How bad is L.A. traffic for cyclists?
 

Good day all!!
I wanted to try a different route from what I usually do, and was thinking of going into the L.A. area. This is not for commuting purposes, just for a fun weekend ride. I usually frequent the mean streets of the San Fernando Valley and am quite comfortable riding in rush hour traffic around here since I commute 4 days of the week. But I am not sure what to expect if I head over to the other side. My friend who know's the area well, from a drivers perspective, mentioned that the streets are a lot narrower than in the valley. More cars parked along the sides of the roads, and the space between moving vehicles and parked cars is significantly less. Regardless, I am still up to give it a try.
I was going to set a destination of "Orange 20 Bikes" so I at least have somewhere to end up when I do go there. I came up with a little map from google, and the route I was going to go basically takes me from the West end of the valley along Ventura Blvd, to Studio City through Cahuenga down to Highland to Melrose over towards Vemont, and ending at Orange 20 Bikes. My friend suggests to avoid Melrose, and try Hollywood, or Sunset or Santa Monica.
So what should I expect? Any suggestions on alternate routes.
or if anyone is up to join me perhaps. that would be cool too.

I take Melrose everyday on my commute and am completely comfortable with it. Hollywood isn't bad either, nice and wide.

I used to live on Cahuenga about a mile from Universal Studios and would frequently go over Highland to get to the other side. I've tried any and all of those roads you mentioned. If you are used to the Valley, I don't see any problem with your route.

I ride all over LA and love it most of the time. Early, early mornings and nights are the best, and rush hour isn't too bad once traffic gets to that critical density where you can keep up with it. My *least* favorite time to be out is from about 2pm-6pm on weekdays, when motorists often seem to be in a post-lunch daze and driving too fast. Weekends are always wonderful, especially lazy Sundays.

As for your route, you should be fine on the major streets as long as you ride fast, be assertive and take the lane. There really isn't any room outside of the door zone on Melrose or Highland, so if that makes you nervous and you don't mind slowing down a bit, most of the residential streets around there are really nice to ride on (though some are a bit rough). 4th Street between Highland and Vermont is especially nice and shady and has posted "bike lane" signs (if those mean anything to you). Just watch out when you get toward the 101 because there aren't a lot of underpasses. At that point, you might have to swing onto Melrose to get through.

Anyway, have fun. The cars are lame, and it can be lonely on a bike, but I feel lucky to ride on this side of the hill. I should get out to the Valley sometime and poke around over there too.

i did Los Feliz to Santa Monica for a good amount of time. Most of the ride was on Olympic. it was a little sketchy at times, but you just have to take control of your lane. when the traffic is heavy - aka, at a standstill - i would usually cruise between the middle and right most lanes. there's always a nice gap between the cars!
now i take sunset to downtown, and there is a bike path most of the route, which makes things somewhat easier. definitely less worry about finding room to ride in.
just stay off the sidewalks - that is the general rule. a friend of mine was hit pretty bad becuase of riding on the sidewalk. stick to the street, and let the cars know you're there.

Did you about riding through Giffith Parka nd then up Los Feliz? The pass can be a little tricky depending how assertive you want to.

Hit pretty bad? What do you mean?

Thanks for the advice so far. Is there any "areas" I need to avoid. Whether because of road conditions, or the environment and the people within said areas? I plan on doing this during the day sometime over a weekend.

There are no areas that you would need to avoid. DEfinately avoid riding on the sidewalk. Pedestrians adn cars do not expect you to be there.