The Los Angeles River #7: Downtown Los Angeles & Vernon

Greetings fellow Canine Angelenos!

Welcome to Part 7 of my dog-centric look at our unique river.

Today we'll visit the industrial heart of Los Angeles County and explore an 8-mile gap in the LA River Bike Path that stretches from Frogtown to Vernon. 

This part of the river is difficult to get to. Miles of train track and massive industrial facilities run along both banks - leaving us with almost no safe or legal access. 

It's no wonder most Angelenos have only experienced this portion of the river through their car windows as they cross one of the seventeen bridges and freeway overpasses connecting Chinatown to Lincoln Heights, the Arts District to Boyle Heights, and crisscrossing Vernon.

Soaking my paws beneath the Atlantic Bl. bridge

But big changes are coming.

The revitalization of the river is moving forward and there are a variety projects planned, underway, or recently completed that will someday reconnect the citizens of Los Angeles to their river. Over the next several years, the city plans to turn our under-appreciated waterway into an asset that will make any dog proud to be called a Canine Angeleno.

For now, this is still largely an auto-tour adventure, but there are a few places to stretch our legs along the way.
 

Let's go for a r-i-d-e!
 

In Part 6, I finished my visit to the Glendale Narrows by "marking a spot" between the old and new Riverside-Figueroa bridges.

Feb. 2015: Lots of work still being done on the bridges. Follow the detour signs.

Looking west, we can see the eastern edge of Elysian Park. There certainly is a lot of fun to be had in one of the city's largest parks, but it deserves it own blog post and I'll share those discoveries with you in the near future.

For now we're going to follow the river downstream, which quickly passes under the Pasadena (110) Freeway.

From Elysian Park you can see the river flow toward the heart of the city.

Our first stop is in Lincoln Heights. The Ed P. Reyes River Greenway is a one acre 'parklet' that sits next to the Gold Line tracks. You can access it from the north end of Avenue 18 or the intersection of Avenue 19 and Humboldt St.

It was named after former City Councilman Ed Reyes, a friend of the LA River.

Its primary function is to clean storm water before it enters the river, but it also provides the neighborhood with a nice space to relax in and get their paws dirty. A path takes us along a tiny stream with a footbridge, benches, and info signs. There's a water fountain and trash cans too, but no poop bags.

It's L.A.'s first greenway built and managed solely by the Bureau of Sanitation.

When you're done at the greenway, drive south on Avenue 18 or Avenue 19 to Pasadena Ave. and take a right. To your right is the North Broadway bridge, once the longest concrete arch bridge in California. Drive over it and enjoy the views. 

The Gold Line overpass and the Broadway bridge.

Once over the river, you'll pass the south entrance to Elysian Park then enter Chinatown. When you get to College St. take a left. Take the next left onto N. Spring St. and in about 1/4 of a mile you'll come to the fenced off home of Los Angeles State Historic Park aka. "The Cornfield".

Partially opened in 2006, it closed in April 2014 for a major renovation. When it reopens this November, there will be 32 acres of new park and a great view of the river.

Downtown as seen from the 'Cornfield' when I visited in 2013.

Continue driving past the state-park-to-be. In a moment you'll pass some warehouses, then cross the North Spring St. bridge. As of Feb. 2015, it's being repaired and looks more like a construction site than a bridge. However, you get an excellent view of the Broadway bridge to your left before returning to Lincoln Heights.

Take a right onto Avenue 18, the next right onto Albion St., and the next right again onto Avenue 17, where you'll find the Downey Recreation Center. 

It's your standard city recreation center - community building, baseball field, basketball court, a couple of picnic benches and a playground. Some nice grass and a water fountain too...but no poop bags. What's different about this recreation center is the high fence that runs all along it's western border.

The fence and construction on the Spring St. bridge are signs of good things too come.

On the other side of that fence is the future home of Albion Riverside Park. Scheduled for completion in 2016, the park will be a 6-acre addition (with riverfront access) to the existing recreation center.

 Stuck my nose through the fence to get a sniff. See you in 2016!

When you're ready to continue, go south on Avenue 17 until it intersects with N. Main St. You could take a right and cross the North Main St. bridge, but today we're going to take a left and travel east for a minute.

As of Feb. 2015, the Main St. bridge is also being repaired.

