The Shakespeare Bridge spanning Franklin Avenue
BOUNDARIES: Franklin Ave., Fountain Ave., Talmadge St., Hyperion Ave.
DISTANCE: About 0.75 mile
DIFFICULTY: Moderate (includes stairways)
PARKING: Free street parking is available on the north side of Franklin Ave., east of the Shakespeare Bridge.
Nestled between Los Feliz and Silver Lake, Franklin Hills is another of central Los Angeles’s endearing hilly neighborhoods. This residential area was developed in the 1920s as a quiet community centrally located in the midst of the sprawling metro area, and today it retains an old-fashioned, neighborly quality that many of LA’s newer developments lack. This impression is reinforced by the two very long concrete stairways that connect the region’s winding streets, giving neighbors relatively easy walking access to one another’s homes while keeping their hearts and lungs in great condition.
Begin just east of the 
Shakespeare Bridge on Franklin Avenue. Built in 1926, this distinctive white structure bridged the way, so to speak, for the charming neighborhood of Franklin Hills. Walk to the south side of the street, just past the house that sits immediately east of the bridge, and descend a ficus- and bougainvillea-shaded staircase leading down just beyond the sign for St. George Street.
You emerge in the cul-de-sac at the north end of Sanborn Avenue. Continue south on Sanborn; most of the homes on this street are simple and modern in design, and a few are painted in vibrant colors. On your right, pass a community garden with a variety of vegetables that was planted by the people living here. Behind the garden is the campus of 
The International School of Los Angeles, a city Historic-Cultural Monument because it was designed by notable Southern California architect John Lautner.
Follow the road as it curves left and becomes Melbourne Avenue. Most of the homes here are modest and well maintained and exhibit a variety of architectural styles: traditional, Spanish Colonial Revival, English country cottage. At 3912 Melbourne is a dramatically different style of home—a fairy-tale English cottage with a deeply sloping wood-shingled roof and diamond-pane windows.
Continue straight across Deloz Avenue and look for the sign for the Radio Walk steps just to the right of 1856 Deloz. Ascend the long staircase, which can feel like a secret passage when overgrown with a thick layer of dead leaves. Cross Hollyvista Avenue and continue up the next flight of steps, which is more heavily shaded than the first half of Radio Walk.
Emerge on Franklin Avenue, just north of Radio Street. Turn right to pass Radio Street and continue on Franklin. You can catch occasional glimpses of the Griffith Observatory between the houses on your right.
Turn right just past 3818 Franklin to descend the Prospect Walk stairway, and pause at the top of the steps to admire the view east along Hollywood Boulevard, which stretches out below. Cross Hollyvista Avenue and continue down the next set of steps.
When you reach Deloz Avenue, turn right instead of descending the last flight of Prospect Walk stairs. Deloz is a quiet, sunny street with lots of cute Spanish-style houses, French and English cottages, and many traditional homes. The houses built into the steeply sloping hill on the right appear to be much larger than those on the left side of the street, but appearances can be deceiving with these hillside homes.
Pass Prospect Avenue and continue on Deloz Avenue, passing the Radio Walk steps you ascended earlier. This is a bit of a tricky intersection, as it marks the connection of Deloz, Prospect, and Melbourne, so be sure to continue straight ahead, hugging the right side of the street, rather than wandering off on one of these offshoots.
Deloz Avenue ends when it merges with Hollyvista Avenue. Continue straight on what is now Hollyvista. At 2024, take note of a delightful home with blue awnings, a wood-shingled roof, and a white picket fence—the picture of blissful domesticity. A large, austere, modern home sits in stark contrast at 2100 Hollyvista.
Turn left at the next intersection to head west on Franklin Avenue, and you will shortly return to your starting point just east of the Shakespeare Bridge.
Franklin Hills
Points of Interest
Shakespeare Bridge Franklin Avenue at Monon Street, Los Angeles, CA 90027
The International School of Los Angeles 4155 Russell Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027; 323-665-4526, internationalschool.la
