G'day LA by luxury e-bike: Griffith Park, Observatory to LA River

Our local guide will meet you at our dedicated bike bungalow in adorable Atwater Village, an easy walkable neighborhood known for its cafe scene and artisanal shopping. We'll introduce you to your ebike and get you acquainted (yes all the ebikes have names!) and fitted with safety gear.

We head off into quiet residential streets for the LA River.

We enter the river at the new car-free "Red Car Pedestrian Bridge", so named after the legendary Red Car Rail Trolleys that rumbled over the L.A. River at the same spot more than 60 years ago. The new metal bridge, with red stripes running down its sides, is for pedestrians and cyclists only. We'll also learn about our beloved LA River, the lifeblood of Los Angeles throughout its early history, providing essential water for life in this arid region. Without this river, LA would have never existed. We’ll be standing under Hyperion Bridge, a replica of which also has been built in Disneyland. Walt Disney lived 5mins away in Los Feliz where he created Mickey Mouse in his Aunt and Uncles garage. He later, had his first Studio here in Silver Lake and was a regular at Tam O’Shanter, table 31 right here in Atwater Village. Built in the late 1920s and early 1930s, the Glendale Hyperion Bridge complex has been designated as a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument.

Secret tunnels and trails abound in the wild backside of Griffith Park. A vast, wild, mostly untouched mountainous landscape of roughly 4,210 acres smack in the center of our urban metropolis, Griffith Park is 5 times the size of New York's Central Park. Riders can encounter native wildlife (bobcats anyone?), hikers, horse riders and more! Designated as an Historic-Cultural Monument (HCM) and the largest municipal park with urban wilderness in the United States, the park’s natural chapparal-covered terrain and manicured picnic areas is also home to the Los Angeles Zoo, the Autry Museum of the American West, the Griffith Observatory, and the Hollywood Sign - ALL of which you'll see on this ride

We'll stop at this historic museum founded by Hollywood’s singing cowboy Gene Autry, a 36,000-square foot complex with over 500,000 works of art and artifacts from the American frontier plus cool Western film memorabilia - from the pistols used by Steve McQueen to costumes from 2005’s Brokeback Mountain. There’s even a replica movie set of an Old Western town with storefronts. (Little-known fact: The first-ever feature-length movie filmed in Hollywood was a Western—the 1914 silent film The Squaw Man, directed by Cecil B. DeMille. The camera used to film it is here, too.)

We stop for a photo opp in front of the massive steel gates at the landmark L.A. Zoo, which is home to thousands of animals – including one of the largest troops of chimpanzees in North America. Fun Fact: There’s a dedicated Zoo Magnet High School nearby offering 300 students a college preparatory curriculum focused on animal studies and biological sciences.

We ride right into Travel Town's "railroad petting zoo," and explore all the trains, big and small, along with the Museum and its fascinating history. Founded in the 1940s as an opportunity for the children of Los Angeles to "imagineer" themselves as engineers you'll find vintage automobiles as well as locomotives and freight cars.

Walt Disney's Carolwood Barn is a miniature barn that Walt himself built on his ranch pre-Disneyland. It was designed from his memory of the family's barn in Marceline, MO. IMPORTANT NOTE: only open on the third Sunday of each month from 11AM to 3PM, weather permitting

There are several opportunities for our riders to view the Hollywood Sign. Once from Griffith Observatory, and the others from deeper inside the park, most memorably on a secret trailhead our founder Gavin has nicknamed “Rockin' Ridge” because it's such a rockin view!

Made famous by the movie LA LA Land with Ryan Gosling & Emma Stone’s dancing sequence, this stop also offers a breathtaking view of the Valley, Disney Animation Studios in Burbank, the San Gabriel Mountains, Verdugo Hills and down into Royce's Canyon. We'll also stop at The Notch, which overlook Hollywoods, WeHo (West Hollywood) Palos Verdes, Santa Moncia, Century City. On a clear day you can also see Catalina Island, the Pacific Ocean and Santa Barbara.

The magnificent jewel of LA. We ride right up to the Observatory's entrance like a VIP skipping the line, gliding right past parked cars and pedestrians puffing uphill, park the bikes and enjoy walking around the grounds, made famous in dozens of movies including “La La Land,” “Jurassic Park,” “Back to the Future,” “Terminator” and “Transformers". A bronze bust of James Dean immortalizes the filming of "Rebel Without a Cause." Enjoy panoramic views of the Los Angeles basin and Catalina Island plus coin operated telescopes. Perched on Mt Hollywood overlooking the glittering LA skyline and Hollywood Sign, the art-deco era Observatory is almost as iconic as the Hollywood sign.

We stop for a photo opp in the front of the historic Greek Theatre, which stands as one of the nation's most beloved and recognized outdoor entertainment. First opened in 1930, the Greek has played host to some of the biggest legends in music – from Sir Elton John, Aretha Franklin, Frank Sinatra, Bruce Springsteen, Carlos Santana, Jefferson Airplane, Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, Joan Baez, Pete Seeger, B.B. King, Miles Davis, Bob Dylan, Bonnie Raitt and many more. Between 1967 and 1989, The Grateful Dead performed 29 times at the Greek.

We exit the park into quiet, hillside residential streets of Los Feliz, known as the birthplace of one of California’s most iconic celebrities: Mickey Mouse. Walt Disney was living in the garage of his aunt and uncle’s Los Feliz house when he first drew the character that would become the world’s best-known mouse. He would later open his first animation studio just down the street.

We’ll head back to the LA River, stopping by the new La Kretz Crossing, also known as the North Atwater Bridge - a cable-stayed steel pedestrian bridge that crosses the Los Angeles River, linking Griffith Park with Atwater Village. We’ll ride down LA River, past equestrian stables, to another smaller bridge at Sunnynook known as "Love Lock Bridge" where visitors have attach personalized padlocks to its railing, like it’s more famous Parisian cousin.

Two massive 24-foot diameter bicycle spoke and rims however over this bridge - named for Alexandre Baum, the German-born, French Resistance fighter and Holocaust survivor who stewarded cycling in LA. Growing up in France, and the Tour de France, his family would host athletes of color (such as a Jessie Owens) who weren't able to find lodgings while competing near their home. Inclusive mobility and activity would be a theme throughout his life. As part of the 1984 Olympic organizing committee, he was responsible for adding the women's road race to the Olympics. Later on, he would also help develop cycling programs and recreational facilities for inner city kids in Los Angeles. He helped secure the funding for the construction of Olympic Velodromes in Carson, CA and at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado. He also helped build the velodromes in Dominguez Hills and Encino, as well as pioneered the Amgen Tour of California bike race, one of the four cycling stage races in the world.

Rolling back into Atwater Village's quiet residential streets we’ll visit a designated “national champion” - a huge avocado tree over 100 years old that is the largest of its kind in the nation.

Home Sweet Home! Congratulations on an epic ride!