Upcoming Group Hike at the Kids Festival in McLaren Park--10/10/15

I've taken a long hiatus from Hill Babies with a move to the East Bay, the start of kindergarten for one kid, and twins turning two, but I'm up and running. In the month of October, I have the honor of leading one of two hour-long family hikes that sandwich the start and end of the free Kids Festival: a day of music, art, nature and science

October 10, 2015

10 a.m. Family Nature Walk 

(arrive at 9:45)

from the Jerry Garcia Amphitheater

McLaren Park

This isn't just a hike, but a fun day in the Saturday in the Park series, with a great lineup for kids:

Stage Schedule

10 AM -- Family Nature Walk

11 AM -- Charity and the JAMband

12 PM -- Magic Dan

1 PM -- Alphabet Rockers

2 PM -- Charity and the JAMband

3 PM -- Family Nature Walk

Directions

Hike starts outside the bathrooms @ Jerry Garcia Amphitheater

40 John F. Shelley Drive

Free parking, or better yet, ride a bike or take # 29 Sunset 

The Hike at 10 AM

This is to be determined based on the strollers. If you bring one, I'll make the walk stroller friendly. If nobody has a stroller, we'll walk on dirt trails. McLaren Park is hilly, and we will be going up and downhill, so wear appropriate shoes.

There is so much to explore in McLaren Park, an hour doesn't give it justice, but it's perfect for walking with kids. I like pools and ponds, so there's a good chance we will circle McNab Lake or the Upper Reservoir. We will look for coots, ducks, egrets, and turtles. Everyone likes views, so chances are, we might end up at the Blue Water Tower, with it's 270 degree view, or the McLaren Park Observation Tower, both places that are great for finding raptors soaring overhead. Everywhere we will find coyote brush, sticky monkey flower, and Monterey Pines. What I won't do, please note, which is to hang out at any of the playgrounds, as that would zap our time. You're totally welcome to hang out, come and go as you please.  We'll stop for 1-2 snack breaks along the trail.

Please arrive by 9:45 so we can begin the walk at 10. An hour will pass quickly, considering most kids will need a short break or two (so please pack water and lots of snacks for your family).

Hope to see you and yours on October 10th!

Cheers,
Jessica

Old McLaren Park from the 1920s

Some Links
McLaren Park Collaborative: http://mclarenparksf.org
Saturday in the Park Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/Saturday-in-the-Park-McLaren-546735475383735/timeline/
Magic Dan's website: http://www.magicdan.com
Alphabet Rockers: http://alphabetrockers.com
Charity and the JAMBand: http://www.jamjamjam.com
McLaren Park on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Saturday-in-the-Park-McLaren-546735475383735/timeline/
Hill Babies: The Labyrinth: http://hillbabiessf.blogspot.com/2011/01/labyrinth-of-mclaren-park.html
Hill Babies: A Day on the Southern Trails of McLaren Park: http://hillbabiessf.blogspot.com/2012/09/a-day-on-southern-trails-of-mclaren-park.html

Next Group Walk: Heron's Head & India Basin in San Francisco--November 22nd, 2014

Heron's Head

November 22nd, 2014

Heron's Head & India Basin

San Francisco

9:45 am to whenever!

Once destined to be a shipping terminal but now a protected salt marsh, Heron's Head is an intriguing place to explore.

As you walk down the long, narrow man-made peninsula of Heron's Head, you're confronted with remarkable contrasts. There's industry on one side--for what its worth, along with hundreds of seagulls, massive ships and crusty, rusty warehouses--while on your other side lies a glassy, bird-filled salt marsh. And at the tip of the heron's head you face east, where Oakland lies across the choppy bay and Mount Diablo rises, purple and jagged, on the horizon. You got birds, you got seals, you got boats. Its quiet and noisy, and cool and strange in that way where industrialization contends with nature.

