City Secret: Hidden Staircases of Nearby Hollywood

Adventures come in all shapes, sizes, packages and locales. Cool adventures can be right in your own community. All  you have to do is open your eyes. Recently I opened my eyes to the "Secret Stairs" in nearby Hollywood. Turns out LA is a great place to walk! 

The Hollywood Secret Stairs are part of a behind-the-scenes/semi-secret network of public staircases all over the Los Angeles area. They were built in the early 1900s, to give access to the residents of hillside communities, to get to transit lines, and into the urban areas.

Secret Stairs author Charles Fleming takes participants on Secret Stairs hikes all over Los Angeles. Walking guides can be downloaded directly from his website

I decided to take a Saturday morning adventure to find them. As we walked up Highland Avenue, we turned onto a little street and headed uphill amidst the most picturesque setting. Unlike so much of LA, with its suburban sprawl and cookie-cutter homes, every house is different up here with the area steeped in history. Some houses even have their own names like "Rue Paramount."

We headed up the first batch of stairs, 103 and counting. There's something about a secret that makes you want more. The first set of stairs covered in shrubbery and fuchsia flowers, lived up to their secretive description.  The other thing about stairs is the payoff. When you get to the top you find views, fascinating little streets, and of course, more secret stairs. The stairs hike lasted about an hour as we climbed 421 stairs in total (but they were parced out between the quaint streets and "walk streets" (no cars allowed) of the Hollywood Hills. It was back to civilization with hustle and bustle of the city as we descended the last of the staircases into a parking lot. But right next to us was the fabulous Hollywood Bowl. (another adventure!)

Stay tuned for my next Secret Stairs adventure!

Adventure Tip: Find a local adventure that you are passionate about and create a personal mission. Then step out and take it (or climb it) .