MEETING POINT: Plaza located on the WEST side of Hill St. between the MTA Pershing Square subway station and the base of Angels Flight 351 S. Hill St. – across the street from the Grand Central Market (1). [Reached via Red or Purple subway Line – Pershing Square Station – exit 4th St. west]

NOTE: Use the bold numbers such as (4), (10) to locate landmarks in Figure 1.

1. Locate the stairway that parallels Angels Flight (2) on the south side of the tracks. Climb the 121 steps that bring you to Angel’s Knoll. Continue to the next stairway and climb 51 more steps to the top of the lower level of the California plaza (3). Walk out to the pool and table area. [Checkout the fountains and water fall].
OPTION: Ride Angels Flight – cost is 50 cents one way. This will take you to the upper level of the California Plaza. Turn left and find a 36 step stairway on your right which will take you down to the lower level. QUESTION: Why is the upper terminal of Angel’s Flight above the level of the plaza?

2. Cross the plaza staying to your left (walk past Panda Express and Starbucks on your left). On the other side descend 17 wide steps to Grand Avenue. Cross Grand Ave., and climb 4 steps to the Wells Fargo plaza (4). [Checkout the large sculpture].

3. Walk straight across the plaza toward Nick and Stef’s Steakhouse (5), then drop down 21 steps heading off to your left and walk to Hope St.

4. Go straight on Hope St. toward 4th St. [You are on the top of Bunker Hill now]. Continue on Hope, crossing 4th St. A block on, Hope will bend left, but walk straight on toward the front doors of McCormick & Schmidt’s seafood restaurant (6), climb 5 steps up, jog to the right, and descend the 101 Bunker Hill Stairway steps.

5. At the bottom, cross 5th St. turn right, and walk along the rear of the Central Library (7), to Flower St. Turn left and then left again into the library’s front yard. Here, up an additional 16 steps you can tour the library’s gardens. Elevators and restrooms are available inside – walk through to the 1st floor center point and look to your left for the sign. [Also strongly suggested: go up to the second floor rotunda and note the paintings and the general architecture]. Allow 15 minutes for the library visit.

6. Return to the center point on the 1st floor. Look for the library door leading to Hope St. (90 degrees on the right from where you first entered from the garden). Exit the library, and we will hold here to gather the group.

7. Descend the next collection of stairs (total of 41) descending onto Hope St. [Checkout the constellation of “stars” in the street – look back up at the door lintel, and up at the library building itself].

6. Continue on Hope St. for half a block to 6th St. Turn right on 6th St. and walk 1 block to Flower St. passing the Standard Hotel (8) on your right [note that the hotel sign up on building wall is mounted upside down]. Cross Flower St. at the corner and turn right walking the sidewalk alongside the City National Bank building and plaza. [Note, but please do not climb the orange stairs leading to nowhere in mid-plaza – a counterpart to the bridge to nowhere?].

7. Just before reaching 5th St., find the staircase rising up ahead of you. These steps lift you up over 5th St., climbing 42 steps to the pedestrian overpass, and continue to the other side. Find the interior staircase going up on the right side. Take these two flights up for a total of 42 steps, and land on the plaza level high above 5th and Flower.

8. The broad open space is part of the Bonaventure Hotel property (9). Walk westerly straight across the plaza between the swimming pool on the left and the Bonaventure Brewing Co. beer hall and restaurant on the right, toward signs for the pedestrian bridge straight ahead. Take this footpath-overpass across Figueroa St. to another wide open plaza.

9. Walk diagonally up and to your right across the plaza, past the double duck pond, to the far right-hand corner of the property. There find a sidewalk leading you down to 4th St. Turn right and head downhill half a block to Figueroa. Turn left at the corner of Figueroa and 4th St., cross 4th St. and continue a half block under a busy overpass toward the LA Hotel Downtown (10) [Called the Marriot in Figure 1].

10. Turn in at the hotel entry driveway and walk through the front doors of the hotel. [Checkout restrooms on your far left of the lobby]. Dead ahead across the lobby is an escalator. Take it up to the second floor, walk straight ahead to the end of the corridor, turn left, and walk again to the end of that corridor and turn left. Continuing down this corridor [NOTE the water fountain on the left] will bring you to a hotel exit and a pedestrian walkway. [We have basically made a 180 deg. CCW U-turn].

