The previous post ended with my heading back to the real world by walking down a narrow street curving along the side of a wooded hill. It turned out that my wandering adventure was only just getting started and that it would be sometime before I got back to the real world.

When that road reached a junction, I took the time to glance at a map. While glancing, a lady working in her yard asked me if I needed directions. I said that I was just getting my bearings and then mentioned how beautiful her neighborhood was and how lucky she was to live there. She agreed and added that life is about “appreciating brief moments of beauty.” Wandering sets you up to discover those brief moments of beauty every time you get out.

After saying our good-byes, I continued wandering through the neighborhood. I went along residential streets, along streets that are gated and now closed to automobile traffic, foot paths, and of course I climbed several more stairways. I was letting what I saw along the way determine the direction I would take next. An element of wandering is just letting your observations and hunches determine your route. Continue Reading →

If you’ve read The Gentle Art of Wandering you know that LA and many other communities have public stairways. These are not stairs providing a grand entrance into a public building or part of a tree line promenade through a city park. These are stairs in the middle of residential neighborhoods. Most were built when the only way for people to get around was on foot or by public transportation. They are perfect for wandering and allow you to explore a city from an unexpected angle.

I visited Los Angeles two years ago to see how the principles of wandering would play out in an urban environment by walking the stairs in the Echo Park and Silver Lake neighborhoods. That walk turned out to be one of the best trips I ever took and gave me a whole new respect for Los Angeles. Rather than touring the city by car, I was on foot and saw things that I never could have imagined were there. The adventure was every bit as satisfying as a backpack trip in the Sierra Nevada Mountains.

I returned to Los Angeles a couple of weeks ago to give a talk at a local REI and had time the next day for another stair walk. I decided to go back to the Echo Park and Silver Lake area to pick up some stairs I did not climb the first time. I brought along a copy of A Guide to the Public Stairways of Los Angeles by Bob Inman to help me find them. Continue Reading →