The Griffith Park Observatory sits on the south-facing slope of Mount Hollywood and, apart from the Hollywood sign, is the most noticeable man-made feature of the Santa Monica Mountains visible from the city. There are several ways to get to the Observatory, including biking, hiking, bus and car. (You can find details on the Griffith Observatory website.)
I wasn’t too interested in braving the heat last Sunday afternoon, so I took LADOT’s weekend Observatory Shuttle up the mountain. Considering how far it will get you in a car these days, the 25-cent fare from the Vermont Ave. and Sunset Blvd. intersection to the Observatory is very reasonable. And the Vermont/Sunset intersection is easily accessible by several MTA bus routes and the Metro Red Line, so you have the chance to experience two of L.A.’s public transportation providers in one day!
The LADOT Shuttle is actually a trolley. The quaint charm of the wooden bench seats doesn’t really make up for their lack of comfort; however, the scenery of the ride was distracting enough that I didn’t get too annoyed. The route takes you through the heart of Los Feliz up Hillhurst (past Nature Mart, Tangiers, and The Derby), then up through the neighborhood north of Franklin Ave. on Vermont Ave., where Woody Allen’s commentary in Annie Hall about the (in)consistency of L.A.’s architecture is rather apt. Personally, I really enjoyed the wild variety of architectural styles and vegetation planted to match each style.
The shuttle continues through the lower reaches of Griffith Park — where families were busy picnicking and doing the Sunday family thing — past the Greek Theatre (on your left), past the Bird Sanctuary (on your right), through a tunnel and up to the Observatory turnaround. There are several stops along the way, so if you want to visit elsewhere in the park, you might want to check the route map online or ask the driver the closest stop to your destination. (Ask nicely. My driver started to lose a little patience when he was asked the same question about the shuttle schedule for the 6th time in 5 minutes.)
The thrill of visiting the Observatory itself, for me, was simply seeing this nearly fictitious skyline feature up close–like seeing the Golden Gate Bridge if you’ve lived in San Francisco for years but never actually been there (which seems nearly impossible, so maybe it’s not a fair comparison).
Everything at the Observatory is free except the planetarium show ($7 adults, check other prices online). The exhibits themselves weren’t all too intriguing if you’re a regular science/space museum goer, but they’re accessibly educational (except when a group of people is standing in your way, making them inaccessible). My favorite exhibit by far was the eight-foot-high periodic table containing samples of each of the elements inside each box. Also notable are the James Dean bust/memorial outside, the Foucault Pendulum in the entrance (which swings in different directions depending on the time of day), and, of course, the telescopes and domes. You can see pictures and details here.
To leave the Observatory you can take the same shuttle back to Vermont/Sunset or whatever stop suits your fancy, or you can hike down to the Hollywood area. Not liking to pass through the same river twice, I chose to “hike” down. But, city girl that I am, I opted for the paved roads (the car route), which turned out to be a mistake — you’re either walking on the road with cars traveling faster than they ought to be considering the blind curves, or you’re walking precariously on the sometimes barely existent curb which drops steeply to your left (for who knows how many feet). I tend to condemn L.A.’s lack of concern for pedestrians, and usually my complaints are warranted, but in this case I’ll admit it was a bad decision on my part. I would instead recommend one of the hiking paths actually intended for pedestrians, aka hikers. The walk (by road) from the Observatory to the Metro Red Line stop at Hollywood and Western is about 3 miles according to Google maps.
Info:
Griffith Park Observatory: www.griffithobservatory.org (FREE/$7 for show)
LADOT Observatory Shuttle:
www.ladottransit.com/other/observatoryshuttle/observatoryshuttle.html ($.25, time from Sunset/Vermont to Observatory ~30 min.)
MTA Bus and Rail info: www.mta.net ($1.25 one way, $5 day pass)