Meeting Time and Place:

9:45am

Heron's Head entrance/parking lot  

Cargo Way and Jennings Street, San Francisco

Our route is completely flat, and maybe 1.5 to 2 miles long if you include India Basin. It is stroller friendly, though there are some packed dirt trails. Please no dogs, because Heron's Head is a bird sanctuary.

I hope to have a picnic at India Basin Playground. I recommend bringing a picnic blanket, food, and water. The whole things should be 2 to 3 hours. There are port-o-potties at Heron's Head, and nothing but swings, structures, and a view at the playground.

Come because it's fun, free, and your kids will love running around in the sun, checking out new things.

Cheers,
Jessica and Marshall
(parents of three little ones)

If you have questions, email Jess at jericahahn@hotmail.com


MORE INFO ABOUT HERON'S HEAD:

The EcoCenter and Literacy for Environmental Justice Website

Port of San Francisco's Web Page about Heron's Head Park, with a link to a bird field guide specifically for Heron's Head Park

Bay Natives, native plant nursery at Cargo Way and Jennings Street

Blue Greenway, a bicycle and pedestrian-friendly corridor that will connect Heron's Head and other waterfront parks in the city

View Larger Map

Upcoming Group Hike on BAYVIEW HILL! October 26th, 2014

Ever wondered about that wild looking hill beside Candlestick Park as you drive into or out of San Francisco on the 101? You know the one. Maybe not by name--Bayview Hill Park--but you've seen the eucalyptus groves, the big craggy rocks, at least peripherally as you travel north or south.

Bayview Hill is a forty-seven acre park and natural resource area. Not only is the place rife with birds, especially raptors, the last stands of the native Islais cherry, a food source for the Ohlone people, grow here, and there's been sightings of the endangered Mission Blue butterfly. Manmade things of note  include WPA walls built in the 1930s, and an Art Deco radio building from 1934.

How can one not be curious of such an AWESOME sounding place? 

Bayview in greener days. Photographer: Chris Carlsson

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 26th, 2014

10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
1.5 mile
paved, mostly flat route 

THE HIKE 

Bayview Hill is perhaps surprisingly a great place to walk with kids and strollers: an old road that's closed to cars leads from Key Avenue to the top of the hill, where another road circles the apex. Total mileage is 1.5, more or less.

The initial road is steep, but two-and-a-half year olds, or three year olds, manage it fine. This is great place to bring your strollers. If in doubt, bring it.

The views on a clear day show you every geographical feature in the area, and beyond: McLaren Park, the San Francisco Bay, San Bruno Mountain, Mount Diablo, and San Francisco, looking north.

With a picnic lunch up top, and rests whenever you need it, you go at your pace--there's nothing organized about this beyond a chance to walk with other families at a certain time, with aspirations for a group picnic somewhere.

 Pregnant people and babies welcome! Calling this a "hike" is kind of a misnomer. It's a stroll, a ramble, a jaunt, a slow walk. Three year olds rule the day.

Plan about three hours, but  come and go as you please.

THE DETAILS

• Meet between 9:45 and 10:00 AM at the gated eastern end of Key Avenue (cross street is Jennings). The closest house to our meeting place is 938 Key Avenue( 94124). Parking is a challenge in this residential cul-de-sac, so you might take the first space you can a block away.

• We start walking at 10:15. If I get a text message--my cell is (415) 577-7934--that you're running late, I can stall til 10:20 or so. :-) If you're very late don't worry, just head uphill on foot. There's no way to get lost on one road.

• Picnic somewhere on the southern or western side of the hilltop. Bring your food and water. 

Bayview in the 20s. From Found SF.org.

