The Los Angeles River
In 2008 I found myself on a tour of the LA River with naturalist Jenny Price. She first took us to a spot just north of the Sepulveda Dam, one of the few soft-bottomed sections of the river. I saw egrets, stilts, herons, and a host of other river birds, and the lush overgrowth was not at all what I normally associated the LA River with - the dystopian concrete flood channel I had seen depicted in so many Hollywood films.
Later that day we walked down a dark foreboding tunnel under the 6th Street Bridge. We emerged smack in the riverbed, about an inch of water beneath our feet and a coating of slippery moss that made walking in the shallow waters an adventure. The concrete banks were almost completely covered with years of graffiti, and a deep channel of water ran down the center of the river that made the crossing from one side to the other impossible.
This was where the race scene from Grease was filmed, and it turns out that the tunnel was the primary access ramp for the film crews who came to capture the weird and unique settings at this iconic LA location. I didn’t know that years later I would be leading my own river tours down there, and would get to watch the faces of people as they too emerged from that tunnel into that surreal concrete landscape.
Over the years I’ve gotten to work with many river folks, the amazing and tireless people at FoLAR (Friends of the LA River) like Lewis MacAdams, Shelly Backlar and many others. I photographed many river cleanups and events as well as the historic LA River Expedition organized by river kayaker George Wolfe that changed the official designation of the river and got it the protection it desperately needed.
While once you had to sneak through fences just to get near the river, I now see kayakers navigate the whitewater along the Glendale Narrows and cyclists shoot up and down the adjacent bike path with the cool river breezes at their back. The graffiti is long gone as are many of those fences.
The river is changing, and I have no doubt that someday it will be truly recognized as the centerpiece of our city. I am blessed that I got to document some of those changes during such a transformational time. Already in some places it is almost unrecognizable, the landscape has changed so considerably.
These photos are in geographical order, from the river’s source in Canoga Park, down to Long Beach where it empties into the sea. But do yourself a favor and explore its many parts in person, there are 51 miles of it. Some of it is lush and overgrown, some sections almost bucolic in both sight and sound. Parts of the south river are so expansive, it’s like a concrete desert with an oasis running down its center, with room to run and ride forever. Experience it and make it your own, I hope these photos inspire you enough to do so.
Links to some of my published work on the LA River
Time: The Redemption of the LA River
These are fun - Curbed LA: 9 views of the LA River before and after it was paved in 1938
Grist: Lost and found: Scenes from the Los Angeles River
All copies of my LA River book have sold out, sorry. I may reprint in the future, be sure to subscribe to my newsletter to find out info about all my book and print endeavors.
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