10th Annual Summer Solstice Hike

Hikers at Mount Hollywood's peak wave to an LAPD helicopter, which dips and circles in salute to the Los Angeles international community.

About 250 hikers scaled Mount Hollywood at sunset last night during Councilmember LaBonge's 10th Annual Summer Solstice hike. Members of Los Angeles Sister Cities organizations and the Los Angeles Consular Corps joined area hikers - two-and four-leggers alike - on what has become the traditional way to kick off summer in Griffith Park.
Dr. Edwin C. Krupp, Director of the Griffith Observatory, announced to the gathered crowd before the hike that the solstice had actually occurred on Sunday night, Father’s Day, which was an inopportune time for the public event. Once at the top, the crowd was treated to a potluck dinner of international cuisine and a fly-over from a Los Angeles Police Department helicopter.
“This hike has become a tradition in Council District 4, for the Los Angeles international community, avid hikers and people from the community who simply enjoy the experience,” said Councilmember LaBonge. “The views of Los Angeles are unparalleled.”
Councilmember LaBonge is president of Sister Cities of Los Angeles, Inc. The Sister Cities program, established by President Dwight D. Eisenhower, fosters diplomacy among cities in different countries to promote cultural, educational and commercial exchange.
Among the hikers were Jose Alfredo Grace' Lima, Consul General of Brazil and members of the Sister City organizations from Berlin, Germany; Kaunas, Lithuania and St. Petersburg, Russia.
To view more photos from the hike, click here.