 DIRECTIONS TO THE MEETING SPOT

KEY AVE & JENNINGS

Public Transportation:

• T 3rd light rail stops a couple blocks away

Southbound 101:

• Exit 3rd Street
• Follow signs for 3rd Street/Bayshore Blvd N
• Stay right at the fork and follow signs for 3rd St/Bayshore Blvd S
• Left on Bayshore Blvd
• Continue on 3rd St
• Right at Key Ave

Northbound 101:

• Exit 429B/3rd Street
• Right on Key Ave

WEBSITES ABOUT BAYVIEW HILL

SF Park and Rec:

http://sfrecpark.org/destination/bay-view-park/

SF Natural Areas:

http://sfnaturalareas.org/sites/5

Found SF:

http://foundsf.org/index.php?title=Bayview_Hill

Bay Nature Magazine:

http://baynature.org/park/bayview-hill/

Hope you can join the fun, and feel welcome to bring others, or spread the word. The more, the merrier!

Cheers,
Jessica and Marshall
(parents of a 5 y.o. and twin 16 month olds)

September 27, 2014 Hike: McLaren Park and Charity and the Jam Band!

Jerry Garcia Amphitheater

This hike begins at the Louis Sutter Roundhouse playground in McLaren Park, and ends at the Jerry Garcia Amphitheater. 

We are soooo lucky that there's a FREE concert, and Charity and the Jam Band are playing! It's a high energy band that plays "people's music" that kids LOVE--see their website here.

What more could you ask for? Sunshine, a walk with your loved ones, new friends, and live music! See you on the 27th!

Cheers,
Jessica and Marshall
(parents of Genevieve, Zoe, and Calliope)

The Details

• Saturday, September 27, 2014

• Meet between 10:30-11 am at the Louis Sutter Playground alongside McNab Lake (near University and Woolsey Streets in the Portola neighborhood). There are bathrooms and drinking water, and two parking lots. 

• Hike begins at 11:30. We'll begin by circling McNab Lake, keeping an observant eye out for coots, ducks, turtles, and little fish. Maybe we'll see an egret or heron. 
• Then we will go uphill on a single-track dirt trail, suitable for all ages of walkers, or single-size off-road strollers. 
• At the top of the hill, we can eat a leisurely lunch and enjoy the view. Bring picnic food and water.
• Time permitting, we'll cross Mansell Avenue to the McLaren Park Observation Tower OR we explore the single-track trails above the Jerry Garcia Amphitheater, looking for hawks and scrub jays as we walk past the coyote brush and under the Monterey pines. 

• Arrive at the Charity and the JamBand Show by 1:00. The show, located at the Jerry Garcia Amphitheater, is free and fun. You'll find bathrooms, water, and kiosks with snacks for sale. 

• Leave when you want. The group part of the hike basically ends at the Jerry Garcia Amphitheater, as some folks will want to stay and boogie down, and some may want to wander on. 

McLaren Park

• Regarding dogs, if you have one -- Please consider the group's comfort level and the fact that some children are nervous around dogs, especially high energy and medium-large sized ones. Absolutely friendly dogs are welcome, but please predict your dog's behavior around a group of hyper kids before you grab that leash.  Thanks!  

Directions

Via car to the Louis Sutter Playground: From Portola Avenue in southeastern San Francisco, head west on Woolsey Street. The street ends at University. You can park here, or zig zag to the left into the McLaren Park driveway that leads to a small parking lot. A second parking lot is located around the corner, off of Yale Street (cross street is Wayland)

Via car to the Jerry Garcia Amphitheater: This amphitheater is located off of John F. Shelly Drive in McLaren Park. There is a free parking lot, but you can park along John F. Shelley Drive too.

Public Transportation: 

• The 54 Felton will take you near Louis Sutter Playground along University. 
• The 29 Sunset drives through McLaren Park on Mansell, a short distance above  both the Louis Sutter Playground and the Jerry Garcia Amphitheater. 
• The 52 Excelsior stops a couple blocks from the west border of the park, at Persia and Russia. 

View Louis Sutter Playground Roundhouse in a larger map

Upcoming Group Hike: Starr King Open Space in San Francisco

I recently published a small article about Starr King Open Space in Bay Nature magazine, and was pleased to hear from the editor, Dan, that a well-known lepidopterist in the city was thrilled by it. He'd never been there before and ended up seeing plenty of flowers, including rarities, and even some wildlife.

