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 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 Go ...

. Much of the park is land formerly used by the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

. GGNRA is managed 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 ...

and is the most visited unit of the National Park system in the United States, with more than 15 million visitors a year. It is also one of the largest urban parks in the world, with a size two-and-a-half times that of the consolidated city and county of

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, 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 List of Ca ...

. The park is not one continuous locale, but rather a collection of areas that stretch from southern

San Mateo County San Mateo County ( ), officially the County of San Mateo, is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 764,442. Redwood City is the county seat, and the third most populated city following Daly ...

to northern

Marin County Marin County is a county located in the northwestern part of the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 262,231. Its county seat and largest city is San Rafael. Marin County is acros ...

, and includes several areas of San Francisco. The park is as diverse as it is expansive; it contains famous tourist attractions such as

Muir Woods National Monument Muir Woods National Monument is a United States National Monument managed by the National Park Service, named after naturalist John Muir. It is located on Mount Tamalpais near the Pacific coast, in southwestern Marin County, California. It is ...

Alcatraz Alcatraz Island () is a small island in San Francisco Bay, offshore from San Francisco, California, United States. The island was developed in the mid-19th century with facilities for a lighthouse, a military fortification, and a military pris ...

, and the

Presidio of San Francisco The Presidio of San Francisco (originally, El Presidio Real de San Francisco or The Royal Fortress of Saint Francis) is a park and former U.S. Army post on the northern tip of the San Francisco Peninsula in San Francisco, California, and is part o ...

. The GGNRA is also home to over 3,000 plant and animal species, encompasses 59 miles (95 km) of bay and ocean shoreline and has military fortifications that span centuries of

California history The California Historical Society (CHS) is the official historical society of California. It was founded in 1871, by a group of prominent Californian intellectuals at Santa Clara University. It was officially designated as the Californian state ...

, from the Spanish

conquistadors Conquistadors (, ) or conquistadores (, ; meaning 'conquerors') were the explorer-soldiers of the Spanish and Portuguese Empires of the 15th and 16th centuries. During the Age of Discovery, conquistadors sailed beyond Europe to the Americas, O ...

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...

-era

Nike missile The United States Army's Nike Ajax was the world's first operational guided surface-to-air missile (SAM), entering service in 1954. Nike Ajax was designed to attack conventional bomber aircraft flying at high subsonic speeds and altitudes abov ...

sites.

History

The park was created thanks to the cooperative legislative efforts of cosponsors Congressman William S. Mailliard (R-San Francisco) and Congressman Phillip Burton (D-San Francisco). The plan for a non-contiguous national recreation area was conceived by Dr. Robert Busha, an administrator in Mailliard's Washington office, as a way to circumvent the prevailing limitation that national park property should be contiguous. In 1972, President

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

signed into law "An Act to Establish the Golden Gate National Recreation Area." The bill allocated $120 million for land acquisition and development. The National Park Service first purchased Alcatraz and

Fort Mason Fort Mason, in San Francisco, California originated as a coastal defense site during the American Civil War. The nucleus of the property was owned by John C. Frémont and disputes over compensation by the United States continued into 1968. In 188 ...

from the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

. Then to complete the national park in the north bay, the

Nature Conservancy The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is a global environmental organization headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. it works via affiliates or branches in 79 countries and territories, as well as across every state in the US. Founded in 1951, The Natu ...

purchased the land in the

Marin Headlands The Marin Headlands is a hilly peninsula at the southernmost end of Marin County, California, United States, located just north of San Francisco across the Golden Gate Bridge, which connects the two counties and peninsulas. The entire area is pa ...

that made up the failed development project called

Marincello Marincello was a failed development project in Marin County, California that would have put a planned community atop the Marin Headlands, overlooking the Golden Gate. Its upheaval set the precedent for Marin County's rigid anti-development stance ...

from the

Gulf Oil Corporation Gulf Oil was a major global oil company in operation from 1901 to 1985. The eighth-largest American manufacturing company in 1941 and the ninth-largest in 1979, Gulf Oil was one of the so-called Seven Sisters oil companies. Prior to its merger ...

