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VIDEO: LA This Week Helps Us Explain Why We Walk Los Angeles

The local L.A. public access news program LA This Week dropped by this year's Great Los Angeles Walk to find out just what we're up to — and they encountered hundreds of Angelenos eager to share the spirit of community by walking the sidewalks of our city and exploring its many diverse neighborhoods. Thanks to editor Kevin King and camera operator Frank Aguilera for putting together a really nice representation of what we do every year on the Saturday before Thanksgiving!

The Great LA Walk In The News: NBC4 and Los Angeles Times Recommend

The Los Angeles Times and KNBC-Channel 4 have been great in sharing word about the Great Los Angeles Walk over the years, and thanks to them the word continues to get out about the event!

As Alysia Gray Painter writes in her piece for NBCLosAngeles.com:

Count 'em up: How many shops or eateries or libraries or civic offices or churches or plazas have you zipped by, in a car or in a bus or on a bicycle, vowing to return later, on foot, to see just what that building was all about?

Do you go back? And poke your head into all of the head-poke-able places, to get to know our massive-o-polis of a city even better?

If so, high fives. If not, high fives, because you have the impulse, and, yes, a way-busy schedule.

But there's a Saturday to-do just ahead, that's totally free to join, and it is all about making good on your whole desire to track-back and check out some of the local sights you've seen through your windshield.

And, yes: To pay affectionate and grateful homage to iconic food writer Jonathan Gold, who passed away earlier this year.

That Saturday is Nov. 17, the event is the 13th annual Great Los Angeles Walk, and, once again, a group of local-loving Southern Californians will set off on a long stroll from DTLA to the Pacific Ocean.

Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Times lists this year's Walk in its roundup of events happening this weekend:

Who says nobody walks in L.A.? The 13th Great Los Angeles Walk is a 16-mile stroll through the city from Pershing Square to Santa Monica. This year’s route goes through Koreatown in honor of Jonathan Gold, the late L.A. Times food critic who loved the neighborhood’s food. Organizers suggest going slowly to take in the sights and the crowd; many new friendships and at least one wedding have come out of the walk.

KPCC's Take Two on The Great LA Walk: 'Why LA is More Walkable Than You Think'

Thanks to KPCC's "Take Two" and reporter/producer Lori Galarreta for their great piece on The Great LA Walk! We strolled down a chunk of Beverly earlier this week to give a preview:

Mike Schneider is the founder of the Great Los Angeles Walk, and when it comes to tips for newcomers, he has some pretty basic advice: Stay hydrated, wear comfortable shoes, apply lots of sunscreen and come with the spirit of exploration.

"I always tell people to stop at a couple restaurants, take photos," Schneider said. "Really take your time and feel the city."

Schneider created the event 12 years ago when he was celebrating his ten-year anniversary of living in L.A. He had just read the book "Wilshire Boulevard" by Kevin Roderick, in which a walk along Wilshire from downtown to the ocean is mentioned, and Schneider thought to himself, "I want to do that."

"I went on my blog and told people I'm doing this the weekend before Thanksgiving. Who wants to show up? I got about 40 people to show and we really explored that year. I never expected it to be more than a one-time deal, but then I was like, why don't we do Pico? Why don't we do Santa Monica Blvd.? Sunset? Hollywood? We eventually started hitting a whole bunch of streets." And since then, every year, rain or shine, the walk has taken place. One year it took place on Pico, another on Sunset and this year for the first time, on Beverly. It just stands to prove, despite its reputation, that Los Angeles is actually walkable.

Listen here!

Great LA Walk In The News: NBC4, LA Daily News, New York Times All Give Shout-Outs!

Thanks to all the great media coverage over the past few days, we're getting the word out about the Great LA Walk! Among the highlights:

NBC4: City Trekkers Wanted: Free Great LA Walk

Alysia Gray Painter writes: Now sauntering into its 12th year, the free-to-join walk, which takes on a (mostly) single street in Los Angeles, was founded by Mike Schneider of the blog Franklin Avenue.

Mr. Schneider wanted a lively way to head into Thanksgiving week, and a perfect way for LA-loving locals to meet, and a solid way to see the city on foot (a pastime that's not always pursued in our car-focused megalopolis).

The result? A day-long walk from downtown-ish to the ocean.

While past years have covered Wilshire and Pico Boulevards as well as other famous byways, it's ultra Beverly in 2017, as well as a few other streets. The outing will start on 1st Street, at the Japanese-American National Museum, and then it shall head west, joining up with Beverly and, later on, Santa Monica Boulevard, which will eventually lead to the ocean.

Los Angeles Daily News: 12 places to stop along the free Great Los Angeles Walk

Richard Guzman writes: For the past 12 years on the weekend before Thanksgiving, Michael Schneider goes on a walk with a few friends.

But this isn’t just a little stroll through his neighborhood. And he’s joined by more than just a few friends.

The Glendale resident is the organizer of The Great Los Angeles Walk, an annual event where hundreds of people gather at a spot in downtown L.A just to go for a walk through their city, albeit a very long walk.

“I think a lot of it is this sense of community. For one day, you’re walking with a bunch of strangers, but you’re all sort of in it together and you’re doing something unique and different,” said Schneider, reflecting on the appeal of the event.

Each year, the walk begins from a different spot downtown and heads down a chosen street all the way to the beach in Santa Monica.

