Ocean Beach is a

beach A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological sources, such as mollusc shel ...

on the west coast of

San Francisco, California San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

, United States, bordering the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

. It is adjacent to

Golden Gate Park Golden Gate Park, located in San Francisco, California, United States, is a large urban park consisting of of public grounds. It is administered by the San Francisco Recreation & Parks Department, which began in 1871 to oversee the development ...

, the Richmond District, and the

Sunset District The Sunset District is a neighborhood located in the southwest quadrant of San Francisco, California, United States. Location The Sunset District is the largest neighborhood within the city and county of San Francisco. Golden Gate Park forms the ...

. The

Great Highway The Great Highway is a road in San Francisco that forms the city's western edge along the Pacific coast. Built in 1929, it runs for approximately next to Ocean Beach. Its southern end is at Skyline Boulevard ( State Route 35) near Lake Merced; ...

runs alongside the beach, and the Cliff House and the site of the former

Sutro Baths The Sutro Baths was a large, privately owned public saltwater swimming pool complex in the Lands End area of the Outer Richmond District in western San Francisco, California. Built in 1894, the Sutro Baths was located north of Ocean Beach, ...

sit at the northern end. The beach is a part of the

Golden Gate National Recreation Area The Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA) is a U.S. National Recreation Area protecting of ecologically and historically significant landscapes surrounding the San Francisco Bay Area. Much of the park is land formerly used by the United ...

, which is administered by the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...

. During the late spring and summer, San Francisco's characteristic foggy weather frequently envelops the beach. The average temperature for the last 5 years has been Most of the beach-friendly weather occurs in the fall (usually mid to late September) and early in the spring when fog and strong sea breezes are less prevalent. Dry winter days also tend to provide excellent weather at Ocean Beach (especially in drought years). The water at Ocean Beach is noteworthy for its strong, dangerous currents and powerful waves, which make it popular among serious surfers. The water is cold, due in part to a process known as

upwelling Upwelling is an oceanographic phenomenon that involves wind-driven motion of dense, cooler, and usually nutrient-rich water from deep water towards the ocean surface. It replaces the warmer and usually nutrient-depleted surface water. The nutr ...

, in which frigid water from below the ocean surface rises to replace the surface water that moves away from the beach as a result of the

Coriolis effect In physics, the Coriolis force is an inertial or fictitious force that acts on objects in motion within a frame of reference that rotates with respect to an inertial frame. In a reference frame with clockwise rotation, the force acts to the ...

. The rapid

rip current A rip current, often simply called a rip (or misleadingly a ''rip tide''), is a specific kind of water current that can occur near beaches with breaking waves. A rip is a strong, localized, and narrow current of water which moves directly away ...

s, cold water, and threat of sneaker waves make the ocean dangerous for casual swimmers and even those who simply want to set foot in it, especially those without

wetsuit A wetsuit is a garment worn to provide thermal protection while wet. It is usually made of foamed neoprene, and is worn by surfing, surfers, Underwater diving, divers, windsurfers, canoeists, and others engaged in water sports and other activit ...

s and

lifejacket A personal flotation device (PFD; also referred to as a life jacket, life preserver, life belt, Mae West, life vest, life saver, cork jacket, buoyancy aid or flotation suit) is a flotation device in the form of a vest or suite that is worn by a ...

s, because swimmers and even waders have been swept away and drowned. The southern portion of the beach by Sloat Boulevard has some of the cleanest water in the state.

Surfing

The beach is one of the

Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Gov ...

's top

surfing Surfing is a surface water sport in which an individual, a surfer (or two in tandem surfing), uses a board to ride on the forward section, or face, of a moving wave of water, which usually carries the surfer towards the shore. Waves suitabl ...

spots and — when breaking well — can be world class, especially during large swells in the winter months. Surfers and other swimmers have died at Ocean Beach; one example occurred in May 2006, with the next-previous death taking place in January 2006. Prior to that, it had been about five years since a death at Ocean Beach. In 1998, a record seven people lost their lives there. The Ocean Beach surfing community is served by four surf shops and several popular beach-themed cafes.

