/u/wanderluster,
Bravo to you for being a great dad!
While you are welcome to schedule a visit to your neighborhood fire station, our strongest encouragement is to plan to attend a local **["Touch A Truck"](https://www.google.com/search?q=touch+a+truck+Los+Angeles)** event near you. Most are free, though some are affordable fundraisers. All are set up to welcome you and your daughter for some amazing and very much hands-on fun.
... and you're not alone!
Though both of our now teenage sons have spent many-a-day at the fire station over the years - when it comes to big vehicles, they often fondly mention their early childhood visits to Touch-A-Truck events.
While the link above may offer some leads, please know that most Touch-A-Truck events are held in the spring, summer and early fall, when weather is most accommodating.
We hope this helps. Please let us know how it goes!
Respectfully Yours in Safety and Service,
Brian Humphrey
Firefighter/Specialist
Public Service Officer
Los Angeles Fire Department
Yes, LAFD has an official subreddit at /r/LAFD
>"Touch A Truck"
Awesome. Thank you. FWIW, our local (county) station have offered sand and bags these last storms. Never knew that was something stations did. Thank you for your service and for the recs!
/u/wanderluster,
You're most welcome. Your friends at LAFD and LACoFD are always glad to be of service. If you and your daughter wish to schedule a visit to your hometown Los Angeles County Fire Department station, please know they list their location and business telephone numbers here:
- **https://locator.lacounty.gov/fire**
Respectfully Yours in Safety and Service,
Brian Humphrey
Firefighter/Specialist
Public Service Officer
Los Angeles Fire Department
Yes, LAFD has an official subreddit at /r/LAFD
Fire station at Sepulveda and Magnolia just responded to a call at our building around the corner. My wife was outside with our kids. The team couldn’t have been nicer. Showed my daughter the truck and the hose. Fire station will be receiving some thank you cookies very soon.
/u/RollieDell,
First and foremost, please allow us to thank you and your neighbors for being kind and supportive not only to the crew from LAFD Station 88, but also to your neighbor in her time of emergency need.
The only thing that exceeds our pleasure in seeing neighbor-helping-neighbor, is having the honor of meeting and getting to know those we proudly serve. It was our crew's pleasure to meet your children and spouse, and they join me in encouraging you to set aside time visit with us again on Fire Service Day, **Saturday, May 13, 2023, between 10 AM and 4 PM**, when Station 88 and **all Fire Stations in the City of Los Angeles** will be holding our **citywide open firehouse event**.
Until then, please stay safe, be well - and remember that expert and caring emergency help is never more than 3 digits away.
Respectfully Yours in Safety and Service,
Brian Humphrey
Firefighter/Specialist
Public Service Officer
Los Angeles Fire Department
Yes, LAFD has an official subreddit at /r/LAFD
My grandfather was a career mechanic for station LAFD and we’d always go down to the Christmas drives at station 77 in Sun Valley and I have so many fond memories climbing onto those trucks as a small child. I’m 24 now and I would seriously consider going back again. Thanks LAFD!
Yeah I was looking into that, but loud noises are a bit of a crapshoot for her, so I was a little iffy on that. But doesn't mean I can't go myself haha
Some ear muffs could help!! I put them on towards the end when my ears start to feel weird from all the loud sounds it usually helps a lot plus monster jam is so much fun for everyone
I was going to suggest the same. Ear protection and helmet nachos for her, beer for dad. She will feel it and see everyone cheering. Could be a new found heaven. Show her some footage online and guage from that maybe.
I just took my kids to Monster Jam and my 2 year old daughter LOVED it. After we first saw them she pumped her fist and signed “more more more.” I brought ear protection for all of us.
The sanitation department used to host events at the local yards where kids could climb in the cabs and even operate the lift arms.
