Two weeks! And I have finally transformed into a hamburger-eating mammal who microwaves all meals, and looks at the Fahrenheit reading of the a/c thermostat, and calculates in his mind that 5 miles exit from the freeway means 8 kilometers farther. I have enjoyed a lot of American lifestyles and customs so far, from celebrating the festive 4th of July to cherry-picking to having Starbucks a staple drink.
One of the things that I really looked forward to is going to the Hollywood Sign in Mt. Lee, one of the greatest landmarks of Los Angeles and a cultural icon in pop culture. It's 35 miles away from our place, less than an hour drive taking I-5 southeast to get to Griffith Park where we plan to start the 6.4-mile hike to get to the Hollywood Sign summit.
There are 4 popular trails that will lead to the Hollywood Sign, and each of them has unique characteristics that hikers choose depending on their preference and location. The shortest of these trails is the Burbank Peak Trail, which is said to be the most challenging of the four but the least crowded because only those who are good at rough roads and challenged with the route take this. A little longer than that but much safer is the Hollyridge Trail, which was our first option to take, but due to the weekend schedule, the trail is closed to the public. Another option is the Innsdale Trail, which they say is the best among the four if the intention is to take the best snapshot of the Hollywood Sign. The longest of the trails is the Brush Canyon Trail, which we didn't try because we were unsure if there are parking slots available for a Sunday hike.
Since our first option did not materialize, we opted to take the longest of all trails. There is another route that may take us almost half of the day, but the only viable option at the moment is to start the hike from Griffith Observatory. We took the challenge so we drove all the way to its parking space. We reached Griffith Observatory at 8:24 am on a hot, Sunday morning at 86°F with 40% humidity, a perfect combination to a perfect day for hiking, and getting some fats burned by the California sun.
There are not many people hiking that day according to the locals who frequent the place for a usual weekend hike. So I really thought that I would enjoy taking tons of pictures as we get nearer the Hollywood Sign. The first few minutes of walking up and down the hills, sun-exposed on its dirt roads were undoubtedly enjoyable until we reached a steep ravine that we don't think we can cross. We were wondering how hikers can get through the high slope we were in as we don't see any shoe prints that we can follow.
We realized that we got lost in the trail when we saw people below the hill walking towards a different route. We traced their path and we figured that it must be from behind the hill that we were in. We retreated like soldiers who lost the war and headed back to where we can find the trail that would connect us to the right track. But along the way back, we met other hikers who are on our tail, and we told them that it's a dead end. They all got dismayed and decided not to push through with the hike. We didn't want to end the fun though so we stayed and took a lot of pictures from where we ended so we can caption them with "this is the closest that I could get to the Hollywood Sign."
We headed back to the Griffith Observatory, a famous tourist attraction within the slopes of Hollywood mountains where you can see the breathtaking view of Downtown LA and Hollywood from the West Observation Terrace facing south. From the same spot at the view deck, is also one of the most visible views of the Hollywood sign, and the mountain ranges of Los Angeles, including Mt. Lee where the famous sign is erected.
At the west side entrance of the observatory's lawn, before climbing up the West Observation Terrace can be seen a bust of James Dean, as featured in his movie Rebel Without A Cause. The monument was installed on the premises of Griffith Observatory giving honor to Dean's movie that made the observatory international attention when it was featured in several major scenes in the movie, including the first-ever appearance of a planetarium theater in a movie.
Admission to the observatory is free of charge along with all the exhibits at the Ahmanson Hall of the Sky which showcases the bodies found in the solar system and their exhibits about the Sun and Star paths, Seasons, Our Sun is a Star, Elements, Eclipses, Tides and Moon Phases. At the east side of the Main Level is the Wilder Hall of the Eye with booths that focus on the tools that were used by humans to view the bodies in the sky featuring exhibits like Using the Sky, Camera Obscura, Beyond the Visible, Observing in California and the infamous Tesla Coil. At the central rotunda, if you're coming from the north doors, is a huge Foucault Pendulum, a device that is designed as a demonstration of how the Earth rotates in its axis. Its surrounding walls up to its ceiling showcased The March of Science Through the Ages murals from Hugo Ballin.
Moving southward from the Foucault Pendulum is the enormous half-dome of the Samuel Oschin Planetarium, where visitors can watch mesmerizing live shows of cosmic exploration and discovery, life, and water exploration from Earth and beyond, and revelation stories of the northern lights narrated by an engaging, live storyteller. The shows are scheduled and announced every 90 minutes and we were able to watch the 11 am live program for only $7 each. Inside the planetarium is an awe-inspiring view of the dome, showing the celestial bodies above making an optical illusion that the dome's roof is widely open.
The lower levels have a lot more exhibits. The stairway from the main level leads to the Edge of Space Exhibits which feature Cosmic News, Our Moon, Meteorites, Spark Chamber and Cloud Chamber. Moving southward is Gunther Depths of Space Exhibits where exhibitions of Iconic Universe are seen, along with Milky Way Galaxy, Our Solar System, A Familiar Star Pattern, and Other Worlds, Other Stars. The Leonard Nimoy Event Horizon theater sits in the middle of the floor, a little smaller area than the Samuel Oschin Planetarium above, which provides presentations of a variety of programs for free. However, the shows are based on a first-come, first-served basis and visitors should be in the theater at least 15 minutes before the start of the program.
Outside the observatory is a thousand photo opportunities that you can feature yourself with a backdrop of almost all breathtaking views. From above the deck, is a scenic view of the lush green park of the entrance lawn which features the Astronomer's Monument at the center. It's a tall concrete sculpture that showcases the six astronomers who had contributed largely to the history of astronomy which includes the Greek astronomer Hipparchus, Nicolaus Copernicus, Galileo Galilei, Johannes Kepler, Isaac Newton, and John Herschel. A sundial is also installed in front of the sculpture which demonstrates the early timekeeping device of our ancestors and is still providing accurate ways to show time up to the present day.
More pictures at the Gallery: