The Los Angeles River #9: South Gate to North Long Beach

Greetings fellow Canine Angelenos!

Welcome to Part 9 of my dog-centric look at the Los Angeles River. 

In Part 8, I reached the end of the South County L.A. River Bike Path in South Gate. To continue my journey, I must now cross the Imperial Hwy. bridge and use the LARIO Bike Path the rest of the way.

The LARIO begins at Whittier Narrows and travels for 12 miles along the Rio Hondo to its confluence with the L.A. River - just upstream of the Imperial Hwy. bridge. From there it follows the east bank of the river to the ocean.

What awaits us on the other side? The first thing you'll notice is how big the river channel is. It looks like a walled airport runway. This is the widest part of the river and it's used for a variety of things other than flood control...such as training taxi drivers!

What's more "L.A." than driving cars in the river?

While there's nothing natural about the river around here, only Glendale Narrows has more easy access to park land than this section of the trail. Surprised? I was.

About 1/2 mile downstream from Imperial Hwy. is the north end of Hollydale Park. An equestrian center occupies most of the area and a horse trail stretches between the park and bike path.

There are many horse facilities along the river from here into Long Beach.

A short walk down the bike path finds stairs that lead into the heart of this 56 acre park. The grassy field that makes up the majority of the park is split down the middle by a row of electrical towers, but there is still plenty of room to roll in the grass and play soccer.

This way to the parking lot too - a good place to start this adventure.

There are courts for basketball, tennis and handball as well as picnic benches, playgrounds, and Hollydale Dog Park, an off-leash area with a poop bag dispenser and water fountain.

What more does a dog need in a park? I give it 4 paws.

Back on the bike path, Century Bl. marks the end of Hollydale Park and the border between South Gate and Paramount. Another 1/3 mile of walking and you'll be standing beneath the 105 Freeway. Past the 105 you'll see an industrial park and some great, post-apocalyptic looking views of the river channel.

I'm not the only Canine Angeleno enjoying the river today.

About 2/3 mile south of the freeway is the Rosecrans Ave. bridge. Once you pass the bridge, you'll see the north end of Ralph C. Dills Park.

Another park so soon? Nice.

The two ends of this 9 acre park are open fields with plush grass, shady trees, playgrounds, and water fountains. The south end has restrooms (but no poop bags) and a nice picnic area too.

Ralph Dills was California's longest serving state legislator - 43 years!

Connecting the two ends is a nature trail that doesn't allow dogs on it. How can you connect two parks with a nature trail and not allow dogs?

The nature trail. I hear it's nice.

Dills Park ends when you reach the Somerset Bl. bridge. South of Somerset, a small section of Compton lies east of the river. For the next 1/4 mile or so, you'll be in the city of Compton - just long enough to walk along the fenced boundary of the Compton Par 3 Golf Course.

Who doesn't love chasing a ball around in plush grass?

Once you pass the golf course you're back in Paramount and it's 1/4 mile more to the Alondra Bl. bridge. 

The Home Depot nearby is another great place to park while you explore.

About 1/4 mile south of Alondra you'll see a long metal staircase that provides access to L.A. County's 72nd Street Arena. It's a facility for equestrian exhibitions and a nice rest stop for travelers on the bike path. There are restrooms, a water fountain, and a small picnic area next to the arena.

An obnoxious rooster will greet you at 72nd St. Arena. Trust me, you'll hear him.

1/5 mile beyond the staircase is the Atlantic Ave. bridge. If that sounds familiar it's because the river has gone beneath Atlantic before - in Vernon where the South County L.A. River Bike Path begins.

We meet again Atlantic.

Somewhere between Atlantic and the 91 Freeway, which is just over 1/2 mile away, you'll enter the city of Long Beach.

I made it to LBC! I can almost smell the ocean from here!

The Artesia Bl. bridge is only a few hundred yards past the freeway. From there walls on both sides keep you on the bike path for the next 1/3 mile, until you reach the first of two entry points into DeForest Park.

South L.A. County sure has a lot of parks along the river!

Here you'll find plenty of grass to roll in, trees to sit under and squirrels to chase. A community center, playground, and courts for basketball, handball and tennis are in the middle of the park. There are also two bathrooms and a water fountain, but no poop bags.
 