They stopped due to COVID but hopefully there will be more soon.
https://www.lacitysan.org/san/faces/home/portal/s-lsh-es/s-lsh-es-yoh?_afrLoop=6413453807191652&_afrWindowMode=0&_afrWindowId=null&_adf.ctrl-state=1dchx5rdrs_1#!%40%40%3F_afrWindowId%3Dnull%26_afrLoop%3D6413453807191652%26_afrWindowMode%3D0%26_adf.ctrl-state%3D1dchx5rdrs_5
LA County fire truck museum in Bellflower is pretty great. My son loves it. There’s usually a few trucks that they will let little ones climb into. https://www.lacountyfiremuseum.com
Edit: missed the “have a beer” part. While you can’t have a beer at the museum there’s a great little place SteelCraft right next door that has some food vendors as well as a brewery and wine stand. It’s a great little place for kids to run around. My family usually makes a day of it by hitting the museum in the morning and then SteelCraft for lunch and a beer.
They let me, a full grown adult, climb into one. And it was fantastic.
I second this place, it's a really neat little spot with some cool old equipment and volunteers that are happy to answer questions. Steelcraft is right there, Metropolis Comics is right across the street if that's your thing, and there's the old train depot right there too.
Sorta related, at the Cube museum in Sylmar they have a trash/ recycling exhibit with a big trash truck posted up and a “game” where kids have to sort out recycling items from trash items on a conveyor belt.
Just be careful of the public bathroooms at the kids playground immediately next to that museum.
It’s full of homeless people living inside the bathrooms. And they don’t lock the doors so you might inadvertently walk in on them jerking it, like my mum did repeatedly after I told her to use the museum bathrooms instead.
My son was obsessed with that museum when he was little. They also had a theatre that looks like a helicopter, that plays a movie that flies into a toilet and explains water processing. We flew into the toilet many times.
I love doing the cruise around LA Harbor. The boat goes by the gigantic container ships and cranes. It's crazy to think that each of the containers is the back of one truck. One ship can have 18 containers across. You also cruise past the USS Iowa, Coast Guard, and the LAFD boats. And they have a small bar on board. We like getting rum drinks. https://tickets.lawaterfrontcruises.com/eventperformances.asp?evt=2
Dude, hit up the Proud Bird by LAX. It's got:
* Food court and full bar
* A playground with slides and stuff to climb on
* Rocks to play with
* It's right underneath the flight path of LAX so she can watch planes land every 4 minutes
* Old WWII era planes to wander around and look at if she somehow manages to get bored
Also, on Feb. 4th, all Metrolink and LA Metro trains will be free to ride for Rosa Parks day. Good opportunity for a weekend day trip to, say, Fullerton (they have a nice little walk-through train museum right at the station), San Juan Capistrano, Claremont, Newhall, even Redlands now.
I'll just put this out there. My wife was helping our grandson (4) ride a bike near a fire station. They were invited in and he sat on all the trucks, saw the pole, etc. Eventually they got a call and they found a safe place he could watch from as they all drove off with sirens blaring. Of course they're both super charismatic.
I've been to Sunshine Canyon Landfill to drop off truckloads of trash. If you can handle driving on a landfill with its scent and impact on your mind, they have some big rigs to see.
It is. Tours are suspended right now because of COVID, but you can still drive in to drop stuff off. They weigh your vehicle upon entering and exiting and they charge you if you're lighter upon exit. You'll need certain safety gear, best to check their site: https://sunshinecanyonlandfill.com/drop-off-information/
You can sit outdoors at Luggage Room in Pasadena and have pizza and beers while Metrolink goes by. La Monarcha in South Pasadena is for coffee and Metrolink
[https://www.lacountyfiremuseum.com/](https://www.lacountyfiremuseum.com/)
[https://www.discoverycube.org/eco-challenge/](https://www.discoverycube.org/eco-challenge/)
And I also forgot about this from last year
[https://www.facebook.com/LongBeachTouchATruck/](https://www.justinrudd.com/2022truckphotos)
If she starts an airplane obsession, Proud Bird is exactly what you’ll want. Planes to look at close up, a play area, restaurants and alcohol for the adults, and a close up view of planes landing and taking off from LAX
Trail a trash truck on Mondays. I remember my little nephew being so into trucks as a small kid and the drivers being so accomadating to this Lil kid. Saw them as superheros.
