Mount Sutro

 

144

397

Fishbits X.

San Francisco, CA

Close, beautiful, superb.
It is a great quick walk, great steps... beautiful and secluded feeling.  No view from the top tho.

Bookmark   Send to a Friend Link to This Review

Elite '08

62

155

Randy F.

San Francisco, CA

Up at the top of Mount Sutro sits a huge, glorious Eucalyptus Forest.  It is home to raccoons galore.  We used to find them digging through our garbage on occasion when we lived up on Crestmont.

Now this is no regular walk in the woods....most of this forest clings to 20 to 30 degree slopes, and is accessible by switchback trails and some serious staircases.  But it is well worth the visit.  If and when you reach the summit, you will be awestruck by the beautiful wildflower park that sits in the middle of these woods, and is a good 3 to 4 acre delight of an area to visit.  From this park, all around the perimeter, there are entrances back into the woods on all sides.  I have never explored the north or west slopes.

If you can break out of your bubble for just one day, then come on up here, and leave your expectations down in the lowlands.  And please, take your garbage with you when you leave....there's something almost sacred about this forest that simply mustn't be spoiled by the leavings of we filthy humans.

Bookmark   Send to a Friend Link to This Review

 

2

17

Kirk A.

San Francisco, CA

What an amazing area!   I went my whole life living in SF thinking that this was just some private property that was off limits to the public, never even bothering to go check it out.  Just another reminder to myself to always explore and not just assume things.
Mt. Sutro has quite a few ways to reach it...my favorite is taking Oakhurst Lane (read the review of Oakhurst Lane by Randy F.), which can be found by going up 7th avenue then up Lawton which turns into Warren Dr. and there on the left side you'll find a huge staircase that leads up to Crestmont, which leads to the beginning of a trail that actually has a "Welcome Mat" placed at the start of it.  How cool is that?
Also you could go up Medical Way, but I dislike having to be near UCSF
Other options are to use Clarendon Ave. or Belgrave Ave.

One of the things I really like about this place is that it makes you feel like you're not actually in the city, since all around you are huge Eucalyptus trees, which will occasionally offer a brief and awesome view of GG Bridge, Grand View Park, etc.
Also one of the few places in SF that you can find banana slugs.

And if after hiking around Mt. Sutro you're still up for me excitement and some great views, I recommend going up to Sutro Tower or following Claredon Ave. over to Tank Hill.

Bookmark   Send to a Friend Link to This Review

 

39

278

GIR ..

San Francisco, CA

I mount Mount Sutro and peek at its peak every day, literally and figuratively it never fails to elevate me.  I live on its sloped shoulders and love its pungent eucalyptus forest like a protective rabid koala.

Proximity to nature is what drew me to residing on Mount Sutro, and as one of the few bastions of undeveloped green hills in the city its little forest is populated with a variety of year round and migratory birds. Here is an incomplete list of what I've observed at my feeder and around:

* Red Shouldered Hawks
* Flycatchers
* Goldfinches
* Stellar Jays
* Grosbeaks
* Hummingbirds
* Juncos
* Nuthatches
* Chickadees
* Red Tail Hawks
* Scrub Jays
* House Finches
* Townsend's Warbler

Additionally there are all sorts of  ground feeder birds I have not identified, mystery raptors, and the usual motley assortment of doves, pigeons and crows.

Yes I am a geek, a bird identifying nature geek, and I treasure it when I find it in our fair city; it shows that San Francisco is alive and well, and not just a lifeless urban setting. The suburbs have nothing on us as long we have these spaces and keep the greedy developers from building it all up and driving the birds away (boo on the Crestmont Hills Development project :P).

So, whether or not you like the birds or prefer Evian over avian, come and enjoy Mount Sutro if only to visit the coolest landmark (Sutro Tower of course) in SF and ogle it up close and personal.

Bookmark   Send to a Friend Link to This Review

Elite '08

118

174

Ryan D.

San Francisco, CA

Dirt in SF! Volunteers and the community has done a wonderful job of transforming Mt. Sutro to an oasis for hikers, bikers, walkers, and runner to hit some dirt and escape the City. While you can sort of do this in GG Park, this is a much better alternative to needles and residents of the park.

Combine this with some riding in GG park and Land's End and you have a pretty good riding circuit.

Bookmark   Send to a Friend Link to This Review

Elite '08

27

84

justin g.

Santa Clara, CA

This place is great, the fresh air and the steep trails brought back memmories of science camp and the time I became a camp counselor. It was a bit chilly since we arrived somewhat at sundown so we had to make it quick. unfortunately we didnt complete the trail as it got too dark but we were still able to get up to a point where we saw the SF sky line. This is a great trail and a great experience to spend some quality time with that special someone. Check the websit and follow the map. The start of the trail should be on christopher street where there's plenty of open spaces to park.

Bookmark   Send to a Friend Link to This Review

Elite '08

68

319

Dani D.

San Francisco, CA

Fog or no fog this place is a keeper.If you like to take a walk,hike or love the sight of trees,well this is the place for you.

My first time here it was raining and the guy I was with wanted me to see this gem.

Amazing,for the active one.

Bookmark   Send to a Friend Link to This Review

 

26

133

Andrew L.

San Francisco, CA

The number-one hill for sweet smells and calm, Mount Sutro has no views on account of the ginormous eucalytpus on top, and no people on account of it's privately owned by UCSF, but it's like a tour to the smell factory. I guess its all those herbs they planted in the meadow on top. Amazing.

Also very interesting hiking. It's the only SF hill that I know that is all jungle all the way to the top.