Most of the park's almost 50 acres are part of the Deforest Nature Trail, a floodwater detention basin. It was closed when I visited, so we got back on the bike path via a staircase next to the nature trail's entrance.

Maybe next time.

1/3 mile south of those stairs is the Long Beach Bl. bridge, where there is access to the street and the DeForest Wetlands.

More parkland on the way? Nice work Long Beach.

The wetlands are a 34 acre former debris basin that will someday become a park. It's a work in progress, but will be a great addition to the growing chain of green spaces along the river.

It ain't pretty...yet.

You can walk through the wetlands or on a dirt path that runs parallel to them if you don't want to return to the bike path. All roads soon cross Del Amo Bl., which marks the end of the wetlands, and of today's adventure.

People often get excited about a big announcement that’s revealed at NAB or IBC, but by the time it comes out it’s already dated, or the people that were waiting for it have moved on. - See more at: http://www.provideocoalition.com/the-other-side-of-content-creation#sthash.4v1USEG2.dp
?Dominguez Gap Wetlands? Del Amo to 405? 30 acre East basin
?Compton Creek? 14 acre West basin
405/710 junction bridge
Wardlow Rd. bridge
East of 710 is LBC; West is Compton

Looking north from Del Amo Bl.

Alright! I made it all the way to Long Beach, the last city on our journey!

Subscribe to my blog, follow me on Twitter and Facebook, or visit my website to come along as I make my way to the Pacific!



See you on the river!

Chloe Canine-Angeleno 




Some of the information I've shared in this blog was found at:

Los Angeles County Dept. of Public Works

KCET 

City of South Gate

City of Compton

City of Paramount

City of Long Beach

All photographs were taken by my pack leader, Jim Gross. Everything else was discovered by getting my paws dirty and the extensive use of my nose.



For pictures and information about the places I've visited upstream of the Imperial Highway, click on the links below:

Part 1 - Western San Fernando Valley

Part 2 - Sepulveda Basin Recreation Area

Part 3 - Eastern San Fernando Valley

Part 4 - Burbank and Glendale

Part 5 - Glendale Narrows East

Part 6 - Glendale Narrows West

Part 7 - Downtown Los Angeles and Vernon

Part 8 - Vernon to South Gate

The Los Angeles River #8 - A Tale of Five Cities

Before we get started, I would like to thank the late, great Sam Simon for all the wonderful things he's done for so many Canine Angelenos. The Sam Simon Foundation was his passion and his love of dogs knew no bounds. If there really is a 'Rainbow Bridge', many dogs are waiting there to greet him with wagging tails and sloppy kisses. Rest in peace Sam. People like you are the reason we want to be man's best friend.



Greetings fellow Canine Angelenos!

Welcome to Part 8 of my dog-centric look at our unique river.

After exploring most of the Downtown L.A. stretch of the river from the car in Part 7, I look forward to getting up close and personal with the South County LA River Bike Path; which begins on the southwest corner of the Atlantic Ave. bridge.

The Atlantic Ave. bridge and Downtown L.A.

Park on District Bl., just south of Atlantic Bl., and join the path through an opening in the fence about 50 yards downstream from the bridge. There is plenty of free parking and it's much safer than dodging the heavy traffic on Atlantic.

Walk down into the river channel and dip your paws before heading south on the graffiti stained path. A chain link fence blocks us from the river for the next half mile but tall grasses give it the illusion of being almost natural (OK, I admit being under 2 feet tall helps).

So happy to put 'paws on the ground' again!

About 1/4 mile south of Atlantic is the unmarked border separating the cities of Vernon and Bell. For some reason (Pack Leader says "politics"), Bell's border is only as wide as the river for close to a mile, separating the so called 'riverside cities' of Maywood and Commerce from the river.

The chain link fence disappears as we approach the Slauson Ave. bridge. Here you can access the path from the bridge itself or via a gateway off of District Bl. 

The Slauson Ave. bridge.

Walk under the bridge and right away you'll see the gated entrance to Maywood Riverfront Park on your right.

The river may be in Bell, but the park is in the city of Maywood.