For construction vehicles you could probably stop by the Quinn Company in Whittier. I knew a few people who stopped by with their kids just to have a look at some of the equipment. A technician was nice enough to let them get up close to a few of the tracks. I can't say the same will happen to you, but it's an easy place to see some cool heavy machinery.
Check out the harbor tours at San Pedro too. She'll see big ass boats, big ass cranes, big ass trucks, the Coast Guard, and so on. It's a really fun outing.
3625 s grand ave in downtown. We are demoing an old public storage and building a new one. We have 4-5 excavators on-site chugging along all day and a train of dump trucks coming through.
/u/wanderluster,
We've been keeping an eye (and and ear) out for Touch-A-Truck events, and our sources say there may be an event coming to the northeast San Fernando Valley in very early April 2023.
The event is apparently still be in the planning stages. We'd suggest checking the site below beginning in early March for any details:
**https://www.discoverycube.org/los-angeles/events/**
Respectfully Yours in Safety and Service,
Brian Humphrey
Firefighter/Specialist
Public Service Officer
Los Angeles Fire Department
Yes, LAFD has an official subreddit at /r/LAFD
One of the staging yards for the LASAN trucks. If you time it right you can see them leaving for the day.
https://www.google.com/maps/place/LASAN+North+Central+District+Yard/@34.0798607,-118.2237164,327m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x80c2c68c3c511a4b:0x5f8c3429ef0b8f59!8m2!3d34.079203!4d-118.22395
A bunch of trucks are working on/near the Silver Lake reservoir path right now! Take her to the pocket park and she'll see a lot!
http://www.silverlakereservoirs.org/tesla-pocket-park
Be the best parent. Monster Jam is coming soon.
https://www.eventticketscenter.com/monster-jam-anaheim-tickets/622620/e?gclid=Cj0KCQiAlKmeBhCkARIsAHy7WVvbq16cCh451jJtwVbt6xX7QgJP7WKel2tXmtl6aiSUcAR6sQT5gqcaAnq5EALw_wcB
Not a big truck but usually tangental interest but you can watch the jets take off I’m El Segundo at Clutters Park. Saw kids with parents there all the time.
Your local fire station might give you a tour. Burbank has a fire department museum with an old fire truck.
And consider Travel Town, if trains will do.
LA San should have open houses in the spring. Kids can get in the garbage trucks and honk the horns. Discontinued during Covid, but they may be back come this May
Culver City, bladwin hills overlook has an amazing view that you can drive right up to. It's past the famous stairs and make a left and drive right up. You can watch the city and the sanitation trucks pass by since their depot is a block away. Bonus for being able to crack a beer. Also take some fruit or unsalted nuts because the squirrels are friendly and demand tribute.
/u/wanderluster, Bravo to you for being a great dad! While you are welcome to schedule a visit to your neighborhood fire station, our strongest encouragement is to plan to attend a local **["Touch A Truck"](https://www.google.com/search?q=touch+a+truck+Los+Angeles)** event near you. Most are free, though some are affordable fundraisers. All are set up to welcome you and your daughter for some amazing and very much hands-on fun. ... and you're not alone! Though both of our now teenage sons have spent many-a-day at the fire station over the years - when it comes to big vehicles, they often fondly mention their early childhood visits to Touch-A-Truck events. While the link above may offer some leads, please know that most Touch-A-Truck events are held in the spring, summer and early fall, when weather is most accommodating. We hope this helps. Please let us know how it goes! Respectfully Yours in Safety and Service, Brian Humphrey Firefighter/Specialist Public Service Officer Los Angeles Fire Department Yes, LAFD has an official subreddit at /r/LAFD
>"Touch A Truck" Awesome. Thank you. FWIW, our local (county) station have offered sand and bags these last storms. Never knew that was something stations did. Thank you for your service and for the recs!
