The Red Lion Tavern Loop

 This challenging 4.5 mile loop takes you through the stairway intense neighborhoods of Silver Lake and Echo Park. It starts and ends at The Red Lion Tavern on Glendale Blvd where you can enjoy a post-hike reward of German food and beer. 

Before you go - This is a challenging route with multiple stairways, mostly up, and hills. 

If it's open I recommend using the restroom at the Silver Lake Branch Library near the start as there are no public restrooms along the route. Be on the lookout for open porta-potties or, if in dire need, make a detour at Echo Park Ave. to Lady Bird Cafe. They have been friendly when it comes to letting hikers use theirs in the past. 

❗The fourth stairway, Loma Vista Pl. on the Echo Park side of the 2 freeway turns into a dirt path at the top that leads to more stairs. See photos.❗

The route is usually good for a cat spotting or two.


Continue along the dirt path..


until you see these stairs.


This first stairway on the route, Loma Vista Pl., is a true "Stair Street". The homes on it are only accessible via the stairs. It is also unique because it goes both up and down over the hill. I usually see at least one cat there.


The Edendale Stairs, AKA The Three Stooges stairs.


This is one of L.A.'s newer stairways. It's a bit awkward to descend. The cable railing comes in handy.


You're almost guaranteed to see a cat amongst the clutter it the yard of this house on Walcott Way between the Landa and Peru St stairs (#10 and #11).














Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Trails of Mt. Washington

Image
  Charles Fleming's book "Secret Stairs" was my introduction to urban hiking. His Mt. Washington walk, the fourth one I tackled, was the one that made me realize how little I knew about Los Angeles. As I climbed the hills and marveled at the views I found it hard to believe I was in a city, let alone a major metropolis. That was over ten years ago and I've continued to explore my surroundings on foot; always discovering new things. On a recent walk Bob Inman took us to Rainbow Canyon, a new-to-me trail in the Mt. Washington area. It was the inspiration for this route that will introduce you to many of the trails and dirt roads scattered throughout the neighborhood. Unlike many of my other walks, this route is not stair-centric and doesn't go out of its way to appreciate any local architecture.  Despite the fact that the route is entirely within the city limits, this is more of a hike than a walk. Some of the trails are steep and can be slippery. Good hiking shoes
Read more

Hollywood Bungalow Courts

Image
This walk through the Hollywood neighborhoods of Thai Town, Hollywood Studio District, and Little Armenia features a few of my favorite things - bungalow courts, cats, and vintage motels. The map has a set route inside the Hollywood Forever cemetery, but really,  just wander around as you please. Many famous people are buried here. In addition to cats you’ll probably see a peacock or two. Before you go - The route is flat and not challenging.  Best bet for parking is on the side streets north of the Harvard House Motel. It can be very challenging to find a space on street cleaning days - 10am-Noon Wednesdays and Fridays. You could also take the Metro B line (red) to Hollywood/Western and, since the route is a loop, start and finish there. Paros restaurant or Jons supermarket are good places for a mid-walk snack. 
Read more

Playa del Rey

Image
  My expectations for this walk were low. The main goal was to escape the heat of the San Gabriel Valley for the day. My resources for finding points of interest (The Gebhard Winter Architectural Guidebook to Los Angeles, LA conservancy, Atlas Obsura, etc) were drawing a blank. Luckily, on a previous visit to the area I had learned that Play del Rey is home to L.A. county's smallest bar - The Harbor Room. That was something I could work with. The route turned out to be so enjoyable that we returned to it a few days later with a friend. I got distracted talking and missed a turn leading us to discover two pedestrian walkways that made the walk even better.   Before you go - The 6 mile route is moderately challenging with a few hills here and there.  There is plenty of street parking near the start. There is no public restroom until you get to the beach at around the 2.5 mile point. You could probably get away with using the facilities at Prince O'Whales or The Shack and you'
Read more