Fort Mason Stairs to Hyde Street Pier
(scroll to bottom for photo gallery)
Location: Fort Mason near Black Point Battery, and Aquatic Park/Hyde Street Pier area, San Francisco
Starting Point:
Franklin Street is largely a one-way street, but Franklin’s north end runs two-ways as it enters Fort Mason at its eastern side. Check for parking rules on street signs. We typically find two hour parking on Franklin Street a short way after crossing Bay Street and entering Fort Mason. Look for Black Point Battery on the National Park Service map below to get your bearings.
Info links:
For all web links, if a link doesn’t jump directly, copy and paste into browser.
Fort Mason Map (National Park Service):
https://www.nps.gov/goga/planyourvisit/upload/map-foma_accessibility.pdf
Fort Mason Visitor info with map (Fort Mason.org):
https://fortmason.org/visit/
Black Point Battery info link (Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy:
https://www.parksconservancy.org/trails/black-point-battery-trail
Black Point/Fort Mason history link (National Park Service):
https://www.nps.gov/goga/learn/historyculture/fort-mason.htm
San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park link (National Park Service):
https://www.nps.gov/safr/index.htm
Distance:
It would be a stretch to say it’s even a full half mile from parking on Franklin in Fort Mason and then walking around Black Point Battery, and then down the stairs to Aquatic Park and Hyde Street Pier. You could extend your distance by walking all the way to the end of the Aquatic Park Pier and back, or by walking further along Fisherman’s Wharf, but be aware you will then be in dense people territory. We typically make a one mile loop for this walk (without the pier), taking a break for lunch midway somewhere along Jefferson Street.
Considerations:
• Always check parking signs carefully. Rules are variable.
• There is paid parking in the western part of Fort Mason, but that can get crowded, and is away from the Black Point stairs. The Franklin Street entrance is less crowded and is near the Black Point Battery.
• Toilet facilities are not available right at the Franklin Street/Black Point Battery start of this walk. There is a toilet facility just south of the Philip Burton statue at Great Meadow Park in Fort Mason. The Maritime Museum and the National Park Visitor Center (San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park and Museum, 499 Jefferson) on Jefferson Street are free visitor sites with great exhibits and public bathrooms. There are also public bathrooms on Hyde Street Pier before the paid entry historic ship area.
• This is a city walk. Use urban common sense. Lock vehicles, with no items left visible within car interior.
The trail:
San Francisco is a city of hills, and therefore a city with many stairways. There are multiple books about stairway walks in San Francisco. We've only done a few, but they usually offer great views.
Black Point Battery is a lesser known historical site within San Francisco. We start from the quiet, Franklin Street part of Fort Mason, and continue walking straight on Franklin until it becomes a pathway. There are charming old houses, a chapel, and a hostel on the way to Black Point Battery.
The path opens out toward the left with an old cannon facing the Golden Gate Bridge view. Black Point Battery (see National Park Service link above for detailed history under Fort Mason) is marked on the map with the date 1864, though its part in Civil War and local history dates earlier than that. There is a great view toward the Golden Gate Bridge and the Marin Headlands to the west, Angel Island facing north, and Alcatraz and points beyond facing east.
Following the battery path toward the direction of the long, curving pier visible in the bay leads to a combination of concrete pathways and steps. Follow these down to the far end of Aquatic Park where the road connects to the pier.
From the bottom of the stairs, walkers can turn left and walk the pier, or as we often do, turn right to walk along the beachfront at Aquatic Park, and then take a little stroll down Hyde Street Pier. There are some free exhibits (and toilet facilities), and also a ticket booth to buy tickets for visiting the historic ships. All of the ships have interesting historical information and if you have time and a few dollars, it’s fun to walk inside them.
Face away from the ships on the Hyde Street Pier to see cable cars making their way up and down steep Hyde Street. Look facing the Golden Gate Bridge to see swimmers braving the cold water swimming laps.
A favorite stop for us is the National Park Visitor Center at 499 Jefferson Street, a part of the San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park (see link above for overview of the variety of historical National Park Service sites to visit in this area). There are great historical exhibits that give a flavor of the real old seafaring days of San Francisco, and my perennial favorite, public bathrooms.
There are plenty of places to eat in the area, though walkers will be reminded they are in the prime tourist area of Fisherman’s Wharf.
For our return trip, we often walk a block up to North Point Street or Bay Street and make our way back to Van Ness Avenue. Rather than take the stairs back, we usually enter the front of Fort Mason from Bay Street just past Van Ness, and find our way back to the car through this quiet section of Fort Mason.
This is a city walk in a touristy area, but it starts in a quiet, uncrowded place, and the historical sites run by the National Park Service at this far end of Fisherman’s Wharf are worth a visit, or at least time spent gazing at them along with the other iconic scenery here.
(Fort Mason Stairs to Hyde Street Pier Hike Notes were originally paired with the “Embracing the Good Things” Insights post.)
Click Insights/Hike Update News for inspiring reflections. Browse hikes on the main Hikes page or on the Hike Search by Area page. Check out selected articles and interviews under Media. Click World Walks to see or share favorite family-friendly walks! Stay in touch with Lisa Louis and HikingAutism via Contact. See products with inspiring designs that support the efforts of HikingAutism under Support/Shop. The Links page lists a loose collection of helpful information links.