For the group hike of April 2013, I'd like to bring folks to Starr King Open Space on Sunday April 7th from 11 to 12:30.

Starr King Open Space is on Potrero Hill in San Francisco. It's relatively close to General Hospital, the 101 and 280, 23rd Street, and it was my backyard as I grew up here in the 80s and early 90s. I used to spend hours here, sliding down the hills on pieces of cardboard with other neighborhood kids, walking my dog, or watching the fog drape over Twin Peaks. I'm glad to know the place is protected now, and furthermore that with age you can even notice a lot more than when you were a kid---like seeing all the wildflowers and understanding how rare they are, like the mariposa lily.

We'll ramble around the 3.5 acres that make up this open space, visit a stone spiral in one of the meadows, see rock outcroppings that create a special habitat called serpentine grassland, and have a picnic with an amazing view of the city spread out before us.

Special Guests
Webb Green, Vice President of the Starr King Open Space (http://starrkingopenspace.org), will point out different kinds of wildflowers, many of which are rare and native. He's been on the board for a decade, and active with the land for twenty years. I'm hoping Julie Shumate, the President of SKOS, will attend with her kid, as they're good friends of mine.

Getting There

We will meet under the eucalyptus trees across the street from Starr King Elementary School (1215 Carolina Street, 94107--cross street is Coral Road) on Potrero Hill.

Bus: You can catch the 48 Quintara from 24th Street BART, or the 19 Polk from Civic Center BART---either will take you a few blocks from our meeting spot.

Car: Exit 101 to Cesar Chavez, go north on Potrero Avenue, turn right on 23rd, turn right on Carolina Street, proceed two blocks to Starr King Elementary School, and park.

Relevant Links
http://starrkingopenspace.org
http://www.potreroview.net/news10051.html
http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/nativeson/article/Enjoy-Starr-King-Open-Space-atop-Potrero-Hill-3518667.php

Map of the Area

View Larger Map

Old Frisco and New

"Old Frisco with end of land sadness." --Jack Kerouac

Watching this footage of old time San Francisco (circa 1960s, that is) and hearing Jack Kerouac describe being here brings up two things. First, it makes me love the place, the history and the home the city is, the views I'm familiar with, and the many streets I've never been down, but hope to hoof with my small kid in tow. 

Credit: flowerpicturegallery.com

The second thing this video makes me think of is growing up in San Francisco. Lately I've been having conversations about raising a kid in this city, which I think is a pretty good idea. Of course the landscape is great. There are neighborhoods and hills, ocean and bay, and all these lovely microclimates, urban farms, and parks. Composting and recycling are expected, and jackhammers are busting up concrete in a greening frenzy. The city looks lovely, in part 'cause it's spring and the golden poppies are stunners. Still it's hard for me--a country-loving city gal--to weigh a rural landscape against San Francisco's concrete and cars. But the best thing about raising a kid here isn't because of the landscape.

It's because of the people! It's a real candy box of humans. For a kid there's the chance to grow up to be who one wants to be, really truly there's an encouragement to fly your freak flag. Man, it's refreshing!

I just came back from international travels via Texas, land of Bush and God, which reminded me of the best part of San Francisco, the people.

I like thinking of some of the local kids I grew up with in the Eighties who still are here, or just over the bay or down the peninsula. They're a big reason to stay--not just them as individuals, but each of them as a possibility for my own kid to become, or to look at and say, "Yeah!"

Credit: Sheryl Mayo

Sheryl was my friend from elementary school. She learned Native American dancing, which meant everything to her being Native American, and it made her blossom. 

Terri is raising a real San Franciscan boy, spirited but sweet, like the boys I remember back when the Giants and the Niners were always winning. 