Just past the San Diego (5) Freeway, take a right onto Daly St., then your next right onto N. Mission Rd. As you drive along N. Mission Rd., look to your right at the largest piece of privately owned property in Los Angeles: The Los Angeles Transfer Container Facility, better known as the Piggyback Yard.

Downtown looms over the Piggyback Yard.

You're looking at Union Pacific's Mission Rail Yard. It's the last of LA's great rail yards and the crown jewel of the city's revitalization plans for the river. The goal is to take this 125 acres of shipping containers and create a large riverfront park alongside commercial and residential projects. 

The Piggyback Yard, San Diego Freeway, and Lincoln Heights

N. Mission Rd. ends at E. Cesar Chavez Ave. Take a right to cross the Cesar E. Chavez bridge and get another quick view of the Piggyback Yard.

Take a left onto N. Vignes St., then the next left onto Ramirez St.. Continue straight onto Center St. as you go beneath the Hollywood (101) Freeway overpass.  

Stay on Center St. until, just past E. Temple St., you'll veer right onto Santa Fe Ave. Now it's time to get out the car and do some exploring.

As you travel south on Santa Fe Ave., you'll have access to the deck of the 1st St. and 4th St. bridges. Park near one of them and climb the easy to find stairs for a close-up view of Merrill Butler's bridge building handiwork and some great views of the city.

The Gold Line tracks into Downtown along the 1st St. bridge.

The 4th St. bridge with the 1st St. bridge in the distance.

While the 6th St. bridge doesn't have stairs to its deck from Santa Fe Ave., it does have Downtown's only easy access to the river itself. Walk under the bridge on a graffiti covered, concrete ramp that ends in the river channel. Even if you've never been here before, you've seen this place many times on TV and in movies.

Standing beneath the 6th St. bridge looking upstream.

Visit the 6th St. bridge soon because its been tagged as unlikely to survive a major earthquake and is scheduled for demolition in 2015. This great looking replacement bridge should be ready by the end of 2018.

6th St. is the longest of Downtown's bridges and the only one with a steel arch.

There is also easy access to the 7th St. bridge from Santa Fe Ave. Originally built in 1910, it's known as the "stacked bridge" because a second deck was built on top of the first one in 1927.

The stacking is easy to see from beneath the 6th St. bridge.

The neighborhood around Santa Fe Ave. is a popular film and TV location. Don't be surprised if traffic stops temporarily while the crew gets their shot.

The 7th St. bridge - shut down for filming.

After you've seen the 7th St. bridge, continue south on Santa Fe Ave. You'll go under the Santa Monica (10) Freeway overpass before taking a left onto E. Olympic Bl.

Cross the Olympic Bl. bridge (the 9th St. bridge until the 1932 Olympics) and you'll pass the historic 1927 Sears building. Take the next right onto S. Soto St.

Shortly you'll approach E. Washington Bl. Take a right. The E. Washington Bl. bridge is the last car bridge crossing the river in the city of Los Angeles.

Railroad bridges run beside the Washington St. bridge just before the river leaves LA.

Once you're back on the west side of the river, take a left onto S. Santa Fe Ave. You're about to enter the heavily industrialized city of Vernon, where you'll cross the river 3 times in about a mile by turning left onto E. 26th St., right onto S. Soto St., then left onto Bandini Bl. 

These bridges aren't as fancy as the ones in Downtown LA, but are vital as the river makes a sharp turn to the east, right through the center of the city.

Downtown and the Soto St. bridge near the border of Vernon and Boyle Heights

A great "piggy" mural can be found near Farmer John's on the Bandini Bl. bridge.

Another 1/2 mile or so east on Bandini takes you over the Downey Rd. bridge. Soon the river and Bandini Bl. turn slightly southeast, surrounded by warehouses and a tangled web of train tracks.

Stay on Bandini until you go under the Long Beach (710) Freeway overpass then take a right onto S. Atlantic Bl. Ahead of you is the Atlantic Bl. bridge. On the southwest corner of the bridge is a gateway that marks the start of the bike path to Long Beach - the last stop on today's journey.

At last! The path to Long Beach. I think such an important spot deserves a nicer gateway.

I hope you've enjoyed my river trek through the center of Los Angeles and that you'll join me again for my next blog. I'll be heading into South LA County and checking out some great parks along the way!



See you on the river!

Chloe Canine-Angeleno




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

Los Angeles River Revitalization Corporation

The Los Angeles Conservancy

KCET 

Down By The Los Angeles River

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 places to visit upstream from Downtown L.A., 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