Baxter's Not Bashful!

Go on an Urban Stairway Walk in Echo Park

Step up your cardio routine with a climb up the steepest stairway in LA. Baxter Stairs in Echo Park will have you huffing and puffing for 231 concrete steps, delivering a heart-pumping workout with gorgeous views of the city’s icons: a western panorama of Echo Park, Silver Lake and Los Feliz along with the Hollywood Sign and Griffith Observatory.

When you reach Park Drive at the top, cross the street to admire the downtown LA skyline.

Continue your urban hike by walking northeast on Park Drive to reach the Elysian Park Trail entrance. Make a right on this 2.3-mile, low-key loop, a quiet beauty despite the surrounding urban landscape. The trail meanders through a rugged woody area with glimpses of skyscrapers through the trees. 

Once you reach Academy Road, make a sharp left onto Elysian Park Drive, a wider paved road that passes by the Chavez Ravine Arboretum, a serene grassy stretch covered in over 100 varieties of trees from around the world, some dating back to 1893. Make a left after Grace E. Simons Lodge to get back on the dirt path. 

Be sure to stop by Marian Harlow Memorial Grove, a sanctuary of succulents and native plantings diligently tended by garden volunteers. When you finish the loop, retrace your steps to descend Baxter Stairs. Watch your step!

Brunch Bonus: Replenish at Lady Byrd Cafe (2100 Echo Park Ave.), offering a nice selection of eggy dishes, crisp salads, and fresh juices which you can enjoy in a rustic garden patio decorated with whimsical floating parasols. 

Free street parking is available on Echo Park Ave. by the cafe. Walk up Baxter St. east three and a half blocks to find the staircase. 

Story and photos by Yvonne Pasquini, @yvonne_pasquini

Trending Stories NorCal

View all Stories
  1. Field of Light at Sensorio in Paso Robles

    Light This Way

    Hidden in the bucolic hills of Paso Robles lies one of the greatest light shows on earth. The lighted art exhibition, Sensorio, is as if the rainbow magic of the aurora borealis was plucked from the sky and planted in the fields.

    View
  2. Bikers and walkers on the Bay Area Ridge Trail with the Golden Gate Bridge behind them

    National Park City Walk

    See San Francisco the way locals do by hiking the Presidio, a national park right in the city! Wooded trails, secluded beaches, and epic views of the Golden Gate Bridge feature on this 5.5-mile out-and-back on the Bay Area Ridge Trail. It’s a lovely slice of the City by the Bay.

    View
  3. Bucks Up!

    Come on in, the water is beautiful. Whether you like swimming, kayaking, stand-up paddling, or heading out on a bigger boat, Bucks Lake is a high mountain haven that’s easy to access, blissfully uncrowded, and surrounded by sandy beaches, picnic areas, pines, and aspens.

    View
  4. Surfboards and tents for shade are set up on the beach at Cull Canyon Regional Recreation Area in the Swim Lagoon Area

    Switchbacks and Swimming Holes

    Hike hard, play hard! This 7-mile out-and-back in Cull Canyon Regional Recreation Area is a great workout with payoff vistas and a relaxing post-hike picnic and dip in the water.

    View

Trending Stories SoCal

View all Stories
  1. Bear Hug

    This 5.5-mile loop through Coyote Lake-Harvey Bear Ranch County Park explores one of the newest segments of the acclaimed Bay Area Ridge Trail, one redolent with trees ranging from madrone and manzanita to buckeye and blue elderberry (with a bubbly post-hike bonus).

    View
  2. Two kayakers on Upper Klamath Basin on tour with Sky Lakes Wilderness Adventures

    Zen & the Art of Kayaking

    It’s the most meditative and relaxing experience you’ll ever have on a kayak. Yes, you read that right, a Zen experience on a kayak. It all happens in beautiful Klamath County when you head out on a guided tour with Sky Lakes Wilderness Adventures.

    View
  3. A Rose in the Pines

    A crackling fire, a bottle of wine, a bubbling Jacuzzi tub with a waterfall … now the big question: Marvin Gaye tunes or not? In the morning (ahem) it's breakfast in bed and a leis

    View
  4. Alex Villicana, Villicana Winery and Re:Find Distillery

    Locals' Feature: Alex Villicana

    Tech booms, AI revolutions, okay that’s all fine, but you wanna know what else is really cool? Being a pioneer in a world-famous industry that—in Paso Robles—remains solidly down to earth. When Alex Villicana established Villicana Winery in 1993, he clearly had grape expectations...

    View