. The Nature Conservancy then transferred the land to the GGNRA. These properties formed the initial basis for the park. Throughout the next 30 years, the National Park service acquired land and historic sites from the U.S. Army, private landowners and corporations, incorporating them into the GGNRA. The acquisitions range from the historic Cliff House restaurant and

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, ...

in San Francisco, to large and expansive forest and coastal lands, such as

Sweeney Ridge Sweeney Ridge, is a hilly hiking area of ridges and ravines between San Bruno, California, San Bruno and Pacifica, California, about a 25-minute drive south from San Francisco. The ridge's 1,200-foot-high summit, covered with coastal scrub and gra ...

in San Mateo County and Muir Woods National Monument in Marin. Many decommissioned Army bases and fortifications were incorporated into the park, including

Fort Funston Fort Funston is a former harbor defense installation located in the southwestern corner of San Francisco. Formerly known as the Lake Merced Military Reservation, the fort is now a protected area within the Golden Gate National Recreation Are ...

, four Nike missile sites, The Presidio and

Crissy Field Crissy Field is a public recreation area on the northern shore of the San Francisco Peninsula in California, United States, located just east of the Golden Gate Bridge. It includes restored tidal marsh and beaches. Crissy Field is a former Un ...

. The latest acquisition by the National Park Service is Mori Point, a small parcel of land on the Pacifica coast. In 1988,

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

designated the GGNRA and 12 adjacent protected areas the

Golden Gate Biosphere Reserve The Gate Biosphere Network(GGBN or the Network) is an internationally recognized voluntary coalition of federal, state, and local government agencies, nonprofit organizations, universities, and private partners within the Golden Gate Biosphere ...

. In February 2005, Senator

Dianne Feinstein Dianne Goldman Berman Feinstein ( ; born Dianne Emiel Goldman; June 22, 1933) is an American politician who serves as the senior United States senator from California, a seat she has held since 1992. A member of the Democratic Party, she was ...

introduced legislation in the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

that would add of natural land to the GGNRA in San Mateo County including a 4,076 acre parcel known as the Rancho Corral de Tierra. The property, located south of Pacifica and surrounding the communities of

Moss Beach Moss Beach is a coastal census-designated place in San Mateo County, California, with a year 2020 census population of 3,214. Located in Moss Beach are the Fitzgerald Marine Reserve, a marine sanctuary; the Half Moon Bay Airport, the historic M ...

and Montara, is home to many diverse plant and animal species. The bill passed in the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

, but did not pass the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

. On December 9, 2011, Rancho Corral de Tierra was transferred from the

Peninsula Open Space Trust The Peninsula Open Space Trust (POST) is a nonprofit land trust headquartered in Palo Alto, California. Mission and Work POST mission is to protect open space on the Peninsula and in the South Bay for the benefit of all. The organization has bee ...

to the GGNRA and the National Park Service.

Locations in the park

Marin County

Fort Baker Fort Baker is one of the components of California's Golden Gate National Recreation Area. The Fort, which borders the City of Sausalito in Marin County and is connected to San Francisco by the Golden Gate Bridge, served as an Army post until t ...

– former Army post located on the northern side of the

Golden Gate The Golden Gate is a strait on the west coast of North America that connects San Francisco Bay to the Pacific Ocean. It is defined by the headlands of the San Francisco Peninsula and the Marin Peninsula, and, since 1937, has been spanned by th ...

Headlands Center for the Arts Headlands Center for the Arts hosts an internationally recognized artist-in-residence program, and interdisciplinary public programs. It is situated in a campus of artist-renovated military buildings in the Marin Headlands, in Marin County, Cali ...

– an artist residency program set in renovated military buildings in the Marin Headlands. Offers programs including performances, discussions and lectures, and displays a project space with a rotating roster of artists open to the public *

– hilly peninsula at the southernmost end of Marin County that includes

The Marine Mammal Center The Marine Mammal Center (TMMC) is a private, non-profit U.S. organization that was established in 1975 for the purpose of rescuing, rehabilitating and releasing marine mammals who are injured, ill or abandoned. It was founded in Sausalito, Califo ...

Rodeo Lagoon Rodeo Lagoon is a coastal lagoon located in the Marin Headlands division of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, which is in southern Marin County, California. This brackish water body is separated from the Pacific Ocean by a sand bar that ...

