Origins In the late 1980s, the stretch of the Los Angeles River passing through Sherman Oaks near the junction of the Ventura and San Diego freeways had become infiltrated with weeds. It was also used as an illegal dumping ground. Ernie La Mere, a retired local resident, contacted governmental agencies to have the area cleaned up. Some neighbors joined him; the group planted trees and shrubs along the channel. La Mere added some benches and established a section called "Boot Hill," a mock graveyard with humorous epitaphs that eventually came to include pet memorials. A neighbor put up a sign naming the path Ernie's Walk. La Mere died in 1995. His grandson and some neighbors continued tending the site afterward, though less consistently.
County renovation In 2003, the
Los Angeles County Department of Public Works renovated the site. Native plants including
cottonwood trees were added, and many of La Mere's surviving plants were moved from the water's edge to allow maintenance access. River rock retaining walls, stairs, a ramp, and new fencing were installed. The original wooden "Boot Hill" markers were removed and replaced with a concrete marker inscribed ''Ernie's Walk Pet Commemorative.'' ==Legacy==