Nikki, a hunky transvestite from Puerto Rico who liked to preface sentences with "Girl!" went to my high school. He loved being in San Francisco because he would've been killed back in Puerto Rico, he told me.

Credit: sflandscapes.com

Curly-haired Casey (who was my secret crush in middle school) now grows native plants and tends several farms in San Francisco; he can tell you about lupines on Bayview Hill and which butterfly prefers them.

Credit: metromintcycling.com

Aaron and Colin, the Dungeons and Dragons-loving twins from high school, have ridden their bicycles thousands of miles away from here, but still they keep coming back to this city.

Good old Andy's drinking beer in the Sunset District, writing stories about Old Man Kuo, and channeling Charles Bukowski. He's got a turtle named Turky, who can't spell for shit.

Credit: suzieferras.com 

Suzie's singing jazz and dipping brushes in oil paints, meeting up with Thea who's been rambling around the country in a flatbed truck and living in Mexico, only to finally find her way home.

The Labyrinth of McLaren Park

The Labyrinth of McLaren Park

 "So, the Labyrinth is a piece of cake, is it?

Well, let's see how you deal with this little slice..."

--Labyrinth (1986)

 There's a meditative, quiet place in San Francisco where you'll find an awesome spiral labyrinth made of rocks and city detritus, lost toys and found objects, sitting in the green grass, ringed by blue gum eucalyptus, cypress, and pine, at the top of a steep hill in McLaren Park. The ridge-top grove is so secluded, and the labyrinth so lovingly detailed, the place feels sacred.

HISTORY

The labyrinth is an ancient symbol, a combination of circle, spiral, and maze. Perhaps the most famous labyrinth is the one from Greek mythology, a vast and complicated puzzle built by the master craftsman, Daedalus, to imprison the Minotaur, a creature half-man, half-bull. Daedalus architected the Labyrinth so well, he almost couldn't get out of it. 

There are labyrinths in cultures throughout the world, from all different times, more ancient than the Greek myth. It's implied that the theme behind all these labyrinths is their universal spirituality. 

Starhawk, a famous modern witch and activist, wrote in The Earth Path (2004) that a labyrinth "has a single pathway through it...that leads to a center that's a spot for insight and meditation." In the center of McLaren Park's labyrinth is a rough-hewn wooden bench. Furthermore, Starhawk says, "There are many forms of the labyrinth, from the classic Minoan seven-path labyrinth to the more complex pattern of the labyrinth found in Chartres cathedral." And so we have the San Francisco labyrinth. 

DIRECTIONS

You'll find the spiral labyrinth in McLaren Park, in the southeastern quadrant of San Francisco. 

The labyrinth is at the highest point of the park, on the ridgeline. Go to the large dog-run area, north of Mansell Avenue and in the middle of the loop of John F. Shelley Drive, and head uphill. 

McLaren Park, by the way, of is one of those rare places that feel almost not a part of the city, with raptors soaring overhead, a wild southern side of steep grasslands, coyotes padding around at dusk, endless secret spots among trees and outcroppings, and three-hundred and sixty degrees worth of views, from the grey, crenellated cityscape, the blue Pacific Ocean, the San Francisco Bay, Mount Diablo, and San Bruno Mountain.  

LAST NOTE

I don't really need to say this, but will in the hope of preserving this treasure from vandalism. When you go, add something special. Fix a spot that might've crumbled. Take away something that definitely doesn't belong. Do something, and it'll come back to you, three times as strong. Blessed be.

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Sunday Streets: No Cars, Just People on the Embarcadero

Sunday was a beautiful day with the sun shining on the Bay Area and such good air quality that the silhouette of Mount Diablo stood out clearly on the eastern horizon, even from my vantage point in San Francisco. Best of all it was a designated “Sunday Street” day, where San Francisco shuts down a long section of road to motor vehicles, opening the street for pedestrians, bicyclists, strollers—anything powered by legs, feet, and hands.

