Madrona Marsh Preserve

Cool area in the middle of the city. Nice gift store, education classes for kids. Good to go after it rains to view more greenery.

Madonna Marsh Preserve is a beautiful «hidden» treasure here in the South Bay. It is absolutely lush when you walk inside. Walk along the water… Go under the trees. Explore. Have an adventure. It will be worth it! I promise :)

A fun place to visit with kids. If it wasn’t home to a bunch of coyotes who have stolen dogs and cats off the street it would be cooler.

This is like magic separate world, where birds live their own life, like they do it in nature. It is beautiful and not crowded. The only thing prevent you to relax here is noise from streets around. Take some trail into the woods, do not go just along the fence.

this place is a hidden gem. i came here birdwatching with a group one day and was surprised at how large and well maintained this area is. we saw a burrowing owl and other fascinating wildlife. i am looking forward to returning on my own so that i can explore the other areas. great place to take children. not to be missed

Unfortunately as the marshes in California and across the entire world decline, this is truly a gem in the rough. In the midst of Torrance, California I had no idea it was even there because of the city density. I am absolutely going to volunteer, and recommend that anyone with a passion for nature should definitely check this place out!

I would never have checked this place out were it not for the great kids programs they have at the nature center. I love it here.

I have to give the Madrona Marsh 5 stars… Not because it is amazing, but because it is free and a plot wilderness smack dab in the middle of a city.
It is larger than I expected it to be. It’s February, and everything was very green. We heard and saw a lot of wildlife. The kids had a great time. The perimeter is beyond the max that our kids could walk at age 2. Next time, I will bring his little push car.
Along the perimeter path, you can see all the business directly across the street. The smell coming from the gas station/​car wash was unpleasant, and we had to speed our kids through that polluted stink. It is a little less magical because the perimeter path is right agains the gates that look outside. There are no internal paths to avoid this if you want to view the entire marsh.
The Tot Trot I will give 2 stars if you actually have a toddler. My friend’s and my 2 year olds spent about 10 minutes on this docent led walk before dropping out. The kids that showed up were all school age. The parents were somewhat rude and not moving aside to allow our short 2 year olds to catch a view of the sights the docent was pointing out. She made little effort to include them. I felt annoyed and frustrated. To call that a Tot Trot, is a joke. When your kids can explain what a habitat is, they are no longer tots. The group was walking so fast, our little ones had zero chance of keeping up. Good for school age kids.
The marsh itself is worth checking out to allow your kids some time in nature. This is not somewhere you drive a long distance to check out. I prefer Wilderness Park.

Great place. They have amazing classes offered on a regular basis, bird walks, star hikes, a great taxidermy collection, a nature center, annual naïve plant sale and lots of events for families.

This place is a hidden treasure. I love to take my kids and our nature journals. We could explore there for hours.

It’s a very beautiful natural reserve. one of the few we have left in California! We need to protect our reserves as much as possible!
When I was a young kid going to middle school, my science teacher took our class out to see the reserve. Sadly, I had never seen it before on my own. It is much bigger than it appears to be on the outside. Last time I was there, the water was smelly and extremely murky. I do hope that things have changed since I was last here. For our class we had to take a sample of the water to find out what types of microorganisms lived inside.
If you follow the trails, you will have a very pleasant walk and you will enjoy the most scenic spots in the park!
I recommend that everyone who lives in the torrance area, or close to this area should visit the park at least twice in their lifetime! It’s such a unique and beautiful experience.
Unfortunately, there is a lot of litter at this park. It is very sad to see all the trash buildup in such a serene little place. If everyone who visits the park just picks up a few pieces of trash and does not add to the pollution, we can have a much cleaner and much more enjoyable park. Think about it! :)

