Los Angeles, California: La Brea Tar Pits
"Death Trap of the Ages." Prehistoric animals, trapped in tar that bubbles out of the ground in the heart of the city, just east of Beverly Hills. Pit 91 has a viewing platform with doomed fiberglass beasts.- Address:
- 5801 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA
- Directions:
- I-10 exit 8, then north on La Brea Ave. for a couple of miles. Turn left onto Wilshire Blvd, and the Tar Pits will be a half-mile on the right.
- Phone:
- 323-934-7243
- RA Rates:
- Worth a Detour
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Visitor Tips and News About La Brea Tar Pits
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La Brea Tar Pits Parking in back of the pit is $8.00. Walk across the lawn, but watch out for the tar that seeps from the ground.
[Richard Lindsay, 07/24/2010]
La Brea Tar Pits Imagine you're walking along Wilshire Blvd, seeking Amanda Woodward's infamous D&D Advertising to top off your Melrose Place tour of LA. But ... what's that smell? And those baby elephant sounds? And WHY ARE THERE FIBERGLASS MAMMOTHS DROWNING IN THAT ... that pond full of... TAR!
So, there you are, right on Wilshire Boulevard, hanging out on the back lawn of LACMA, and WHAAAAAAAAAT! Y'all, there is TAR. Coming up. Right out of the ground. Right there on Wilshire! I mean, yeah, obviously. But dang! Tar! Bubbling up! Redonk!
There is also an active dig (seriously, directly behind the European wing of LACMA) which is super cool, and the Page Museum is really a treat, assuming you like mammoth and sabre tooth tiger bones! The wall of sabre tooth skulls is not to be missed. There are hundreds! SUPER fun place to bring out of town guests, wee bairns, and yourself, should your LACMA date become boringggggggg!
[Erica, 04/09/2010]
La Brea Tar Pits This is an area on Wilshire Blvd. in the area known as the "Miracle Mile" where remains of various prehistoric animals indigenous to Southern California embedded in tar. There is an excellent museum displaying findings from the tar pits as well as a viewing area where you can watchers clean and categorize new findings. Outdoors there are viewing pits where you can watch current excavations as well as some untouched findings.
[OxyEx, 12/12/1997]Nearby Offbeat Places
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The mammoth statues have been sinking into the tar since 1968. The pits were featured in the 1997 disaster movie "Volcano." On our visit in March, we noticed at least one spot on the lawn, marked off with traffic cones, where tar was bubbling up. The museum is fairly straightforward -- though they still have the test-your-strength - "Discover What It Is Like to Be Trapped in Tar" exhibit.