The selected stretch was mostly along the Embarcadero, starting in quiet China Basin, south of the ballpark, all the way to frenetic Pier 39. From end to end it was 3.8 miles. Even if the streets weren’t closed to cars, the walk is great with a constant view of the bay and the Oakland hills in the distance. There are green, grassy spots and play structures along the way for the children, public restrooms, and some cool, funky restaurants. As well, much of the route was part of the historic Barbary Coast Trail.

We began our walk at Mariposa and Illinois Streets, essentially on the backside of Potrero Hill.  My husband and I brought our baby in a stroller, and took sunhats, water, and carrot bread with my friend Jeannie’s homemade blood orange marmalade. Mariposa Street turns into Terry A. Francois Boulevard, curving along a waterfront, juxtaposing fishermen on old docks with razor wire on cyclone fences. But it was cool, immediately seeing people on bikes in the middle of the road. We’re so used to being watchful for cars, it took some time getting used to being in the middle of the road.

In the distance was the Bay Bridge. We mused, if we make it there, that’d be great. We didn’t think we’d walk all the way to Pier 39.

We walked on down Terry Francois Boulevard to where it doglegs to the left at Pier 48, the first green, grassy patch. Children were shrieking and sliding and jumping in an inflatable, plastic castle.

The route then connected with 3^rd Street, at Mission Creek, locally known as Shit Creek, as least by my old-time San Franciscan friends.  We crossed the 3^rd Street Drawbridge, my husband musing about what it would be like to live in the tiny office above the road.

The route continued along Willie Mays Plaza, on the cold side of the ballpark, but we hugged the water’s edge on the Barbary Coast Trail, named for the old red-light district in the days of the 49ers, now a trail made of concrete. Whooshing by came a bald and bearded man, his bike weaving happily, his sound system blaring a song by Musical Youth:

It was a cool and lovely breezy afternoon

(How does it feel when you've got no food ?)

You could feel it 'cause it was the month of June

(How does it feel when you've got no food ?)

So I left my gate and went out for a walk…

He was the Pied Pipers of bicyclists, with a throng behind him, including a Burner woman in hot pink, blowing bubbles.

Pass the Dutchie on the left hand side

Pass the Dutchie on the left hand side

It a gonna burn, give me music make me jump and prance…

I saw a homeless man turn and stare, and when he looked back, he was smiling. And all along the east side of the baseball stadium was a long, rectangular waterside park with tall, rustling trees. We stopped for a diaper change and hoisted the baby onto a sling I carried.

The rest of the walk was the Barbary Coast Trail, running parallel and just east of the Embarcadero. The northbound lane of the street was closed to motor vehicles. Now people were out en masse.  Martial arts practitioners flipped each other around at the diamond-shaped Rincon Park, also known as Cupid’s Span because of the enormous sculpture in the middle of the lawn of Cupid’s arrow piercing the heart of the City.  

We stopped at Tcho, a chocolate company, and tried free samples, preferring the darkest chocolate. We wandered through the Ferry Building, loving the smells of cheese and coffee (there’s a public bathroom here, by the way).  We meandered down the open road, noticing that anyone with a sound system strapped to their bicycle invariably had a following of people behind them—everyone likes a song. And more power to the busker’s on the sidewalks! There was even a band of kids, Exit to Rock, belting out Clash and Ramone’s covers.

Finally, just as the Embarcadero was opened to motor traffic at 3:00 in the afternoon, and the wind was beginning to blow, we reached Pier 39 and the Aquarium of the Bay. We sat and ate the last of our carrot bread, savoring the delicious marmalade. When we were leaving we noticed a modest playground, right alongside the water.

 

We decided to walk the whole way back, although we were tired and the baby got grumpy. We stopped for a rest and a bite at a very cool diner on the water, Red’s Java House, just south of the Bay Bridge. The homemade chili and beans, topped with huge chunks of cheese and wedges of yellow onion, was under $3; the cheeseburger bun was a fair hunk of San Francisco sourdough. I met a young, very pretty woman in line for the bathroom, drinking Pabst Blue Ribbon, who yammered about the great price of beer. “You can get a bucket of six beers for cheap!” she shrieked.