I love Madrona Marsh. It’s an excellent place to get your kids interested in nature and learn to respect the environment. Every Friday, Madrona marsh offers a free three hour class to preschoolers. It’s free, but a $ 5 donation is recommended so they can continue this great program. Each week there is a new theme, I. E. dragonflies, ducks, ants, sunflowers, crickets, poppies, spiders. The beginning of the class has a hands on exhibit and the teacher discusses the topic. Next is reading time, the children gather on the rug and listen to a book or two. Children then take turns in front of the class working on a display/​puzzle, sort of a review from what they learned. Afterwards, is a theme related art project. We then have a 10 minute snack break and then head over to the marsh for a hike. Miss Cindy has an abundance of patience. I love the program, the teachers and the staff!
Disclaimer :The only issue I have is some of the parents let their kids run out of control and this interrupts the class. Be considerate of the people around you, we are here to teach our kids to respect the environment, be an example! As a reminder, no stepping on or picking plants and insects during the hike and no food either.

I love Madrona Marsh. A little pocket of nature, with wonderful birds. There are benches and rest areas. The naturalists give great tours, that help you understand and appreciate the marsh more. Volunteers have worked hard to restore the marsh to its original state. What you see today is the result of thousands of hours of effort. There is a hawk that simetimes circles the marsh, high overhead. Look up and if you’re especially lucky you might see him. The marsh is dry much of the year. So it is really nice to visit in the spring, when it has rained and a pond forms. There are ducks in the spring. Flowers pop up about 6 weeks after a good rainstorm. Springtime brings an increase in birds and wildlife. A great place for a mini-​vaction, a walk in nature, when I am stressed out. Go there! Check out the tours with experts and great activities for kids. A great place to cultivate a childs respect for and live of nature. Be sure to check out the nature center, across the street near the parking. Lots if fascinating things and much to learn there. Plenty of free parking.

My boyfriend and I always pass by this place and wonder what is this big open land – we finally checked this place out and it was an experience. Basically, Madrona Marsh Preserve is a huge lot full on greenery, somewhat no shade so wear sunscreen. This area is encircled by chained fences but it is open to the public for free. The gate seems like it’s always closed but just open it, and they city usually locks it around 5 and just call a number posted on the gate if it happened to be locked. As we entered, I was so happy seeing lots of helianthus and sunflowers!!! Sunflowers make me happy and I knew I already loved this marsh haha. There was lots of gardening process in the making as were passing by. This place looks like a prairie or a desert but it was still peaceful and lots of greens to see. Saw birds, stumps, a swamp and this dried lake due to the season but the soil was somewhat muddy and soft, reminded me of quicksand aahh. Madrona Marsh Preserve will look amazing during the rainy season or when there is much water areas shown, like a wetlanddd. Other than that, it’s a great place to check out if you like exploring and just checking out the surroundings. I fell-​in love with the helianthus, I wanted to take some home and plant it!

I love seeing the wildlife and all the vegetation. Great place to take a stroll. The center across the street is informative and works hard to maintain the wonderful preserve. Today is the first day of spring.

I’ve lived in the area for pretty much my entire life and I can’t believe I’ve never been to Madrona Marsh before! It may not look like much from the outside, but its a really nice place to take a walk and take in your surroundings.
Unfortunately, the day I went was a rainy one so there weren’t a whole lot of critters to be seen. Just some ducks, enjoying a swim in one of the only little water spaces left. The map shows a lot of water areas, but in reality, there aren’t too many. They’re all dried up now.
But despite that, my boyfriend, his parents, and I had a nice time walking around the marsh. You’re told to stay on the path, but we found it a little more interesting to venture off to areas a little less explored.
If you want to see more, head across the street to their nature center. They have a few reptiles on display — a ratsnake, gopher snake, diamondback terrapin turtle, a few red eared slider turtles, and some frogs! They also have a room in the back completely dedicated to educating kids and the public to the critters that inhabit the marsh. Its almost like a museum setup! They also have pelts of some furry animals.
This is a great place to come if you want to show your kids a little bit of nature — and the best part, its all FREE!
*Do take note that the nature center accepts monetary donations! And they close the marsh gates at 5pm daily!

My first time this past Saturday and I loved it! I couldn’t have imagined a place like this just down the street from where I live. It has several trails both easy and hard.
Make sure you take plenty of water.
It’s a great place for both young and older.

