Hello!
The Hollywood sign is probably one of the most iconic sights in America. A few interesting facts:
1. It was originally created as a real-estate advertisement in the 1920's but then it eventually began to deteriorate.
2. This led Playboy magazine founder Hugh Hefner to pay for a replacement in 1978.
3. This replacement still stands today and it gets a fresh coat of white paint every now and then.
4. The letters are 13.7 meters (45 feet) tall and the sign is a total of 106.7 meters (250 feet) long.
5. In 1976, people covered the sign in black material to make it read 'HOLLYWEED' as part of an art project which celebrated the state law that decriminalised the possession of small amounts of marijuana.
6. People have also vandalised and damaged the letters. Because of this public access to the site is prohibited and security cameras have been installed along with razor wire fences and motion sensors and microphones.
However, you can still get pretty close to the sign and get a great view of the city.
If you type the Hollywood sign into google or Uber it will take you to The Brush Canyon Trail. This is because people in the neighbouring area complained about tourists walking along their roads to get to the sign so google diverts you to a further away destination. If you want a 3 hour hike then this location is great. But if you want a shorter route which involves less up hill hiking head to 3390 Deronda Drive.
Parking is tricky because the roads are small and winding. So we got an Uber up there which meant parking wasn't an issue. Another thing to note is that locals also put unofficial cones and road signs up to make it look like the road is closed or there is no public access. But you CAN access the road.
When you get to Deronda drive you should see a gate. To the left of it is a door which you can walk through.
Walk through the gate and up the walk way. You should be able to see two paths. The path to the left leads you to a picture spot of the sign and the path to the right is the trail which leads you all the way up to the Hollywood sign.
This is what it looks like from the Hollwood sign picture spot:
We then followed the path on the right to get up to the top! It's a beautiful walk and on a clear day you can see out to the sea. When you get to this sign follow the arrow to Mt Lee Summit.
It's not a difficult walk and it took us about 30 minutes to get to the top. We went in the morning which meant that it was less busy and cool so we didn't get too sweaty! I would definitely recommend starting the walk at around 9am.
This is definitely in my top 3 things to do in LA! If I ever do this again I would bring a picnic and have it at the top!
E x