For years, Corral Canyon Cave has drawn hikers fond of the sweeping views of Malibu Creek State Park. And for years, most visitors respected the environment.
But once a rumor spread on social media that Jim Morrison wrote his music in the cave, the number of visitors spiked. People flocked to take pictures to post on Instagram and add their own touch to the landmark “Jim Morrison Cave.” Tagging got out of control.
California State Park ranger Dexter Crowder watches trespassing artists leave Corral Canyon Cave after he issued a citation. The cave is better known by the misleading moniker, Jim Morrison Cave. It was closed to the public until further notice. Large crowds have shown up on a daily basis to see the vandalized cave and in some cases add to the vandalism with graffiti of their own.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
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A woman puts more clothes on while California State Park ranger Dexter Crowder checks the identification of one of four artists whom he cited for violation of a superintendent’s closure order at Corral Canyon cave in Malibu.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
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Detail of graffiti painted on rocks at Corral Canyon Cave. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
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California State Park supervising ranger D. Lindsey Templeton, right, watches fellow ranger Dexter Crowder, center, enter the Corral Canyon Cave to cite one of a group of four artists filming for violation of a superintendent’s closure order at the cave.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
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California State Park ranger Dexter Crowder, right, picks up trash and views newly painted grafitti after catching a group of four artists filming and issuing one of them a citation for violation of a closure order.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
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California State Park Ranger Dexter Crowder climbs through “the birth canal” of the Corral Canyon Cave. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
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Detail of a Doors lyric graffiti painted on rocks at Corral Canyon Cave.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
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A pair of briefs hangs from a tree branch where state park rangers have also found bras, aerosol paint cans, condoms, trash, burned firewood, people having sex, excrement, cigarette butts and drug paraphernalia at Corral Canyon Cave in Malibu.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
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Corral Canyon resident Steve Woods, right, whose home was partially scorched from a 2007 fire that was started by people kicking burning firewood out of the Corral Canyon Cave, listens as California State Park Supervising Ranger D. Lindsey Templeton explains to hiking guide Adam McLean of Hollywood that the cave is closed.
Sarah Parvini was a reporter at the Los Angeles Times from 2014 to 2024. She most recently covered the video game industry and previously wrote about California’s diverse communities, with a focus on the state’s shifting demographics. She was part of the team that won the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for its coverage of the San Bernardino terrorist attack, as well as a member of the investigative unit that uncovered scandals at USC’s medical school. The child of immigrants, she speaks fluent Persian and conversational Spanish.
