Photos: There Are Still Dirt Roads In The Heart Of Los Angeles

Paradise Drive

It's not completely surprising that in a city that has its share of winding roads, there are some that are more rural than others. Snaking through the palm tree-dotted hilltops in the heart of L.A., you can still find dirt roads... which are especially dangerous to navigate on rainy days, considering the lack of guardrails on many of our narrow streets.One Redditor found four dirt roads in Montecito Heights and the surrounding area: 3623 Glenalbyn Drive, 4120 Telluride Street, 4099 Evadale Drive, and 2727 Paradise Drive.

Years ago, KCET revisited the old dirt roads of L.A., noting that the streets which are now paved with asphalt, glitter, child star tears, and broken dreams, used to be made simply of dirt. As was every road in America and beyond. Still, it's pretty striking to see Sunset Boulevard as it was back then.

Sunset & Gower, 1907. (Los Angeles Public Library Photo Collection)

According to Gizmodo, "dust was such a problem that street sprinkling enterprises were counted among the city's public utilities"—eventually things smoothed over, though "Angelenos would have to wait until 1887 for the city's first paved streets: Main, Spring, and Fort (now Broadway). Macadam paving [with a cementing agent and small stones], followed by concrete and asphalt surfaces, eventually helped Los Angeles' roads shake their rustic character." But as you can see, some never did.