Griffith Park Opens After Wildfires

HOLLYWOOD, Calif. -- Some of the most popular attractions at Griffith Park are open this weekend, and cool skies and slight winds will mean a minimum of blowing ash and debris on parkgoers to the largest municipal park of its type in the nation, officials said Saturday.

City councilman Tom LaBonge's office said the park will be able to host thousands of people this weekend, as most of the grassy areas at its periphery are open and untouched by last week's fire that burned more than 800 acres in the center of the Los Angeles basin.

The Los Angeles Zoo, Autry Museum, the Observatory are all open, park officials said. But roadways inside the park remain closed, meaning the zoo and Autry Museum must be accessed from the exits near the Golden State (5) and Ventura (134) freeways interchange.

The park entrance from Forest Lawn Drive near Travel Town is closed, as is Travel Town itself.

Closer to the fire area, the merry-go-round, Old Zoo Picnic area and Vermont Canyon remain closed. Crystal Springs Drive is also closed to traffic.

At the park's southeast side, the train and pony rides and grassy picnic area near Los Feliz Boulevard are all open.

Vermont Canyon's picnic and tennis areas are closed, and the Greek Theater's ticket office is operating out of temporary quarters closer to Los Feliz Boulevard.

The Commonwealth and Vermont Avenue park entrances are closed, but shuttle buses are taking Observatory patrons with reservations up through the burned-out Vermont Canyon to the world-famous astronomy center.

All park hiking trails are closed until further notice, the councilman said.