A couple access points:

Walk up a road from 190 Behr ave. Go up. You'll cross a white chain laid across the road. Turns out you can pull the center post that holds this chain up out of the ground, in case you wanted to do a little illegal dirtbiking or jeep racing up there and disturb all the calm happy people.

Scramble up the hill from a little bush path in front of 465 Crestmont. There's a welcome mat in front of some little tiny homemade wooden steps that run right up into the forest.

Take a well-groomed path across the street from the UCSF overflow parking lot at 130 Medical Center Way. It's next to some big tanks of some kind.

Bookmark   Send to a Friend Link to This Review

Elite '08

196

805

Wes M.

San Francisco, CA

Quite possibly the best Eucalyptus forest in the whole city, and only 3 reviews (and one of those was really just a Sutro Tower review).  Pretty lame, San Francisco...

Actually, it's not your fault.  There is very little documentation or word-of-mouth about Mt Sutro.  Even I was led to believe that there were no maintained trails up there.  Only when I went jogging into the UCSF housing complex one foggy morning did I discover a trail that led me into a magical elf-kingdom.  One of the houses (perhaps the RA?) was even set well into the forest, so that looking out the window it would be impossible to believe that you were actually in a city.  Lucky bastards.

Anyway, all park-lovers in SF owe it to themselves to get out here!  As Lloyd C points out, there's even a trail restoration group you can join.  I'll have to sign up for that one of these days.

Bookmark   Send to a Friend Link to This Review

 

1

2

Christina M.

San Francisco, CA

Behind the pill on the hill (UCSF) sits a gold mine for hikers and nature lovers!  I discovered Mt. Sutro & the historic trail while volunteering with One Brick back in November.  The history and the trail itself is amazing!  The views through the Eucalyptus trees are worth the long hike up from the street level.  The Mt. Sutro Stewards do monthly trail restoration projects up there to raise awareness and have dedicated themselves to getting the trails back to their old glory.  No small feat being that many of the trails were overgrown from lack of use.  

For an added bonus, you should go up during a Mt. Sutro Steward work day, usually the first saturday of the month, (Check out the calendar,  www.natureinthecity/mtsutro.php).   You can give the stewards some blood, sweat, & tears...and they will fill you with a weath of information about the history of the area & all things Mt. Sutro.  The stewards are comprised of a group of locals living in the area, many of them grew up on Mt. Sutro so they know the ins and outs of the area.  At the end of the work day, they stewards have been known to provide snacks and a local, Dan, usually brings one of his homemade beers (havent been disappointed yet) for the group to wind down with.  Definitely a great way to raise awareness for a local gem, get some exercise, and revel being a San Franciscan (native or not!).  

If you ever get a chance to get up there, do so! It can get cold and windy so dress in layers.  With spring on the way, it will only get better with the plants coming into bloom. Hope to see you on a trail in the near future :)

Bookmark   Send to a Friend Link to This Review

 

139

71

Lloyd C.

Sunnyvale, CA

( Note: I sent a request to the Yelp team to change the address to "100 Medical Center Way", which is a closer to Mt. Sutro, per directions at http://www.onebrick.or... )

Summary: An Eucalyptus forest in middle of San Francisco :)

Details: If you like hiking in nature, and live in San Francisco, then give Mt. Sutro a try!

It's less crowded than Golden Gate Park, and there aren't cars driving nearby.  You are in middle of a tall forest (while still in SF at the same time).  Furthermore, active use of the trails are encouraged.  Otherwise, trails whither away from lack of use, as it happened in the past.

In November, I helped out with trail restoration with One Brick and Mt. Sutro Stewards, and it was cool learning about Mt. Sutro's history (50 year trail re-discovered, now in midst of restoration).

Mt Sutro trail map is at http://www.peasepress.... , with background info at http://www.natureinthe...

Some photos of trail restoration are at http://www.onebrick.or... and http://www.onebrick.or...

Bookmark   Send to a Friend Link to This Review

 

10

15

Froggy V.

San Francisco, CA

It is a dark and foggy night. Just the kind of night when Froggy likes to hop out and walk some favorite trails, and this mountain behind the UCSF medical center complex sure has 'em. In just a few minutes of steady uphill walking I reach a paradise of eucalyptuses gently swaying in the wind, meandering trails and utter safety and peacefulness. It's big enough to tire me out from walking, yet small enough so you're never very far from a MUNI line. Plus, after you get down from the mountain, you can explore charming neighborhood stairways. Some of the trails are steep, so you gotta be in reasonably good shape to hike here. On one particular night, when it was clear, I saw a HUGE yellow full moon hanging over the Sunset. On another, I came upon two fighting raccoons - didn't see them, just heard the shrieking and growling, and when I shone my light, two glowing pairs of eyes and then stomping and crunching of branches as they scuttled away to settle their differences elsewhere. I chuckled and continued on my way to the top. This mountain never ceases to amaze me.

Bookmark   Send to a Friend Link to This Review

Elite '08

32

546

Andrew Y.

Berkeley, CA

Whenever I have visitors from out of town, I take them up this hill to the top of Mt. Sutro. The view is spectacular and you can get a great view of most of the city. You can see the box housing on the south side and you see the bay bridge and GG bridge. On a clear day, you can see everything and it's well worth the trip.

At night, this is also a nice place to hang out. Though windy, the city is nice to see when it is all lit up. Take a date!

Bookmark   Send to a Friend Link to This Review

 

92

360

Ringo B.

San Francisco, CA

I never thought I would grow fond of a television/radio antenna but I have.

Bookmark   Send to a Friend Link to This Review