Opened in 2006, the location of this park was once so polluted by factories that it was declared a Superfund site. Today, it's a 7-acre refuge in the most densely populated city west of the Mississippi. There is a decent amount of plush grass and dozens of shady trees surrounding picnic benches, playgrounds, basketball courts, handball courts, a restroom and a water fountain...but no poop bags.

The park more than doubled Maywood's green spaces!

When you're done rolling in the grass, head back to the bike path and turn right. Here the river bends due south and makes a beeline toward the Pacific ocean. Over the next mile we'll pass Bell's westernmost neighborhoods and a few river access points when we go under the Randolph St. railroad bridge, the Gage Ave. bridge, and the Florence Ave. bridge.

The Gage Ave. and Randolph St. bridges.

Soon after passing Florence Ave., we'll enter Cudahy, the second smallest city in L.A. County. Continue on the bike path (you'll pass an access point at Live Oak St.) until we get to the Clara St. bridge, about 2 miles south of the path's starting point on Atlantic.

Take the stairs on the south side of the Clara St. bridge down to River Rd. and you'll find the entrance to Cudahy River Park. This mini-park, opened in 2009, was another former Superfund site that now serves the city as a storm water capture and cleaning facility, as well as a nice place to relax on a bench under a shady tree.

Just like "the dog in the fight", size doesn't matter.

Walk the short path through the park which takes us back onto River Rd. Take a right onto the sidewalk and in a moment we'll pass the Park Ave. Elementary school, then another river access point just before we find the west entrance to Cudahy City Park.

This park not only has nice facilities such as well-lit basketball courts, a baseball field, multiple playgrounds, restrooms and water fountains, it's also the home of Cudahy City Hall and the Cudahy Library. You can do it all here (except find poop bags), including cooking out because most of the picnic benches come with small barbecue grills.

It's pronounced Cue-Dah-Hee.

Return to River Rd. and cross the street to access a ramp that takes us back onto the bike path. Head south, and in a minute we'll walk beneath the Patata St. railroad bridge; which marks the border between Cudahy and the city of South Gate.

This approximately 2-mile section of the path through South Gate passes an interesting mix of residential neighborhoods and industrial facilities. Access to the path can be found off the Firestone Bl. bridge, and via gateways at the western ends of Southern Ave. and Tweedy St.

Looking south from the Southern Ave. entrance.

Just beyond Tweedy St., the 710 freeway crosses the river. A ramp provides access to the river channel for the Caltrans crews responsible for maintaining the bridge.

Standing beneath the freeway.

Walk under the freeway and to your right you'll see the future home of Parque Dos Rios. This 7.6 acre plot between the 710 and the river will someday be a wildlife habitat with trails and direct access to the bike path. About a half-dozen different organizations are involved in the project, yet 7 years after it was purchased in 2008 we're still waiting for something to get done.

I see lots of potential; what's taking so long?

Look across the river and you'll see the confluence of the L.A. River and the Rio Hondo. The Rio Hondo is a 16+ mile tributary that flows here from Irwindale. The Emerald Necklace trail runs along much of the river - but that's an adventure for another day.

Concrete, concrete,  everywhere - nor any drop to drink...

A few hundred yards past the 710 is the Imperial Highway bridge and just beyond that is the end of the South County Bike Path.

The end of the line...for now.

The L.A. River master plan will someday create a continuous path along the west side of the river. But for now, to continue south, we must backtrack and cross the bridge over to the east side where we'll find the LARIO Bike Path.

Now that's what I call a U-Turn!

In Part 9, I'll resume our journey and explore the southern section of the LARIO Bike Path. Along the way we'll visit some cool parks and see if there really is any drama in the LBC. Until then...


...see you on the river!

Chloe Canine-Angeleno




Some of the information I've shared in this blog came from the following sources:

LA Mountains

KCET

North East Trees 



All photographs were taken by my pack leader, Jim Gross 

Everything else was discovered by getting my paws dirty and the extensive use of my nose. 




For info about the places I've visited upstream from Vernon, click on the links below:

Part 1 - Western San Fernando Valley

Part 2 - Sepulveda Basin Recreation Area

Part 3 - Eastern San Fernando Valley

Part 4 - Burbank and Glendale

Part 5 - Glendale Narrows East

Part 6 - Glendale Narrows West

Part 7 - Downtown Los Angeles and Vernon