While I threw the fluffy covers off of my Serta Perfect Sleeper and stumbled over to my computer on Sunday morning, 20 bone-tired participants of Big Parade LA were just wiggling out of their sleeping bags after they had bedded down in the Silver Lake Rec Center. A little achy perhaps, but energized and ready to explore the next leg of the urban exploration of the stairways and byways of Los Angeles, from Silver Lake to the Hollywood Sign.

The Big Parade LA is the pet project of the passionately informed author/historian Dan Koeppel. He leads a group of folks of all ages and of all walks of life up and down dozens of stairways (including the 237 steps of the Baxter Street stairway), along secret paths and through public parks. www.bigparadela.com

Because of previous commitments, I was only able to log in about 7 miles on Saturday, trekking from Echo Park to the edge of Silver Lake, and I do feel it a little in my calves, and despite SPF 50, I’ve a blush of sunburn.

To be in the company of so many community-minded people with a passion for walking, exploring and learning is awe-inspiring. Among others, the walkers I met included Neil who once scheduled bus time tables and now designs maps; a couple of recent IT transplants from D.C. and now Echo Parkians and an energetic 8-year-old with purple flowers in her hair. I also ran into my friend, Ellie (she of Living Legacies oral history business) who is also best friends with Mitch’s cousin, Jan. It’s a tiny world of walkers who run in the same circles.

My favorite spot was the very hidden Fellowship Park, a zig-zaggy stair street behind a handful of bungalows with views of Los Angeles that speak to its uniqueness. The area was once populated by a cult called the Semi-Tropics Spiritualist Tract, an early bohemian enclave from around 1920. Dave, who’s lived there for close to 20 years, spoke about the neighborhood and offered the walkers water along with apples, bananas and cookies. Don’t forget to close the gates behind you, or the kids will escape, we were warned.

Truly a breath-taking event. The pervasive sense of community and adventure generated by Dan and his merry band of walkers was awe-inspiring. Maybe the entire walk next year. In the meantime, it would be fantastic if we can take even just a few baby steps toward this feeling whilst walking and talking in the Hills of Beverly. What history can you share as we walk? What pathways have you discovered that reveal a hidden story? Let us know. And keep walking.