, Rodeo Beach, Muir Beach, Tennessee Valley and Gerbode Valley *

– huge

Coast Redwood ''Sequoia sempervirens'' ()''Sunset Western Garden Book,'' 1995:606–607 is the sole living species of the genus '' Sequoia'' in the cypress family Cupressaceae (formerly treated in Taxodiaceae). Common names include coast redwood, coastal ...

s ''(Sequoia sempervirens)'' fill this forest, along with

Coast Douglas-fir ''Pseudotsuga menziesii'' var. ''menziesii'', commonly known as Coast Douglas-fir, Pacific Douglas-fir, Oregon pine, or Douglas spruce, is an evergreen conifer native to western North America from west-central British Columbia, Canada southward t ...

''(Pseudotsuga menziesii)'',

Bigleaf Maple ''Acer macrophyllum'', the bigleaf maple or Oregon maple, is a large deciduous tree in the genus '' Acer''. It is native to western North America, mostly near the Pacific coast, from southernmost Alaska to southern California. Some stands are al ...

''(Acer macrophyllum)'',

Tanbark Oak ''Notholithocarpus densiflorus'', commonly known as the tanoak or tanbark-oak, is a broadleaf tree in the family Fagaceae, and the type species of the genus ''Notholithocarpus''. It is native to the far western United States, particularly Orego ...

''(Lithocarpus densiflorus)'', and

California Bay Laurel ''Umbellularia californica'' is a large hardwood tree native to coastal forests and the Sierra foothills of California, and to coastal forests extending into Oregon. It is endemic to the California Floristic Province. It is the sole species in th ...

''(Umbellularia californica)'' * Oakwood Valley – bordered by Marin City to the north and the Marin Headlands to the south, Oakwood Valley contains the largest untouched woodland of

Coast Live Oak ''Quercus agrifolia'', the California live oak, or coast live oak, is a highly variable, often evergreen oak tree, a type of live oak, native to the California Floristic Province. It may be shrubby, depending on age and growing location, but is ...

and California bay trees in the Golden Gate National Recreation Area * Olema Valley – 10 miles (16 km) of grassland and forest that stretch from

Tomales Bay Tomales Bay is a long, narrow inlet of the Pacific Ocean in Marin County in northern California in the United States. It is approximately long and averages nearly wide, effectively separating the Point Reyes Peninsula from the mainland of Mar ...

Bolinas Lagoon Bolinas Lagoon is a tidal estuary, approximately in area, located in the West Marin region of Marin County, California, United States, adjacent to the town of Bolinas. It is a part of the Greater Farallones National Marine Sanctuary. In 1974 ...

* Point Bonita Lighthouse – an active

lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid, for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Lighthouses mar ...

maintained by the

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mult ...

* Stinson Beach – a beach north of San Francisco and south of Bolinas Lagoon * Muir Beach Overlook – a former Army base-end station with a clifftop view of 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 ...

and

, on State Route 1 *

Fort Cronkhite Fort Cronkhite is one of the components of California's Golden Gate National Recreation Area. Today part of the National Park Service, Fort Cronkhite is a former US Army post that served as part of the coastal artillery defenses of the San Francisc ...

– a former World War II Army post located near Rodeo Beach. *

Nike Missile Site SF-88 SF-88 is a former Nike Missile launch site at Fort Barry, in the Marin Headlands to the north of San Francisco, California, United States. Opened in 1954, the site was intended to protect the population and military installations of the San Francis ...

– a decommissioned Army

surface-to-air missile A surface-to-air missile (SAM), also known as a ground-to-air missile (GTAM) or surface-to-air guided weapon (SAGW), is a missile designed to be launched from the ground to destroy aircraft or other missiles. It is one type of anti-aircraft syst ...

(SAM) site located near

Fort Barry Fort Barry is a former United States Army installation on the West Coast of the United States, West Coast of the United States, located in the Marin Headlands of Marin County, California, north of San Francisco. Opened in 1908, the fort was part ...

Camping sites

Camping Information for the GGNRA
* Bicentennial Camp - open year-round, three 3-person sites, no pets or fires, stoves ok * Hawk Camp - open spring and summer, three 4-person sites * Haypress Camp – open spring and summer. Five sites. 4 campers maximum per site * Kirby Cove Camp – open Daylight Saving Time period, March–November, five 10-person sites and one 35 person Day Use site.

Youth Hostel

Hostelling International USA (part of

Hostelling International Hostelling International (HI), formerly known as International Youth Hostel Federation (IYHF), is a grouping of more than seventy National Youth Hostel Associations in over eighty countries, with over 4,000 affiliated hostels around the worl ...