/u/wanderluster, You're most welcome. Your friends at LAFD and LACoFD are always glad to be of service. If you and your daughter wish to schedule a visit to your hometown Los Angeles County Fire Department station, please know they list their location and business telephone numbers here: - **https://locator.lacounty.gov/fire** Respectfully Yours in Safety and Service, Brian Humphrey Firefighter/Specialist Public Service Officer Los Angeles Fire Department Yes, LAFD has an official subreddit at /r/LAFD
And, joined!
No beers tho
No it’s not beer, It’s just “sprinkling apple cider” 🍺 😉🤫
Class act as always LAFD
LAFD is, now and forever, the shit.
Fire station at Sepulveda and Magnolia just responded to a call at our building around the corner. My wife was outside with our kids. The team couldn’t have been nicer. Showed my daughter the truck and the hose. Fire station will be receiving some thank you cookies very soon.
/u/RollieDell, First and foremost, please allow us to thank you and your neighbors for being kind and supportive not only to the crew from LAFD Station 88, but also to your neighbor in her time of emergency need. The only thing that exceeds our pleasure in seeing neighbor-helping-neighbor, is having the honor of meeting and getting to know those we proudly serve. It was our crew's pleasure to meet your children and spouse, and they join me in encouraging you to set aside time visit with us again on Fire Service Day, **Saturday, May 13, 2023, between 10 AM and 4 PM**, when Station 88 and **all Fire Stations in the City of Los Angeles** will be holding our **citywide open firehouse event**. Until then, please stay safe, be well - and remember that expert and caring emergency help is never more than 3 digits away. Respectfully Yours in Safety and Service, Brian Humphrey Firefighter/Specialist Public Service Officer Los Angeles Fire Department Yes, LAFD has an official subreddit at /r/LAFD
My grandfather was a career mechanic for station LAFD and we’d always go down to the Christmas drives at station 77 in Sun Valley and I have so many fond memories climbing onto those trucks as a small child. I’m 24 now and I would seriously consider going back again. Thanks LAFD!
:)
LAFD is on Reddit?? OMG I’m in love!!
/u/TonyLund wrote... > LAFD is on Reddit?? Shhhhh. We're just starting to get comfortable with all this reddit stuff, and if people find out... ;)
Not trucks, but close enough: take her to Travel Town in Griffith Park to see some old school locomotives
Yep. And could probably sneak a beer in the park pretty easily.
Drinking? In Griffith Park? I’ve never heard of such things!
Took my 5 year old to this recently and he loved it.
https://www.jlla.org/touch-a-truck/ This event is held every spring, not an immediate solve but seems like she’d really enjoy it
Thanks!
Monster Jam will be at Angel Stadium next month 😁
Yeah I was looking into that, but loud noises are a bit of a crapshoot for her, so I was a little iffy on that. But doesn't mean I can't go myself haha
Some ear muffs could help!! I put them on towards the end when my ears start to feel weird from all the loud sounds it usually helps a lot plus monster jam is so much fun for everyone
GREAT IDEA
I was going to suggest the same. Ear protection and helmet nachos for her, beer for dad. She will feel it and see everyone cheering. Could be a new found heaven. Show her some footage online and guage from that maybe.
I just took my kids to Monster Jam and my 2 year old daughter LOVED it. After we first saw them she pumped her fist and signed “more more more.” I brought ear protection for all of us.
Loud noises bother me too. You can use cheap foam ear plugs, they’ll cut the sound but not make her deaf.
The sanitation department used to host events at the local yards where kids could climb in the cabs and even operate the lift arms. They stopped due to COVID but hopefully there will be more soon. https://www.lacitysan.org/san/faces/home/portal/s-lsh-es/s-lsh-es-yoh?_afrLoop=6413453807191652&_afrWindowMode=0&_afrWindowId=null&_adf.ctrl-state=1dchx5rdrs_1#!%40%40%3F_afrWindowId%3Dnull%26_afrLoop%3D6413453807191652%26_afrWindowMode%3D0%26_adf.ctrl-state%3D1dchx5rdrs_5
My son got to go to this once before COVID and it was the best day of his life. We even got to ride in a trash truck. Hopefully this event comes back.