Seal Rock A petroleum reservoir or oil and gas reservoir is a subsurface accumulation of hydrocarbons contained in porous or fractured rock formations. Such reservoirs form when kerogen (ancient plant matter) is created in surrounding rock by the presence ...

is a prominent local feature of the area. Third Eye Blind's

Motorcycle Drive By A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruising, ...

was written about this beach. On November 6, 2011, Ocean Beach hosted the

Rip Curl Pro The Rip Curl Pro, formerly the Bells Beach Surf Classic, is a WSL (formerly ASP) World Tour surfing competition held in and around Torquay, Victoria and sponsored by surf company Rip Curl. The event is based at Bells Beach, Victoria, Australi ...

surfing competition, in which

Kelly Slater Robert Kelly Slater (born February 11, 1972) is an American professional surfer, best known for being crowned World Surf League champion a record 11 times. Slater is widely regarded as the greatest professional surfer of all time. Slater is also ...

won his 11th ASP world championship at the age of 39. This was the only one of his championships won in the continental United States.

History

Due in part to its sometimes inhospitable weather (high winds, cold weather and fog), the area was largely undeveloped throughout most of San Francisco's early history, when it was known as part of the "

Outside Lands Outside Lands was the name used in the 19th century for the present-day Richmond District, San Francisco, California, Richmond District and Sunset District, San Francisco, California, Sunset District in San Francisco, California. With few roads an ...

." Development finally came in the late 19th century: a

steam railroad Various terms are used for passenger railway lines and equipment; the usage of these terms differs substantially between areas: Rapid transit A rapid transit system is an electric railway characterized by high speed (~) and rapid acceleratio ...

was in place by 1884 to bring people to the first

amusement ride Amusement rides, sometimes called carnival rides, are mechanical devices or structures that move people especially kids to create fun and enjoyment. Rides are often perceived by many as being scary or more dangerous than they actually are. This ...

at the city's oceanside, a "Gravity Railroad"

roller coaster A roller coaster, or rollercoaster, is a type of amusement ride that employs a form of elevated railroad track designed with tight turns, steep slopes, and sometimes inversions. Passengers ride along the track in open cars, and the rides are o ...

, and to the Ocean Beach Pavilion for concerts and dancing. By 1890, trolley lines reached Ocean Beach: the Ferries and Cliff House Railroad, Park & Ocean Railroad, and Sutro Railroad that encouraged commercial amusement development as a

trolley park Trolley may refer to: Vehicles and components * Tram, or trolley or streetcar, a rail vehicle that runs on tramway tracks * Trolleybus, or trolley, an electric bus drawing power from overhead wires using trolley poles ** Trolleytruck, a trolleyb ...

.''Amusing America''
San Francisco Public Library online exhibit, Sept 2006. Accessed 7 August 2007. The Cliff House, which opened in 1863, and

, which opened in 1896, drew thousands of visitors.Beldner, Ra
Public Art: Playland Revisited
. Access 7 August 2007.

Railroads

The Park and Ocean Railroad ran along Lincoln Way on the south edge of Golden Gate Park and then turned north into the western end of the Park along La Playa Street. This

standard-gauge railway A standard-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge of . The standard gauge is also called Stephenson gauge (after George Stephenson), International gauge, UIC gauge, uniform gauge, normal gauge and European gauge in Europe, and SGR in Ea ...

began service on December 1, 1883, using four locomotives built by

Baldwin Locomotive Works The Baldwin Locomotive Works (BLW) was an American manufacturer of railroad locomotives from 1825 to 1951. Originally located in Philadelphia, it moved to nearby Eddystone, Pennsylvania, in the early 20th century. The company was for decades t ...

in November 1880 for the

Central Pacific Railroad The Central Pacific Railroad (CPRR) was a rail company chartered by Pacific Railroad Acts, U.S. Congress in 1862 to build a railroad eastwards from Sacramento, California, to complete the western part of the "First transcontinental railroad" in N ...

but lettered ''Market Street, Park & Cliff Railroad''. These four (

tank locomotives A tank locomotive or tank engine is a steam locomotive that carries its water in one or more on-board water tanks, instead of a more traditional tender. Most tank engines also have bunkers (or fuel tanks) to hold fuel; in a tender-tank locomot ...