New York Times' California Today newsletter: The Great Los Angeles Walk

The newspaper writes: The Great Los Angeles Walk lets people see the city from a different vantage point. Sometimes that means the mundane, like an unexplored shop, and sometimes the memorable: the Lakers icon Magic Johnson, the aftermath of a crane collapse, and lots and lots of weddings.

The horde of walkers itself, however, may be the most jarring sight in a sprawling city known for its traffic.

“Every year we manage to surprise people,” said Michael Schneider, the walk’s founder and organizer, “because they don’t expect to see an army of Angelenos walking down the street. It shocks some people, but it inspires others.”

About 40 people participated in the first walk, along Wilshire Boulevard in 2006. Melrose Avenue and a bevy of boulevards — Pico, Sunset, West Adams, Hollywood, Ventura and Olympic — have been explored since.

This year’s 17-mile walk will travel along Beverly, one of the city’s oldest boulevards, for the first time. An expected crowd of several hundred people will begin at the Japanese American National Museum in Little Tokyo at 9 a.m. on Saturday, with plans to reach Santa Monica State Beach by sunset. Along the way, walkers will amble past City Hall, Walt Disney Concert Hall and CBS Television City.

Time Out Los Angeles: The Great Los Angeles Walk

The site writes: Every year on the Saturday before Thanksgiving, the Great Los Angeles Walk debunks all of those cliches about walking in L.A. Hundreds of walkers start the free urban hike on one side of the city and, nine hours and 17 miles later, end up at the other. You can hop on or off the walk whenever you'd like, and though no reservations are required, RSVPs are appreciated.

Daily News: For The 'Love of the City,’ Take A Walk Through Los Angeles to The Beach

Thanks to the Los Angeles Daily News and writer Richard Guzman for Sunday's write-up of the Great Los Angeles Walk:

As they’ve done for more than a decade now, hundreds of people are expected to gather in the morning at a downtown L.A. park on the Saturday before Thanksgiving.

They will be there for the same reason, but it’s not a for a political cause, or to protest or to raise money for something or even to do some pre-emptive calorie burning before Thanksgiving.

They’ll be there just to go for a walk, albeit a 14.5 mile walk through Pico Boulevard where they’ll stroll out of downtown, down to the edge of Koreatown and pass by landmarks like Powers Place, the city’s shortest street.

They’ll also walk by the old homes of Alvarado Terrance and myriad small mom-and-pop restaurants as they make their way to the ocean all as part of the 11th annual Great Los Angeles Walk.

Read more here.

Media on The Great Los Angeles Walk: "Camaraderie, Fresh Air and Close-Up Experiences"

Thanks to NBC LA and Alysia Gray Painter for writing another great piece on this year's Great Los Angeles Walk. Check it out here. An excerpt:

It's free -- of course -- and you can join anywhere along the route -- of course -- and the Great Los Angeles Walk "is not a race" -- nope. It is, however, about camaraderie, fresh air, close-up experiences (vs. things seen through the blur of your windshield), and a deeper connection to an oft-driven slice of our city.

And exercise, too. The walk does happen five days ahead of the afternoon we're all likely to consume a little too much stuffing and gravy.

You can RSVP, because that's nice, to Mr. Schneider, who is nice, just so he can keep a count, which is helpful, but not RSVPing doesn't mean you can't wake up on Nov. 23 and decide to join.

So here's another thing you tell someone considering a permanent move to LA: Clear the Saturday before Thanksgiving for a mega walk to the ocean. There's no better way than to get acquainted with a particular street and a whole bunch of adventuring Angelenos.

Meanwhile, County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky's blog and writer David Colgan also put together a great piece on the Walk. Read it here. An excerpt:

When it comes to challenging our car culture, massive events like CicLAvia, with its 100,000-plus cyclists, send a loud message about the growing momentum and demand for alternative transportation. But before there was CicLAvia, there was the more modest—but equally committed—Great Los Angeles Walk, which has been putting one foot after the next on L.A.’s most famous streets for the past 8 years.

Michael Schneider has organized the walks since 2006, when about 30 to 40 brave souls met to tackle all 16 miles of Wilshire Boulevard. Walkers now number around 300 each year.

“It always sounds daunting to people who haven’t done it before,” Schneider said. “But it’s not a race. It’s about taking your time and exploring. I come back with hundreds of photos of things that you normally miss.”

See you Saturday!

L.A. Weekly Names The Great Los Angeles Walk As One of It's Best of LA Picks!

The L.A. Weekly's annual Best of L.A. issue comes with a special treat this year: Our very own Great Los Angeles Walk is among this year's picks.

Here's what the LA Weekly (which calls it the "Best Once-A-Year Walk") has to say:

Held on the Saturday before Thanksgiving, Schneider's yearly excursions familiarize locals with urban beauty and obscure landmarks such as Ray Charles' recording studio, encouraging ambulatory exercise in a notoriously car-heavy city. This year, Schneider says, "Our downtown-to-the ocean walk this year (Nov. 17) will spotlight Melrose," starting at 9 a.m. on the front steps of Walt Disney Concert Hall. He tweets his location every mile or so to keep the group together, charges no entry fee and solicits advice from L.A. experts like former L.A. Weekly food writer Jonathan Gold and L.A. Observed's Kevin Roderick. What better way to prepare yourself for a month of holiday bingeing?