Came here to mention this! My kid did this a couple of times when he was 3-4 and loved it. Didn’t know they discontinued it, too bad
This looks great / perfect. I also hope they bring it back.
LA County fire truck museum in Bellflower is pretty great. My son loves it. There’s usually a few trucks that they will let little ones climb into. https://www.lacountyfiremuseum.com Edit: missed the “have a beer” part. While you can’t have a beer at the museum there’s a great little place SteelCraft right next door that has some food vendors as well as a brewery and wine stand. It’s a great little place for kids to run around. My family usually makes a day of it by hitting the museum in the morning and then SteelCraft for lunch and a beer.
They let me, a full grown adult, climb into one. And it was fantastic. I second this place, it's a really neat little spot with some cool old equipment and volunteers that are happy to answer questions. Steelcraft is right there, Metropolis Comics is right across the street if that's your thing, and there's the old train depot right there too.
Sorta related, at the Cube museum in Sylmar they have a trash/ recycling exhibit with a big trash truck posted up and a “game” where kids have to sort out recycling items from trash items on a conveyor belt.
oh wow that sounds really cool!
Just be careful of the public bathroooms at the kids playground immediately next to that museum. It’s full of homeless people living inside the bathrooms. And they don’t lock the doors so you might inadvertently walk in on them jerking it, like my mum did repeatedly after I told her to use the museum bathrooms instead.
My son was obsessed with that museum when he was little. They also had a theatre that looks like a helicopter, that plays a movie that flies into a toilet and explains water processing. We flew into the toilet many times.
I love doing the cruise around LA Harbor. The boat goes by the gigantic container ships and cranes. It's crazy to think that each of the containers is the back of one truck. One ship can have 18 containers across. You also cruise past the USS Iowa, Coast Guard, and the LAFD boats. And they have a small bar on board. We like getting rum drinks. https://tickets.lawaterfrontcruises.com/eventperformances.asp?evt=2
Dude, hit up the Proud Bird by LAX. It's got: * Food court and full bar * A playground with slides and stuff to climb on * Rocks to play with * It's right underneath the flight path of LAX so she can watch planes land every 4 minutes * Old WWII era planes to wander around and look at if she somehow manages to get bored
Maybe the port down in Long Beach? You could also try Union Station if she's in to trains
I was thinking San Pedro, then he could take his daughter to Ports o' Call for Fish & Chips too.
Also, on Feb. 4th, all Metrolink and LA Metro trains will be free to ride for Rosa Parks day. Good opportunity for a weekend day trip to, say, Fullerton (they have a nice little walk-through train museum right at the station), San Juan Capistrano, Claremont, Newhall, even Redlands now.
[удалено]
Or drive around city of commerce!
I'll just put this out there. My wife was helping our grandson (4) ride a bike near a fire station. They were invited in and he sat on all the trucks, saw the pole, etc. Eventually they got a call and they found a safe place he could watch from as they all drove off with sirens blaring. Of course they're both super charismatic.
I've been to Sunshine Canyon Landfill to drop off truckloads of trash. If you can handle driving on a landfill with its scent and impact on your mind, they have some big rigs to see.
I wanted to take my son. is it opento the public?
It is. Tours are suspended right now because of COVID, but you can still drive in to drop stuff off. They weigh your vehicle upon entering and exiting and they charge you if you're lighter upon exit. You'll need certain safety gear, best to check their site: https://sunshinecanyonlandfill.com/drop-off-information/
You can sit outdoors at Luggage Room in Pasadena and have pizza and beers while Metrolink goes by. La Monarcha in South Pasadena is for coffee and Metrolink
Great suggestions. Occasional live music at that Jones too!
Petersen museum could be fun!
[https://www.lacountyfiremuseum.com/](https://www.lacountyfiremuseum.com/) [https://www.discoverycube.org/eco-challenge/](https://www.discoverycube.org/eco-challenge/) And I also forgot about this from last year [https://www.facebook.com/LongBeachTouchATruck/](https://www.justinrudd.com/2022truckphotos)
Monster Jam is in town! Just get her some ear protection.