Check the Home page for the broader background story. If you’re not able to take one of these Northern California hikes, hopefully you can enjoy the photo galleries at the bottom of each hike page! Feel free to share and follow on Facebook at HikingAutism, follow on Twitter at @HikingAutism and Instagram at lisalouis777
(scroll to bottom for photo gallery)
Location: Fort Mason near Black Point Battery, and Aquatic Park/Hyde Street Pier area, San Francisco
Starting Point:
Franklin Street is largely a one-way street, but Franklin’s north end runs two-ways as it enters Fort Mason at its eastern side. Check for parking rules on street signs. We typically find two hour parking on Franklin Street a short way after crossing Bay Street and entering Fort Mason. Look for Black Point Battery on the National Park Service map below to get your bearings.
Info links:
For all web links, if a link doesn’t jump directly, copy and paste into browser.
Fort Mason Map (National Park Service):
https://www.nps.gov/goga/planyourvisit/upload/map-foma_accessibility.pdf
Fort Mason Visitor info with map (Fort Mason.org):
https://fortmason.org/visit/
Black Point Battery info link (Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy:
https://www.parksconservancy.org/trails/black-point-battery-trail
Black Point/Fort Mason history link (National Park Service):
https://www.nps.gov/goga/learn/historyculture/fort-mason.htm
San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park link (National Park Service):
https://www.nps.gov/safr/index.htm
Distance:
It would be a stretch to say it’s even a full half mile from parking on Franklin in Fort Mason and then walking around Black Point Battery, and then down the stairs to Aquatic Park and Hyde Street Pier. You could extend your distance by walking all the way to the end of the Aquatic Park Pier and back, or by walking further along Fisherman’s Wharf, but be aware you will then be in dense people territory. We typically make a one mile loop for this walk (without the pier), taking a break for lunch midway somewhere along Jefferson Street.
Considerations:
• Always check parking signs carefully. Rules are variable.
• There is paid parking in the western part of Fort Mason, but that can get crowded, and is away from the Black Point stairs. The Franklin Street entrance is less crowded and is near the Black Point Battery.
• Toilet facilities are not available right at the Franklin Street/Black Point Battery start of this walk. There is a toilet facility just south of the Philip Burton statue at Great Meadow Park in Fort Mason. The Maritime Museum and the National Park Visitor Center (San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park and Museum, 499 Jefferson) on Jefferson Street are free visitor sites with great exhibits and public bathrooms. There are also public bathrooms on Hyde Street Pier before the paid entry historic ship area.
• This is a city walk. Use urban common sense. Lock vehicles, with no items left visible within car interior.
The trail:
San Francisco is a city of hills, and therefore a city with many stairways. There are multiple books about stairway walks in San Francisco. We've only done a few, but they usually offer great views.
Black Point Battery is a lesser known historical site within San Francisco. We start from the quiet, Franklin Street part of Fort Mason, and continue walking straight on Franklin until it becomes a pathway. There are charming old houses, a chapel, and a hostel on the way to Black Point Battery.
The path opens out toward the left with an old cannon facing the Golden Gate Bridge view. Black Point Battery (see National Park Service link above for detailed history under Fort Mason) is marked on the map with the date 1864, though its part in Civil War and local history dates earlier than that. There is a great view toward the Golden Gate Bridge and the Marin Headlands to the west, Angel Island facing north, and Alcatraz and points beyond facing east.
Following the battery path toward the direction of the long, curving pier visible in the bay leads to a combination of concrete pathways and steps. Follow these down to the far end of Aquatic Park where the road connects to the pier.
From the bottom of the stairs, walkers can turn left and walk the pier, or as we often do, turn right to walk along the beachfront at Aquatic Park, and then take a little stroll down Hyde Street Pier. There are some free exhibits (and toilet facilities), and also a ticket booth to buy tickets for visiting the historic ships. All of the ships have interesting historical information and if you have time and a few dollars, it’s fun to walk inside them.
Face away from the ships on the Hyde Street Pier to see cable cars making their way up and down steep Hyde Street. Look facing the Golden Gate Bridge to see swimmers braving the cold water swimming laps.
A favorite stop for us is the National Park Visitor Center at 499 Jefferson Street, a part of the San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park (see link above for overview of the variety of historical National Park Service sites to visit in this area). There are great historical exhibits that give a flavor of the real old seafaring days of San Francisco, and my perennial favorite, public bathrooms.
There are plenty of places to eat in the area, though walkers will be reminded they are in the prime tourist area of Fisherman’s Wharf.
For our return trip, we often walk a block up to North Point Street or Bay Street and make our way back to Van Ness Avenue. Rather than take the stairs back, we usually enter the front of Fort Mason from Bay Street just past Van Ness, and find our way back to the car through this quiet section of Fort Mason.
This is a city walk in a touristy area, but it starts in a quiet, uncrowded place, and the historical sites run by the National Park Service at this far end of Fisherman’s Wharf are worth a visit, or at least time spent gazing at them along with the other iconic scenery here.
(Fort Mason Stairs to Hyde Street Pier Hike Notes were originally paired with the “Embracing the Good Things” Insights post.)
Click Insights/Hike Update News for inspiring reflections. Browse hikes on the main Hikes page or on the Hike Search by Area page. Check out selected articles and interviews under Media. Click World Walks to see or share favorite family-friendly walks! Stay in touch with Lisa Louis and HikingAutism via Contact. See products with inspiring designs that support the efforts of HikingAutism under Support/Shop. The Links page lists a loose collection of helpful information links.
Check the Home page for the broader background story. If you’re not able to take one of these Northern California hikes, hopefully you can enjoy the photo galleries at the bottom of each hike page! Feel free to share and follow on Facebook at HikingAutism, follow on Twitter at @HikingAutism and Instagram at lisalouis777
