Walk It Out

2 days. 35 miles. 101 sets of stairs. Over 10 different neighborhoods. This weekend, Dan Koepple, the complete lunatic devoted pedestrian who climbed and documented every staircase in Los Angeles, is throwing his annual Big Parade: a two-day-long exploration of the worlds that lie between between downtown and Griffith Park. You can join the walk for as long as you want, at any point along the route, and it's a leisurely endeavor -- no bullwhips allowed.

Day one's route starts at the Angels Flight Stairs at 8 AM (right around the time that I will, personally, still be blearily making coffee and trying to get the hookers out of my apartment) then looping onward through downtown, where the theme will be "secret tunnels, mystery traverses, and utopian Los Angeles." We'll follow the LA river, drifting through pocket parks and hidden wildlife oases, up through Chinatown, into Echo Park for an exploration of the most ass-kicking stairways the city has on offer and a tour of the neighborhood's Victorian architecture. The day ends at the Music Box Park in Silverlake for a food-truck party and a screening of the film where the LA stairways made their debut, Laurel & Hardy's slapstick classic Why Can't I Get This Fucking Piano Up These Motherfucking Stairs?

Day two involves a "bushwhack" across a clandestine trail connecting Echo Park to Silverlake, a tour of the remnants of LA's old public transit system (yes, we actually had one, until General Motors destroyed it in 1946), followed by a ramble through the Franklin Hills stairways, a romp up to the Griffith Park Observatory and a sunset chillout above the Hollywood sign.

Day three involves ordering some Masa pizza at home and not doing a damn thing.

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• WHAT: An epic exploration of LA in The Big Parade
  
• WHERE: Join in anywhere on the route - check the timetables
• WHEN: All day (or as long as you want), Saturday 21st & Sunday 22nd
  
• $$$: Free