) (C/N 5357, 5357, 5375 & 5377) were joined by four Baldwins (C/N 7201, 7203, 7238 & 7243) built in March 1884. When the line was electrified in 1900, Locomotive #1 went to the

Mendocino Lumber Company Mendocino Lumber Company operated a sawmill on Big River near the town of Mendocino, California. The sawmill began operation in 1853 as the Redwood Lumber Manufacturing Company, and changed ownership several times before cutting its final logs in ...

, three of the s went to Canadian Collieries, and the remaining four became

Southern Pacific Transportation Company The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials- SP) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the ...

numbers 20, 21, 22 and 80. Number 20 was preserved at

Travel Town Museum Travel Town Museum is a railway museum dedicated on December 14, 1952, and located in the northwest corner of Los Angeles, California, Los Angeles, California's Griffith Park. The history of railroad transportation in the western United States fr ...

in 1954. The Park and Cliff House Railroad ran west along California Street and then along the coast to turn south on 48th Avenue. This

narrow-gauge railway A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard-gauge railway, standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with Minimum r ...

began service in 1887 with six Baldwins (C/N 8955, 8961, 8973, 8974, 9065 & 9073). The company was reorganized as the Ferries and Cliff House Railroad with two more Baldwins (C/N 9756 & 9763) built in 1889. These locomotives were widely distributed during the first decade of the 20th century. One went to the

Diamond and Caldor Railway The Diamond and Caldor Railway was a common carrier narrow gauge railroad operating in El Dorado County, California, in the United States. The 34-mile railroad was primarily a logging railroad but also operated some passenger service. History ...

, one to the

Oahu Railway and Land Company The Oahu Railway and Land Company, or OR&L, was a narrow gauge common carrier railway that served much of the Hawaiian island of Oahu, and was the largest narrow gauge class one common carrier in the U.S, until its dissolution in 1947. Origin T ...

, one to the San Jose and Santa Clara Electric Company, one to the Glynn and Peterson Lumber Company, and two to the Red River Lumber Company in

Westwood, California Westwood is a census-designated place (CDP) in Lassen County, California, United States. Westwood is located 20 miles (32 km) west-southwest of Susanville, at an elevation of 5,128 feet (1,563 m). Its population is 1,541 as of the 2020 cens ...

Resort era

Following a brief stint as a

refugee camp A refugee camp is a temporary settlement built to receive refugees and people in refugee-like situations. Refugee camps usually accommodate displaced people who have fled their home country, but camps are also made for internally displaced peo ...

after the 1906 earthquake, the area was touted as a resort. A small

amusement park An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, as well as other events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central ...

, Playland at the Beach, was built where Cabrillo and Balboa streets now end. Major development occurred in the 1920s and 1930s with construction of the

and housing in the adjacent

Sunset Sunset, also known as sundown, is the daily disappearance of the Sun below the horizon due to Earth's rotation. As viewed from everywhere on Earth (except the North and South poles), the equinox Sun sets due west at the moment of both the spring ...

and Richmond Districts. After the destruction of the

in 1966, the neighborhood lost its resort appeal; the amusement park was also torn down in 1972, to be replaced by apartment blocks and a supermarket in the 1990s. On January 25, 1878, the ''King Philip,'' a three-masted

clipper ship A clipper was a type of mid-19th-century Merchant ship, merchant Sailing ship, sailing vessel, designed for speed. Clippers were generally narrow for their length, small by later 19th century standards, could carry limited bulk freight, and had ...

, drifted onto Ocean Beach and foundered. From time to time, the wreckage of the ship still emerges from the sands just offshore, most recently reappearing in November 2010.

References

External links