Читать книгу Discovering Griffith Park - Casey Schreiner - Страница 10

Although it’s often compared to places like New York’s Central Park or San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park, Griffith Park is its own unique, very L.A. thing. First, it dwarfs those other famous parks—it’s more than four times the size of Golden Gate and five times the size of Central Park. At over 4300 acres, Griffith Park is one of the largest municipal parks in North America.

Griffith is also much more rugged and wild than Golden Gate or Central. Located in the easternmost part of the Santa Monica Mountains, Griffith Park is home to rare chaparral, sage scrub, and oak woodlands with unique, endemic species of plants and animals—and a famous mountain lion, too. And it has all of that while also offering up more traditional developed park amenities like golf courses, a zoo, and an observatory you’ve definitely seen in the movies. Oh yeah, and there’s a big sign you’ve probably seen before, too.

The park turns 125 years old in 2021 and gets more annual visitors than most national parks (over 12 million a year at last count!), but the book you’re holding right now is the first in-depth guidebook written about it. Beyond all that, Griffith Park deserves its own book because it’s weird, it’s messy, it’s complex, and it’s wonderful. Incredible stories have happened here—and incredible things will happen here in the future.

This is not a completely comprehensive look at every nook and cranny of the park, nor is it an attempt to tell every tale within its borders. But you can consider this book a sort of “pocket visitor center” for the park. It’s a way to make sense of the park depending on what you’re looking to do and how you want to get around, and it will give you a sense of the park’s history and place in Los Angeles. The park’s major museums and attractions are described here as well as the unique gardens and monuments that have been special places for Angelenos and visitors for generations.

The book also details different uses for the park, including picnicking, cycling, horseback riding, and more, and provides maps that help you focus on the activities you want to enjoy.

Of course, there’s also hiking here: I highlight thirty-three different routes in and around the park, from gentle walks you can do with a stroller to tough full-day adventures that will leave you exhausted and exhilarated.

And don’t worry—I’ve got some good spots for Hollywood Sign selfies, too.