) maintains th
Marin Headlands Hostel
located in a historic military hospital in the Marin Headlands

San Francisco

Alcatraz Island Alcatraz Island () is a small island in San Francisco Bay, offshore from San Francisco, California, United States. The island was developed in the mid-19th century with facilities for a lighthouse, a military fortification, and a military pris ...

– site of a

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

fort, military prison, and the infamous

Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary United States Penitentiary, Alcatraz Island, also known simply as Alcatraz (, ''"the gannet"'') or The Rock was a maximum security federal prison on Alcatraz Island, off the coast of San Francisco, California, United States, the site of a ...

China Beach ''China Beach'' is an American war film, war drama television series set at an evacuation hospital during the Vietnam War. The title refers to My Khe beach in the city of Da Nang, Đà Nẵng, Vietnam, nicknamed "China Beach" in English by Amer ...

– a small beach located north of the

Sea Cliff Seacliff or Sea Cliff or Sea Cliffe may refer to: ;Places ''Australia'' *Seacliff, South Australia, suburb of Adelaide *Seacliff Park, South Australia, a suburb of Adelaide *Sea Cliff Bridge, in Illawarra, New South Wales ''New Zealand'' *Seacli ...

district in

near the Presidio of San Francisco *

– a former coastal fortification and Nike missile site SF-59L; now a popular

hang gliding Hang gliding is an air sport or recreational activity in which a pilot flies a light, non-motorised foot-launched heavier-than-air aircraft called a hang glider. Most modern hang gliders are made of an aluminium alloy or composite frame covered ...

spot *

– the San Francisco Port of Embarkation National Historic Site now houses non-profit organizations and offers a variety of cultural activities *

Fort Miley Military Reservation The Fort Miley Military Reservation, in San Francisco, California, sits on Point Lobos (not to be confused with Point Lobos near Carmel-by-the-Sea), one of the outer headlands on the southern side of the Golden Gate. Much of the site is part of th ...

– a former military base that now holds a Veterans' Hospital and picnic areas *

Lands End Land's End ( kw, Penn an Wlas or ''Pedn an Wlas'') is a headland and tourist and holiday complex in western Cornwall, England, on the Penwith peninsula about west-south-west of Penzance at the western end of the A30 road. To the east of it is ...

– a natural preserve including the Coastal Trail which will bring one to scenic views of the Marin Headlands and Golden Gate. Includes Mile Rock, the site of a former lighthouse and, subsequently, a helipad located offshore at the southwestern edge of the Golden Gate *

– a former military reservation, and site of the initial Spanish fortification in San Francisco, including: ** Baker Beach – birthplace of the Burning Man festival, a popular sunbathing spot that is clothing-optional at its northern end. Located at the southwestern corner of the Presidio ** Battery Chamberlin – one of the last remaining coastal defense "disappearing guns" on the U.S. West Coast **

– a former airfield restored to a shoreline ** Fort Point National Historic Site – a fort at the southern base of the

Golden Gate Bridge The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate, the strait connecting San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean. The structure links the U.S. city of San Francisco, California—the northern tip of the San Francisco Pen ...

that formerly housed 126 cannons to protect the bay against invaders. Completed just in time for the

, but never fired a shot in combat ** The

San Francisco National Cemetery San Francisco National Cemetery is a United States national cemetery, located in the Presidio of San Francisco, California. Because of the name and location, it is frequently confused with Golden Gate National Cemetery, a few miles south of the ci ...

* Ocean Beach – a popular surf spot on the western side of San Francisco * The

Sutro District The Sutro Historic District is a National Park Service historic district in the Lands End area of the Outer Richmond District in western San Francisco, California. It is within the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, since being acquire ...

– a collection of historic attractions developed by

Adolph Sutro Adolph Heinrich Joseph Sutro (April 29, 1830 – August 8, 1898) was a German-American engineer, politician and philanthropist who served as the 24th mayor of San Francisco from 1895 until 1897. Born a German Jew, he moved to Virginia Cit ...

in the late 19th century, including: ** The Cliff House – a historic restaurant first built in 1863, rebuilt following fires in 1894 and 1907. Also houses the

Camera Obscura A camera obscura (; ) is a darkened room with a aperture, small hole or lens at one side through which an image is 3D projection, projected onto a wall or table opposite the hole. ''Camera obscura'' can also refer to analogous constructions su ...

, a historic building containing a device which projects a 360° image **

– concrete ruins of an indoor swimming pool constructed in 1894 by former SF mayor Adolf Sutro dominate the southwest corner ** Sutro Heights Park – public park and former estate of Adolf Sutro

Camping sites

Rob Hill Group Camp
– open April through November, $125/night, two 30-person public sites, each with four parking spaces, must be reserved three days in advance with the Presidio Trust.

San Mateo County

* Milagra Ridge – parcel of land that is home to several endangered species and

Nike Missile The United States Army's Nike Ajax was the world's first operational guided surface-to-air missile (SAM), entering service in 1954. Nike Ajax was designed to attack conventional bomber aircraft flying at high subsonic speeds and altitudes abov ...

Site SF-51L *

– location of where Spanish explorer

Gaspar de Portolà Gaspar is a given and/or surname of French, German, Portuguese, and Spanish origin, cognate to Casper (given name) or Casper (surname). It is a name of biblical origin, per Saint Gaspar, one of the wise men mentioned in the Bible. Notable peo ...

discovered the San Francisco Bay and is home to several

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

lookout nests and pillboxes as well as Nike missile site SF-51C * Phleger Estate – part of the

Bay Area Ridge Trail The Bay Area Ridge Trail (Ridge Trail) is a planned multi-use trail along the hill and mountain ridgelines ringing the San Francisco Bay Area, in Northern California. Currently, have been established. When complete, the trail will connect ov ...

, this preserve features

s ''(Sequoia sempervirens)'' and other native plants * Mori Point – a small parcel located in Pacifica, consisting of a ridge with overlooks of the San Francisco peninsula. Trails lead across the ridge and to Sharp Park beach. The site includes recently restored wetlands and a pond, protecting endangered

San Francisco garter snake The San Francisco garter snake (''Thamnophis sirtalis tetrataenia'') is a slender multi-colored subspecies of the common garter snake. Designated as an endangered subspecies since the year 1967, it is endemic to San Mateo County and the extreme n ...

and

red-legged frog Red-legged frog is a common name for several species of frog: * California red-legged frog, ''Rana draytonii'', a frog endemic to California, United States * La Selle red-legged frog, ''Eleutherodactylus furcyensis'', a frog found in the Dominican ...

habitat. *

Rancho Corral de Tierra Rancho Corral de Tierra (Guerrero y Palomares) was a Mexican land grant in present-day coastal western San Mateo County, northern California. The larger northern part of Rancho Corral de Tierra was given in 1839 by Governor Pro-Tem Manuel Jimeno ...

– the GGNRA's newest park. A former Mexican land grant north of

Half Moon Bay Half Moon Bay is a coastal city in San Mateo County, California, United States, approximately south of San Francisco. Its population was 11,795 as of the 2020 census. Immediately at the north of Half Moon Bay is Pillar Point Harbor and the un ...

and on Montara Mountain, this site was preserved through the work of the Peninsula Open Space Trust, which acquired the property and then sold it to the GGNRA.Rancho Corral de Tierra: Fact Sheet – Golden Gate National Recreation Area
. Nps.gov (2013-07-14). Retrieved on 2013-07-21.

References

External links

*
NPS Official Site for the Golden Gate National Recreation Area
*

*
Official Site for the Presidio Trust
*
Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy
a non-profit membership organization *
The Golden Gate Raptor Observatory
a non-profit focusing on raptor research and conservation in the GGNRA *
The Marine Mammal Center
the largest rescue and rehabilitation center for marine mammals in the world, based in the Marin Headlands *
The Headlands Institute
a non-profit focusing on education in the GGNRA *
The Point Bonita Lighthouse
a history of one of the GGNRA's most scenic and historic places. *
Golden Gate National Recreation Area Scenery Video
a video showing the scenery observed from the GGNRA, including footage from Land's End {{authority control Parks in the San Francisco Bay Area Parks in San Francisco Parks in Marin County, California West Marin Protected areas established in 1972 San Francisco Bay National Park Service National Recreation Areas 1972 establishments in California

History

Locations in the park

Marin County

Camping sites

Youth Hostel

San Francisco

Camping sites

San Mateo County

See also

References

External links