Runyon Canyon, "Celebrities" and L.A. Trendiness

View of Hollywood sign from Runyon Canyon

Ok, so in my continued effort at getting out and enjoying nature, I decided to try Runyon Canyon which I've known of for ages but had never actually gone to. Wait, I take that back. I had gone once, years ago, drove around in circles looking for parking, got frustrated and left never to go back again. Until about a month ago, that is.

First let me say this: I don't do trendy. At least not comfortably and without obvious awkwardness. And when I decided to go, I didn't realize it kind of was trendy. Maybe I should have, but I'm quite clueless that way. If I had to clarify what I mean by trendy I'd say that it's the fact that it's smack in the middle of Hollywood, where supposedly a lot of celebrities go, and there are a lot of people who look like Ken and Barbie. On one of my days there, two tall willowy girls slowly meandered while chatting, holding (glass) bottles of Perrier in their hands. No joke. I mean, seriously?

So here's the thing: parking still sucks, but I've been going a bit earlier in the day so it's not as bad as it could be. When you enter from the Fuller entrance, it does reek of dog pee, but after you get going it's not as bad, though that's' not to say it doesn't still smell in some places because it does. There are a lot of off-leash dogs there, so if you're not a dog person, this isn't the place for you. I have two dogs, which I took on several occasions and really loved watching them go crazy and play with the other dogs. Neither the dogs nor the icky pee/poo smell really bother me but I can see how it would be an issue for others for sure.

There are several trails, though I couldn't say how many total, and out of those I've only tried two. The steeper, stepped one really kicked my ass, but I'm also not in great shape. I've taken to doing the less steep one with no steps a couple of times over until I can do the other one without feeling like I might pass out.

Lastly, about celebrities. Because I'm not one of those people who are just to cool to notice or care. Of course I was staring at everyone who walked by the first couple of days. I was wearing sunglasses, but who's to say they couldn't feel my eyes on them? Or, you know, notice the full body tilt towards them as I tried to place their face? When I looked it up online for directions, I came across pics and reviews saying Jake Gyllenhaal and Reese Witherspoon have been spotted there at one time or another, along with other big names. While I was hoping (to put it mildly) for a Jake sighting, I'm sorry to say I saw neither him nor any other major celebrities . I saw the evil woman from last season's Amazing Race a couple of times (the brunette pictured here):

I wanted to chase her down and tell her how much I hated her on the show and how evil she was, but as it turns out, she is in shape and I never did quite catch up with her the first day. I saw her the next day too, but I worried she'd chase me and I knew I couldn't outrun her.


I saw Matthew Davis whom I know currently from The Vampire Diaries but has been in lots of other stuff:

And he actually looked very much like he does in this picture, which is to say he was shirtless. Loved it.

And funnily enough, I'm about 85% sure I saw Chris William Martin who was most recently also on Vampire Diaries, but whom I know mostly from Felicity. And maybe you're wondering how on earth anyone remembers a fairly minor character from an old TV show that ended ages ago. The answer is no less pathetic than because I am that crazy fan who never got over that show and watches it on DVD quite regularly still. Don't judge me. We've all got our issues, no? Anyway, this is him:

Admittedly, as I've gone enough times now, I don't stare as much. I actually just concentrate on my hike/work-out and try not pass out from the heat. Of course I still keep an eye out, but either there's no one else to see, or I'm just not looking very closely because I only see the regulars: Matthew Davis and The Amazing Race woman. I think Matthew Davis is on to me though. Maybe it was elbow to the ribs I repeatedly gave my friend while pointedly staring, that gave me away, but I can't say for sure.

Anyway, here are some pics I've taken. I should also mention that on some of these, my camera lens was dirty, except I didn't catch that until after I loaded the pics on my computer, so that's not a UFO up in the sky.

Woman on the floor taking a "wildlife" pic.

Enjoying Some Nature in Los Angeles

I'm not really a nature person, which is not to say I'm a hater either. It's just not something I spend too much time thinking about and I don't go out of my way to become one with it or whatnot. However, not too long ago during a drunken phone conversation with a nature-loving friend we playfully argued over the attractions we'd like to visit on a possible road trip we'd like to take from Los Angeles to Seattle. He mentioned beaches, mountains and hikes while I mentioned places like Hearst Castle, Steinbeck's House and the fantastically "haunted" Winchester House. When he expressed a disinterest in my ideas, I got, shall we say, miffed, and angrily slurred at him that if he didn't want to do any of my stuff, I was not interested in doing any of "that nature shit" he'd mentioned.

The next day, I'd just about forgotten the conversation until he kindly reminded me about the "I'm not doing any of that nature shit" remark. And then I felt bad. In all honesty, while it's really not my favorite thing to do, I'm quite okay with it in moderation. So, spurred into action by that conversation and my embarrassment at dissing his passion, I took it upon myself to become just a little more outdoorsy. Emphasis on a little.

I took it upon myself to try some beginner's hiking at Eaton Canyon in Pasadena and found that though I'm badly out of shape, I quite enjoyed my hike. Admittedly though, on the day I was there we encountered a couple of busloads of kids (probably from summer camps) which was annoying. It deterred my friend and me from going on the trail leading to the waterfall because we couldn't deal with all their screaming. The one we ended up on was steep and kicked my ass, but was a welcome work-out. On our way back from that trail however, we encountered a group of teenagers. Incredibly loud, cursing, obnoxious thirteen year-olds. They were somewhat lost and asked if they could follow us back out which I agreed to only on the condition that they quit their screaming and cut the cursing out (I'm not opposed to cursing, as previously evidenced, but not by smart-ass, obnoxious teenagers in the middle of my hike). Luckily, they agreed.

I went back a few days later and in a way it was a better experience. For one, I knew what to expect and there were no buses of kids, which was great. We took the waterfall trail which I quite enjoyed probably because there weren't too many people on it that we had to wait on or move around. I understand it gets quite busy during the weekends though.

Both times I went I couldn't help but note how incredibly friendly everyone out there was. Almost everyone we passed said hello or bid us a good morning with a smile. It was great! Is this a nature people thing? I don't know, but I liked it.

Later today I plan to go to Runyon Canyon to give that a try. I've actually been wanting to go there for ages so I'm really looking forward to it.  I'm not necessarily sure it counts as hiking but it's definitely more nature-y than shopping right? So it should count towards my effort to get outdoors more. I'm just sayin'.

Here are my pics from Eaton Canyon: