Parks & Beaches
SF’s Magnificent “Peak” Magnolia Bloom is Here (2023)
Bay Area Favorites, Outdoorsy, Parks & Beaches, San Francisco One of San Francisco’s most breathtaking natural marvels, the annual bloom of more than 200 rare and historic magnolias with trees reaching 80 feet, is typically at its peak from mid-January through March at the SF Botanical Garden. Velvety silver buds on the often bare branches of these elegant trees, many rare and more...
SF’s Esprit Park Closes for a Year for Renovations
Bay Area Updates, Outdoorsy, Parks & Beaches, San Francisco By Victoria Franco, Bay City News Foundation A renovation project at Esprit Park in San Francisco broke ground on Friday and will leave the park closed for about a year, according to the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department. Once renovated, the 2-acre Dogpatch neighborhood park will still have its original design, more...
SF’s “Esprit Park” Is Getting a Huge Makeover After 40 Years
Outdoorsy, Parks & Beaches, San Francisco Esprit Park was built as a private, corporate park in 1982 and transferred to San Francisco’s Recreation and Park Department in 2001. The park is an urban oasis, connecting the neighborhood to nature within an urban environment. As Dogpatch transitions to a high-density residential neighborhood, the park is experiencing an increased more...
New GGPark Art Piece “Tune In” Hidden Under a Tunnel
Artsy Fartsy, Brand New, Parks & Beaches Tune In will transform part of John F. Kennedy Blvd. in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park at the Crossover Drive underpass into a huge, interactive sound-making instrument. The installation combines three octaves of vibrantly painted tubular bells for a total of 15 chimes ready to be played by anyone willing to more...
Iconic SF Park Gets Fresh New Grass for 2023 Picnics
Bay Area Favorites, Outdoorsy, Parks & Beaches, San Francisco Yerba Buena Gardens is installing brand new grass that will be ready for picnics in the new year. Yerba Buena Gardens shared on Instagram, “Fresh sod has been rolled in and the lawn is now closed as we … watch the grass grow. 🍃 We anticipate the lawn will be established more...
SF’s Great Highway Will Stay Car-Free on Weekends Until 2025
Bay Area Updates, Outdoorsy, Parks & Beaches, San Francisco Thanks to SF Chronicle for sharing the news that San Francisco’s Great Highway will remain car-free on weekends for the next three years through December 31, 2025 after the Board of Supervisors voted on Tuesday. The Great Highway stretches 3.8 miles down San Francisco’s western coast, bordering Ocean Beach. Every weekend more...
SF’s 111-Year Old Pioneer Log Cabin Soon Available for Rent
Brand New, Parks & Beaches, San Francisco Thanks to SF Gate for sharing the news that the historic Pioneer Log Cabin in Golden Gate Park will soon be available to rent. The San Francisco Recreation and Park Department hopes to have the 111-year-old cabin available to rent by mid-2023. The department had planned to make the space available more...
SF’s Historic Pier at Aquatic Park Closed Forever?
Bay Area Updates, Parks & Beaches, San Francisco Thanks to SF Gate for sharing the news that unfortunate news that Aquatic Park’s municipal pier may be closed forever. The pier had been in need of repairs for a long time but after the recent 5.1 magnitude earthquake in October 2022 shook the Bay, an inspection on the pier found more...
No Reservations Needed for Yosemite National Park in 2023
Outdoorsy, Parks & Beaches Yosemite National Park recently shared the news that reservations will no longer be required in 2023. Reservations were required in the summers of 2020 and 2021 due to the pandemic and in summer 2022 when numerous key visitor attractions were closed for critical infrastructure repairs. Yosemite has been grappling with congestion—even gridlock—for more...
JFK Drive Remains “Car-Free” after SF Voters Reject Prop I
Bay Area Updates, Parks & Beaches, San Francisco, Transportation The voters have spoken. San Franciscans took the polls and voted to keep Golden Gate Park’s John F. Kennedy Drive permanently car-free. Proposition I was on the San Francisco ballot which aimed to reopen The Great Highway, and a 1.5-mile stretch of JFK Drive to vehicles, except on Sundays all year, more...
Free National Parks Day for Veteran’s Day (Nov. 11)
Freebies, Outdoorsy, Parks & Beaches Sometimes you’ve just got to get away from it all and clear your head with the peace and serenity of a national park. On certain “fee-free” days throughout the year, enjoy free entry to all national parks and monuments including Muir Woods and Yosemite National Park, and free admission aboard all of the historic more...
Golden Gate Park’s Lighted Forest is Back for 2022
Artsy Fartsy, Bay Area Favorites, Outdoorsy, Parks & Beaches, San Francisco Entwined, the iconic illuminated art installation, returns to Golden Gate Park on December 1. Entwined will be hosted at Peacock Meadow for its third season from December 1, 2022 to March 12, 2023. This dazzling forest of light first welcomed parkgoers as a safe and joyful outdoor destination in 2020 and more...
SF Skate Park Gets a $200K+ Makeover
New Parks, Outdoorsy, Parks & Beaches The San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department recently rolled out improvements to the Waller Street Skate Park, 751 Stanyan St.,—a project spearheaded by local skaters who helped shape its inclusive design that honors its street skateboarding roots. The skateboarding area on the eastern edge of Golden Gate Park has been beloved more...
SF’s Stow Lake in Golden Gate Park May Be Renamed
Bay Area Updates, Outdoorsy, Parks & Beaches, San Francisco Thanks to SF Gate for sharing the news that San Francisco’s Stow Lake in Golden Gate Park may be renamed. The picturesque man-made lake with pedal boats, a waterfall and Chinese pavilion was named after California Assemblymember William Stow, who was speaker in 1855. The politician, who was unapologetically and outspokenly more...
This is SF’s Last Ocean Beach Bonfire Night Until 2023
Bay Area Updates, Outdoorsy, Parks & Beaches, San Francisco October 31st is the last night to legally have a bonfire at San Francisco’s Ocean Beach. During the “No Burn” Season (which runs from November 1 to the end of February), bonfires are not allowed, but starting March 1, 2023 bonfires are back through the end of October with a more...
