East Side of the Park
The Broadway entrance to Elysian Park was the original “face” of the park. Park Row Drive looped new automotive sightseers up to Buena Vista point. Continuing northward it connects with Grand View Drive which winds around the (now emptied) reservoir and up to Point Grandview. Grand View Drive then takes you past the 18-hole Chavez Ridge Disc Golf Course and meets up with Angels Point Road.
At this intersection is historic Solano Canyon with educational playground, a soccer field, tennis courts and soon-to-be splash pad..
But continuing on Angels Point Road takes you past the Little League fields of Elysian Fields. Adjacent are shaded picnic areas with grills, a children’s playground and a large meadow for games and picnics.
At Panorama Point take the short trail past the Water tower to hook up with Angels point road again. Off this Date Palm-lined, hilltop road. A trail leading to the Helipad viewpoint is off to the left. Keep following the road past the “pops” of the Police Academy gun range.
At Angels Point is a 28 ft. tall modernist sculpture by Echo Park artist Peter Shire (honoring Grace and her husband Frank). A meadow with picnic tables and another lookout are adjacent.
Continue winding down Angels’ Point Road and you are blocked by busy Stadium Way where pedestrians are cut off from the West Side.
The same West Side hiking rules apply, but a few trails can be more remote in the East so parties of two or more are suggested.
Broadway Entrance
Was the original “face” of the park when it opened in 1886, winding landscaped roads welcomed sightseers lucky enough to test the era’s latest invention: the automobile!
Buena Vista Meadows
The first stop in from the Broadway entrance is a tree-lined space with an open meadow. At the western edge you can find trail connectors that access the lower trails of Buena Vista Hill.
Buena Vista Hill
Has spectacular views from the top overlooking freeways on the Park Drive bridge, and out across the City to the East at Buena Vista Point. There are fire roads to hike surrounding the hill but they are less frequented so can be susceptible to encampments. To activate this area a 12-hole disc golf course called Zanja Madre is in the works.
Casanova Terraces
In the 1920s “Travelers’ Auto Camps” were built to encourage automobile use and travel. These free camps had bathroom facilities, water and other amenities for families on their journeys. Today the ruins remain as a piece of history.
Solano Community Garden
This Elysian Park space was for Solano Canyon residents to have a community garden. But the need for locked gates has turned it into a private garden only open to the public for a couple hours on Saturdays.
Radio Hill
Was intended for public use. The paved road to the top is lined with non-fruiting California olive trees. The top of the hill in the modern era houses communications antennae behind locked gates. The trail doesn’t easily access other trails so has been cut off and has been susceptible to recurring fires from encampments. We want to reactivate this area with a possible native tree nursery at the top and new trails for off-leash dog walking.
Carob Grove
Next to the former Reservoir is a small quiet space for picnics. In 2025, inspired by Joseph Beuys’s groundbreaking 7000 Oaks project, the Broad Museum’s “Social Forest: Oaks of Tovaangar” reforestation project planted 100 California Live Oak trees starting here and winding up Park Row Drive. Each one marked by a boulder.
Elysian Reservoir
Was decommissioned permanently in 2016. The synthetic floating mat covering it today is to comply with EPA guidelines protecting from microbes and sunlight-induced reactions.
Point Grandview
Overlooking the now-closed reservoir is Point Grandview. It offers a panoramic view of Downtown, interconnected freeways, and towns to the south and east. An incredible vantage point to our sprawling metropolis.
Chavez Ridge Disc Golf Course
Is an 18 hole certified course that runs from the intersection of Grand View and Park Drives and along Angels Point Road. It is not beginner friendly as it spans 2 miles of ridges. It’s ranked as extremely hilly and takes around 2 hours to complete.
Elysian Fields
Home to Los Angeles Little League Baseball, stunning views, children’s playground and shaded picnic areas with grills big enough to roast an entire pig!
San Gabriel Panorama
Adjacent to the parking lot for Elysian Fields you can walk out onto this panoramic point and take in the majesty of the San Gabriel Mountains. Reconnect with Angels Point Road by taking the trail next to the water tower.
Solano Canyon
With its educational children’s playground, soccer field, tennis courts and soon-to-be splash pad. It serves as the starting point for 5 and 10k marathons in the park. The main entrance is at Academy Road, the end of Solano Canyon Drive connects you to the paved roads of the other key eastern sides of the park.
Adaptive Recreation Center
Provides after-school care and summer camps for the local community. The center also offers programs for those with disabilities and special needs. And can be reserved for park functions.
Academy Switchback to Helipad
The fire road that’s visible from the long meadow along Academy Road (next to the Rec Center) is a switchback leading to the helipad. The lower portions have quiet wooded gladesto explore.
Police Academy
It was a gun range in 1925 and still is today! The building opened in 1935 and the first trained police officers graduated in 1936. The public can visit the diner-style cafe 6am-1pm Monday through Friday. Make sure to see the Rock Garden with its waterfalls and pools as well.