 

By the time we got back to where we began, our dogs were barking, the baby was sleeping in the stroller, and a crisp wind was blowing. We were still excited from the walk—that we went the whole route and back, the discovery of some places new to us, and the fact that there are a half dozen more of these car-free Sundays to come.

What and Where?

Sunday Streets Website

http://sundaystreetssf.com/

Tcho Chocolate

http://tcho.com/

Red’s Java House

Pier 30 (Bryant & Embarcadero)

(415) 777-5626

http://www.yelp.com/biz/reds-java-house-san-francisco

The next Sunday Street is April 11th, going along the Great Highway and through Golden Gate Park. 

Bernal Hill and Cortland Avenue

Bernal Hill

            There is something about Bernal Hill that has always made me happy since childhood, whether in the summer and fall when the hill is golden as any northern California hill, or in winter and spring when grass turns the hill a luxurious green in contrast to the valley of concrete, mortar, and glass that the city appears to be.  Bernal’s thirty-something acres are almost in the nucleus of the city, more or less hemmed by Mission Street to the east, Cesar Chavez Street to the north, I-280 to the south, and US 101 to the east; these coordinates place it in the banana belt where you will mostly encounter sunny weather instead of fog. 

           

The Baby Factor

            Bernal Hill is a hike for any age: babies sport strollers can cruise Bernal Heights Boulevard, a pedestrian-only one-mile road that winds up the hill; babies in slings and older children can traverse the Boulevard with their parents, as well as explore the very top of the hill and walk along the crest on a dirt path that runs east-west.

            There are a plethora of shops and restaurants on Cortland Avenue but most do not have baby-changing tables in the restrooms; if you need to change your baby, patronize Progressive Grounds Café or Maggie Mud Ice Cream Parlor. While on Cortland, check out Chloe’s Closet, a fantastic second-hand baby gear and clothing store.

           

History

In the early nineteenth century this land belonged to the Spanish cattleman, Don Jose Cornelio Bernal, and then passed hands to a Frenchman who sliced it into lots that Irish immigrants bought. Its bedrock was virtually unaffected by the 1906 earthquake, and its stability lured folk to build cottages for survivors and construction workers. World War II brought black home-owners who worked in the naval shipyards, the 1960s brought political activists and hippies, and currently there is some amount of gentrification as evidenced in some expensive restaurants; Bernal’s blue-collar tradition remains at its foundation.

Your Day Begins

            Start your day on Cortland Avenue where you can stock up on picnic foods or enjoy a drink and a meal on the sunny patio at Progressive Grounds Café, one of the few businesses on Cortland with a baby-changing table in the restroom.

            Walk north up Anderson Street for a quarter mile until you reach Bernal Heights Boulevard, a circular drive with small, free parking lots on the north and south sides. You have about a mile to walk on the circular boulevard, half of which is pedestrian only. People let their dogs off leash here; on the weekends the place boils with mutts as they scamper and pop and gallop everywhere.

            At the very top is radio tower among a clump of trees on a windy hump; perhaps you’ll find the owls that live there, or see kestrels and hawks gliding on the breeze. This is a perfect place to sit and identify landmarks from the Golden Gate to the Bay Bridge, Mount Diablo to Mount Tamalpais, and a score of San Franciscan neighborhoods. If you are goat-footed and sure of your step, and have either a walking child or a baby in a sling, traverse the hill’s rocky spine extending to the east onto round, grassy lumps that remind me of the cover illustration of a boy standing on a desolate planet from Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s book, The Little Prince. Take care with walking on the dirt trails—they can be slippery even on a sunny day.

