Hikers coming down from trails. Friendly games of softball. Rows of picnic tables, birthday parties and piatas. Golfers trying not to hack the ball onto the 5 freeway. All are but a few scenes from Griffith Park, LA's massive urban greenbelt.

At approximately 4,210 acres, Griffith is the largest city park in the U.S. Home to the Greek Theatre, Griffith Observatory, LA Zoo, Museum of the American West, Travel Town Transportation Museum, the park also has an equestrian center, kids' pony rides, a merry-go-round, three golf courses, picnic areas—and miles and miles of hiking, biking and horse trails. Park visitors should also bear in mind that they are traipsing around the wilderness, which means the possibility of deer, rattlesnake and coyote, so be prepared. Most people assume that the park is named after famed film director D.W. Griffith, but it's not. Most of the land was an 1896 Christmas gift to LA from a civic-minded Welshman and gold speculator named Colonel Griffith J. Griffith (no joke). Upon his death in 1919, he left a trust big enough to complete his dream, creating the (newly refurbished!) Griffith Observatory and the Greek Theatre.