Originally Posted by
pbass
Where are the fire roads you're speaking of? Bikes aren't allowed on any dirt in Griffith, correct? I've never checked out Elysian. I could head over thataway from Glendale easily...
Griffith has two uphill fire roads, one near the Los Feliz Blvd. side and another near the Riverside/Forest Lawn side. I ride either route starting from the pony rides. Once to the top you can take either fire road back down or take the Griffith Observatory or Greek Theater road (with car traffic though) depending on where you want to end up. Yeah, no bikes on the dirt paths at Griffith, but I use the hill climbing mainly for training.
At Elysian, I see quite a few MTB'ers and gravel riders low key riding the dirt trails. There are also fire roads, though I haven't explored all of them yet, but they make for some fun riding as well. Just be mindful because there are homeless encampments around the outer edges of the park and unfortunately Elysian doesn't get the same maintenance Griffith Park gets. During the daytime though I'd say it's pretty safe and I've had no issues riding there.
The Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy also has a few nature areas in LA with hiking/gravel trails, and interestingly many are bike accessible (marked on the website). Usually if I don't see a sign prohibiting bikes, I'll ride there. Though I try to be respectful to the walkers and hikers, so they don't find an excuse to complain about bikes on the trails!