Looking to get outside and stretch our legs one weekend, but with yet another storm leaving hiking trails muddy and slippery, we opted for an urban hike exploring LA's hidden staircases.
The public stairs that wind through multiple LA neighborhoods are a historical afterthought. Originally built to deliver pedestrians from their hillside homes to trolley car lines on busy boulevards in the 1920s, they have enjoyed a renaissance among walkers and history buffs in recent years. Charles Fleming's detailed guidebook "Secret Stairs," and countless blog posts, stitch together routes through some of LA's most interesting neighborhoods.
Which to choose from? Silver Lake was a no-brainer since it allowed us to pair our hike with lunch at Silverlake Ramen - one of my wife's favorites.
We faced another dilemma: Eat first and let the intermittent rainfall pass, or assume the rain was done and walk first to build our lunch appetites. We chose Option 2, which proved our assumption was faulty. But it was OK, because walking in the rain is another one of my wife's favorites.
Parking is tricky in Silver Lake, but we found a spot on Micheltorena Street and started walking from there.
Fleming's book is appropriately titled. Unless you live in Silver Lake, or go looking for them deliberately, you would never know about its stairways. Trees and shrubbery that grow over fences in the adjoining yards create a feeling of mystery and wildness. And, to be honest, I felt a bit like I was sneaking around.
The stairs run behind and between houses, providing glimpses into backyards that you wouldn't otherwise get from a typical sidewalk. We didn't see anything scandalous, just some unkempt yards that would undoubtedly earn a stern HOA warning letter if they were in Santa Clarita.
What made the walk so interesting is that Silver Lake is so unlike the SCV. Every house is unique and so many styles are represented - boxy moderns, red-tile-roof Spanish, colonial - and even neglected. Yes, fixer-uppers can be found anywhere.
Walking gives you the chance to appreciate their details - a carved front door, a columned porch reminiscent of "Gone With the Wind," or in one case, fish heads and tails drying on a chain link fence.
Many of the staircases are decorated, whether by colorful murals, stenciled wildlife or patterns painted on the stair fronts to create an optical illusion, like the piano keys on the staircase that drops from Hamilton Way to Sunset Boulevard.
We were more than halfway through our route at that point, but definitely ready for lunch and a chance to be out of the rain. Fortunately, there were several tables open at Silverlake Ramen and we sat down right away.
Minutes after ordering, our food started arriving. First, the decadent pork bun. April's creamy broccolini, and her crispy rice with spicy tuna, quickly followed. My chicken karaage bowl arrived last and I dug in with chopsticks, savoring each bite of the crispy chicken accented with spicy aioli.
Fueled for what I thought was the last leg of our tour, we crossed Sunset Boulevard to find the Music Box Steps. They were made famous by the comedy duo Laurel and Hardy in the 1932 film "The Music Box," which depicted their struggle to move a piano up the stairs between Vendome Street and Descanso Drive.
As we descended the Micheltorena Street stairs and prepared to head for the car, April suggested we keep going. The rain had stopped and we had only walked about 2.5 miles so far. Why not head up to Silver Lake Reservoir and take a lap around it?
Why not, indeed. Did I mention that one of my wife's favorite things is walking?
To find Silver Lake's stairs, buy "Secret Stairs" by Charles Fleming or search online for walking routes with interactive maps.

Let's Go...
Silverlake Ramen
silverlakeramen.com