11. Exit the hotel via the pedestrian bridge crossing over Figueroa once more, entering the World Trade Center building (11). Just after entering, look to your right and head up another escalator. Exit the World Trade Center, and use the walkway to enter the Bonaventure Hotel.(9)

12. At this point some OPTIONS present themselves. You enter on the 6th floor of the hotel. Note that there are circular stairways between floors (26 stairs each) leading up and down. There are also elevators for those weak of heart & knee. We will spend the next 15 minutes exploring this building, using the stairs, of course. Of particular interest is the view from the 32nd floor in one of the outside elevators. Another are the water arches opposite the registration desk on the first floor lobby [It goes without saying: Don't put your finger in the stream].

13. Return to the 6th floor. NOTE: If you use the elevator, select floor 5, exit the elevator and take the nearest stairway up to the 6th floor. There are signs giving directions posted at stairway intersections. Navigate to the exit that leads to the pedestrian bridge leading to the YMCA building (12) our next target (NOTE: Landmark: Hamburger Pho restaurant to the right of the exit to the YMCA). At this point we will again hold (on the bridge) to gather the group.

14.The bridge exiting the Bonaventure hotel crosses Flower St. and heads toward the YMCA building (12). Bear left and follow along the north side of the YMCA, [noting sculptures along the way]. continuing to the next corner, cross 4th St. and turn into the Bank of America gardens (13). Explore the gardens for 10 minutes, and when finished, wind around the gardens and the front of the BOA building [checkout the large red sculpture] and find your way to Hope St. Cross Hope St., and head north (left) on Hope St. for several blocks (crossing 3rd, Kosciuszko and 2nd) toward the Walt Disney Concert Hall (14).

15. As you approach - but not cross 1st St. - make a hairpin right turn onto the Disney property, taking the staircase up 41 steps to the garden level. [Checkout the “Rose for Lilly” fountain - see details below]. Slide past this, bending left with the contour of the building, ultimately finding another staircase heading up toward the top of the concert hall. This stairway consists of a number of sections totaling 124 steps which brings you to an observation point where you can overlook the city. When finished, descend another stairway, located just beyond the observation point, down to the plaza level and then down to Grand Ave. At this point there are two options.

OPTION 1 – End the hike and return to the Meeting Point:
a) Go to the NW corner of 2nd & Grand, cross Grand, then 2nd to the SE corner. Head downhill on 2nd St. and take the first staircase on the right taking you 24 steps up onto the plaza outside the Colburn School (15). Continue dead ahead a couple of blocks along the back entrance to the Museum of Contemporary Art (16), until you find yourself back on the upper level of the water garden of the California Plaza.

b)Circle around to your left until you see the top terminus of Angels Flight (2) using it to descend to Hill St. – or continue beyond Angels Flight terminus and look for the beginning of the stairways that will take you down 56 steps to Angel’s Knoll, then another 121 steps down to Hill St. This finishes the hike.

OPTION 2 – Grand Park, Chinatown and lunch at Philipe’s French Dip Restaurant: (see Figure 2)
a) Go to the NW corner of 2nd & Grand, cross Grand, then 2nd to the SE corner. Continue north on the east side of Grand until reaching access to Grand Park (essentially across the street from the Music Center patio and fountain area (17)). Descend into the gardens between the LA County Sherriff’s building on your right, and the LA County Supervisor’s building on your left.

b) Wander about the park checking out the various fountains [main one is the Arthur J. Will Memorial Fountain], lawns, pink benches/tables, and the performance space. Cross Hill St., and continue your wander. The park runs between the Music Center and City Hall, Grand Ave., to Spring St. but we will leave the park upon reaching Broadway where we will turn left and continue north crossing Temple St., the Santa Anna freeway, Cesar Chavez and eventually arrive at Ord St. Broadway serves as the main street of Chinatown [checkout all of the small shops with exotic (and not so exotic) stuff for sale]. Cross Ord and turn right walking a couple of blocks to Phillipe’s. Enjoy a French Dip and a beer.

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