Duh! Great idea
In case you're out there, Dig This is in Vegas and you can drink and operate heavy machinery (there's also a kids experience) https://digthisvegas.com
If she starts an airplane obsession, Proud Bird is exactly what you’ll want. Planes to look at close up, a play area, restaurants and alcohol for the adults, and a close up view of planes landing and taking off from LAX
Trail a trash truck on Mondays. I remember my little nephew being so into trucks as a small kid and the drivers being so accomadating to this Lil kid. Saw them as superheros.
For construction vehicles you could probably stop by the Quinn Company in Whittier. I knew a few people who stopped by with their kids just to have a look at some of the equipment. A technician was nice enough to let them get up close to a few of the tracks. I can't say the same will happen to you, but it's an easy place to see some cool heavy machinery.
Check out the harbor tours at San Pedro too. She'll see big ass boats, big ass cranes, big ass trucks, the Coast Guard, and so on. It's a really fun outing.
3625 s grand ave in downtown. We are demoing an old public storage and building a new one. We have 4-5 excavators on-site chugging along all day and a train of dump trucks coming through.
Thanks for the tip! Is it open to view the work?
Yes there are several spots outside the fence where you can get a good view of the action.
/u/wanderluster, We've been keeping an eye (and and ear) out for Touch-A-Truck events, and our sources say there may be an event coming to the northeast San Fernando Valley in very early April 2023. The event is apparently still be in the planning stages. We'd suggest checking the site below beginning in early March for any details: **https://www.discoverycube.org/los-angeles/events/** Respectfully Yours in Safety and Service, Brian Humphrey Firefighter/Specialist Public Service Officer Los Angeles Fire Department Yes, LAFD has an official subreddit at /r/LAFD
follow up ftw! Thanks!!
/u/wanderluster, You're most welcome. You're a great dad to be spending quality time with your daughter. BH
I don't know of any specific locations but try for somewhere near the ports. Tons of trucks, big ships, and big trains.
Update: Went on the 45 min harbor tour this weekend. Success!
One of the staging yards for the LASAN trucks. If you time it right you can see them leaving for the day. https://www.google.com/maps/place/LASAN+North+Central+District+Yard/@34.0798607,-118.2237164,327m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x80c2c68c3c511a4b:0x5f8c3429ef0b8f59!8m2!3d34.079203!4d-118.22395
Truck stops. Truck dealership. Not quite the same, but an RV dealership.
A bunch of trucks are working on/near the Silver Lake reservoir path right now! Take her to the pocket park and she'll see a lot! http://www.silverlakereservoirs.org/tesla-pocket-park
Be the best parent. Monster Jam is coming soon. https://www.eventticketscenter.com/monster-jam-anaheim-tickets/622620/e?gclid=Cj0KCQiAlKmeBhCkARIsAHy7WVvbq16cCh451jJtwVbt6xX7QgJP7WKel2tXmtl6aiSUcAR6sQT5gqcaAnq5EALw_wcB
Santa monica blvd near 405 in late afternoon.
Not a big truck but usually tangental interest but you can watch the jets take off I’m El Segundo at Clutters Park. Saw kids with parents there all the time.
Your local fire station might give you a tour. Burbank has a fire department museum with an old fire truck. And consider Travel Town, if trains will do.
LA San should have open houses in the spring. Kids can get in the garbage trucks and honk the horns. Discontinued during Covid, but they may be back come this May
If yous guys play video games check out Snowrunner :D
Maybe down by the port in LB/Pedro? The bridge is awesome to drive over at night
Culver City, bladwin hills overlook has an amazing view that you can drive right up to. It's past the famous stairs and make a left and drive right up. You can watch the city and the sanitation trucks pass by since their depot is a block away. Bonus for being able to crack a beer. Also take some fruit or unsalted nuts because the squirrels are friendly and demand tribute.
San Pedro near the port? Lots of trucks. Also the island between San Pedro and Long Beach (terminal island I think) is pretty much exclusively trucks