This place is great.
I have been planning on coming here for years and I finally remembered it one day and showed my kid the pics on Unilocal about the place. He was so excited about it that he bugged me for weeks to take him, but finding the time with the busy Holiday Schedule was tough. So finally we had a day off, free of anything and we went.
we rode our bikes there and had a great bike ride to add to the adventure. The kiddo did great on his little 16″ bike, but I now know he is ready to move up to the 20″ bikes and get some gear action for those hills. And of course the Alyx was cozy and comfy in her trailer/​stroller.
When we got there and were locking up our bikes, one of the volunteers comes out and ask if we are there for some Critter Class. I said sure. It cost us $ 10 for the family but I figured what the hey, let’s try this out.
We go in and they have a local Pet and Bird shop hosting a pet the creature event. The kiddos loved it.
They had cookies and punch for us and the ladies working and hosting were very kind and helpful.
Great kid place and we will be back.

The Madrona Marsh is something special. If you’re like me and you enjoy taking nature walks, bird watching or simply doing something healthy and FREE; this place will likely delight you. I’m most fascinated by how the landscape changes according to the time of the year. Sometimes there’s a lake, with those huge, elegant white cranes roaming around (at least I think they’re cranes). There’s a variety plants that will awaken your inner botanist. Sometimes there’s shedding trees that look like something out of a Tim Burton film.
It’s not enormous, but that’s part of it’s charm. It’s in the middle of the city and almost feels like you’ve stumbled into a secret garden when you open the gate. It’s eerily quiet.
There is always plenty of parking across the street at the nature center. The center itself is worth a visit. It’s like a mini-​museum with information and material on the marsh. There are some dioramas and even a couple of fossils on display. They also have a few live animals like turtles and snakes. And a gift shop, but it’s only open on certain days, so I would check the hours online. The staff is ALWAYS kind and friendly.
I would visit the marsh first and then the nature center. You might be dissapointed if you see all the animals on display and then walk into the marsh expecting to come across them. Remember, this is not a zoo or a park! Although I’ve been lucky enough to see plenty of wildlife on my visits here and you’re almost guaranteed to see lizards and butterflies. The last time I visited there were hundreds of tiny Pacific Tree Frogs hopping around.
Make sure you bring some water for your walk and enjoy!

Jiminy Crickets, what took me so long to get over here to look around…
I knew the marsh existed, but never knew about the Nature Center building. It has a big parking lot, very nice. There are all sorts of interesting exhibits, it’s a kid’s paradise. They got live critters, like turtles. And they have pelts, like a skunk’s, so you can see what the animal looks like up close.
I did not take time to peruse all the exhibits, but I did take some photos.
I was anxious to get outside and see the marsh, across the street from the nature center.
First, I walked around the grounds surrounding the building. It was fragrant and beautiful. As a former botanical photographer, I am in my element in a place like this, where the plants are labeled, and well-​tended, carefully selected and placed. Lovely.
And the marsh preserve… well, it was peaceful. I was the only visitor. It was very dry, although according to the plaques it looks like it’s supposed to have water throughout. Maybe this is a seasonal thing. And we are in a drought, I believe.
But it was still beautiful, like a Midwest prairie. And if water were present, it would look a lot like the wetland i played in as a kid. We called it a swamp, haha.
Before I left IL, I used to frequent a place called Cuba Marsh, on the other side of Chicago from the wetland in my childhood neighborhood. These places are in my blood I guess.
Madrona Marsh is very open, so wear sunscreen. And I would recommend shoes other than flip flops, there are a lot of busy ants on the trails.
It’s like a bird sanctuary, too. I saw many small birds, and hummingbirds. And so many little specimen plants, all labeled and carefully looked after.
There is a lot of attention going into this preserve. It’s obviously a special place. It’s so unique to see such a preserve in the middle of a busy, trafficky, commercial area.
I will be back to explore some more, very soon.
46 photos are posted so far…
The pictures are worth more than my words.