I’ve never encountered mammals besides humans and dogs on the hill, but Bernal is home to raccoons, opossums, and skunks. For a while, folks sighted a coyote and perhaps he’s still there. At least one pair of Great Horned Owls nest in the clump of trees at the apex, and one frequently spies hawks and kestrels soaring above.

Sunset is one of the loveliest times on the hill as witnessed on the very top where the panoramic city is spread out at your feet. Notice the changing colors of sky and hill, the emergence of stars and moon, the temperature change, the arrival and departure of birds.

            At the end of your day, treat yourself to ice cream at Maggie Mud’s where the spectrum ranges from dairy free to full fat goodness. If you and your child still have energy to burn, cross the street, go behind the library, and check out the Bernal Heights Playground.            

OTHER ACTIVITIES

Ø Farmer’s Market and Flea Market

If you visit on the weekend, take a jaunt to the southern flank of the hill so that you can buy fresh produce at the Alemany Farmer’s Market on Saturday (6 am to 3 pm), or look for an odd bauble or collectable at the Alemany Flea Market on Sunday (7 am to 3 pm).

Ø Bernal Heights Outdoor Cinema in October

In October you can watch a movie at the outdoor cinema; not all films are child-appropriate, but some are, like this year’s documentary on a pair of owls that live on Bernal Hill.

Ø Fiesta on the Hill

Also in October is the Fiesta on the Hill, a no-booze party lasting several days. Even if you hanker for a cold beer, your child will be drunk with happiness to ride ponies, dance to live music, get touchy-feely in the petting zoo, convince you to buy a pumpkin from the patch, and laugh to see you volunteer for the dunk tank.

Ø San Francisco Illegal Soapbox Society

Around Halloween weekend you might find the soapbox derby going on from 1 pm to about 5 pm. I’ve been once as a member of the holler-happy crowd, and marveled at the crazy speeds the soapboxes reach; I imagine an old-enough child would thrill at watching the wild race (and promptly beg the parents to build a soapbox derby car in the garage). This is a booze-friendly event—in fact one of the rules for car construction demand at least one beer holder per soapbox.

WHAT AND WHERE?

Maggie Mud (903 Cortland Ave., 415.641.5291)

Progressive Grounds Café (400 Cortland Ave., 415.282.6233)

Good Life Grocery (448 Cortland Ave., 415.648.3221)

Bernal Heights Outdoor Cinema (http://www.bhoutdoorcine.org/)

Fiesta on the Hill (http://www.bhnc.org/fiesta)

Farmer’s Market and Flea Market  (100 Alemany Boulevard at the junction of I-280 and 101 on the south side of Bernal Hill; 415.647.9423)

San Francisco Illegal Soapbox Society (no specific website, but here’s an article about it: http://upcoming.yahoo.com/event/304454)

Bernal Heights Playground (Cortland Ave at Moultrie Street, just behind the library)

Businesses WITHOUT a baby-changing table: Martha & Brothers Coffee, the Moonlight Café, Liberty Café (as of 10/2009, they have plans to add one, date yet to be determined), Little Nepal Restaurant, and Good Life Grocery.

DIRECTIONS

Public bus: 24 Divisadero; 67 Bernal Heights.

By car northbound: From US 101, exit Alemany Boulevard; left on Bayshore Boulevard; left on Cortland Avenue; continue to the top of the hill. Parking is metered on Cortland but free on side streets.

By car southbound: From US 101, exit Cesar Chavez Street; go on Bayshore Boulevard lane; travel south on Bayshore to Cortland; right on Cortland; continue to the top of the hill. Parking is metered on Cortland but free on side streets.

Free parking: If you park near Cortland, you’ll have a quarter-mile of an uphill walk before getting to the grassy hilltop.  There is a parking lot on the south side of the hill, at Anderson Street and Bernal Heights Boulevard. The parking lot on the north side, where I prefer to park and then walk in a large circle, is at Folsom Street and Bernal Heights Boulevard.