
Country	United States
State	California
County	Los Angeles County
Municipality	San Marino and South Pasadena
Range coordinates	34°10′47.022″N 118°12′38.265″W / 34.17972833°N 118.21062917°W / 34.17972833; -118.21062917
Parent range	Transverse Ranges
Topo map	USGS Pasadena

The San Rafael Hills are a mountain range in Los Angeles County, California.^[1] They are one of the lower Transverse Ranges, and are parallel to and below the San Gabriel Mountains, adjacent to the San Gabriel Valley overlooking the Los Angeles Basin.

Geography

The San Rafael Hills contain all or parts of the communities of City Terrace, La Cañada Flintridge, Pasadena, South Pasadena, El Sereno, Monterey Hills, Montecito Heights, Cypress Park, Mount Washington, Glassell Park and foothills surrounding Eagle Rock, east of the Glendale Freeway including Rancho San Rafael and Chevy Chase Canyon in Glendale. They define the valley area of Pasadena and San Marino, and retain a large aquifer on the hills' north side, from the San Gabriel Valley.

History

They were the homeland, with settlements, of the Tongva Native American people for over 8,000 years before the Spanish invasion and colonization of the late 18th century. They are named after the Rancho San Rafael, a 1784 Spanish land grant beyond the hills to the west.

Landmarks

The hillside campus of Art Center College of Design, a Pasadena historic resource, is located in the San Rafael Hills.

Ernest E. Debs Regional Park is a large nature preserve and regional park in the western section of the hills, with walking and bicycle trails.

Descanso Gardens, a botanical garden in La Cañada Flintridge, California is located on the northern edge of the hills.

Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy, a private all-girls Catholic high school, sits atop the crest of the San Rafael Hills.