I honestly thought I had reviewed this magnificent park before- yet I am now!…read moreThis hidden gem is your reward after walking up the hundreds of gorgeously mosaic tile steps. The views are breathtaking. You can see the Golden Gate Bridge, Marin County, Salesforce Tower (basically you see this wherever you are in San Francisco), the coast & much more. I love all the sand at the top of the park. There gorgeous succulents lots of chert rock and stairs on the other side that you can choose to descend. This is another spectacular free destination to enjoy in San Francisco.

How can anyone not like this place? One of my favorite spots in the city, feels a little bit like a…read moresecret. A special little secret hill. Make your way to the top to be rewarded finely with the fantastic view. Do some soul searching, watch the sunset. Say hello to somebody. Make a connection.

A good sized park with play area for children, basketball court and ball field. Views and old trees…read moreand lots of space. Lots of benches to snuggle with your boo thang. I remember I once took my Piggy Piggy here. In fact, that was my first visit to this fantastic park. She loved it but didn't like the stairs. She would do five stairs and then need a 45 minute rest. I wanted to go to the top and see the views so I just carried her - she didn't mind - shameless - I loved how based she was - I found that so attractive - so confident. The views here are incredible near the top - you can see in all directions once you clear the trees - all the way to the bay. Its usually got some wind blowing through the old trees and you can hear that as you relax at one of the many well placed benches. Its very romantic. The park is circular in shape and hilly - around the perimeter there is tons of parking - I sometimes dream of living across from a park like this where I can enjoy all the green and have none of the work. Probably a park where you would never see it unless you live nearby. The best part of having a dog is that if forces you to try something new every day as they like to sniff around and act as if they are Christopher Columbus with this instant attitude like they were the first to find this place and now own it if they tinkle or sprinkle around here and there. How far would I drive to come here? Maybe 14 minutes. 4 stars.

Holly Park literally has to be on my Top 3 list of favorite parks in San Francisco. What I love…read moremost about Holly Park is how you truly get a 360 view of San Francisco as Holly Park structurally is a round park. Whether you are doing a morning walk with your dog with a cup of coffee in your hand, hanging with your friends, taking your child to the playground, basking in the sun reading a book, or sweating off your energy with a basketball game or pickleball rally, Holly Park has space for it all. I could be wrong but I believe there is only 1 playground, 1 basketball court, and 1 Tennis court. There are public restrooms. There is an ample amount of parking despite being a residential area.

Found myself at Bayview Park after an impromptu decision to take my dog out for a short hike…read moresomewhere that was about 10 min away. The park is located in the southern part of the Bayview neighborhood close to the water and Bayview freeway. The entrance is a bit discreet but is found at the end of a neighborhood street that ends in a dead end. I went at around 3pm on a weekday and found street parking right at the end of the street. I don't recall having to pay for a meter. The hike itself is about a 1.5 mile loop with a bit of an incline in the beginning that'll get your legs and glutes warmed up. once you make it to the top of that incline and circle the loop, you'll get really nice views of SF, South Bay, the water, and Twin Peaks. The distance itself was perfect for a quick stroll with a path that's distinguishable and there were only 2 people I came across. If you are walking a pet though, there is one area with some big rocks near a ledge with cool views that i advise caution as there was a lot of broken glass by the rocks. If you live in the area, like within 10-15 min, it's not a bad hike.

We had a lovely little hike here, enjoying the rare warm summer weather and taking in the views…read morewith young kids! DIFFICULTY Total loop with a couple side trails was about 2 miles. The distance was just right for a five and seven year old in a group. For our 3-year-old she did need to be carried for about half of it. POPULARITY Not very crowded at all! We saw just a couple other people over 1-2 hours. It was a very warm, sunny Sunday in early July. SHADE The route had medium shade - there are tall trees all around, but if the sun is right overhead, you'll get sun exposure. PARKING & AMENITIES No dedicated parking lot, no water or restrooms, there were several parking spots right at the trailhead around 1pm on a Sunday. STROLLER-FRIENDLY While you could do the entire hike on paved paths, the first section going up to the loop is very very steep and the pavement is not very well preserved with a lot of potholes so I was actually glad we did not bring our stroller. ADD'L INFO In July the plant life is quite dry and sticks to clothing so I should have worn tougher hiking pants rather than my nice yoga pants, which ended up covered in burrs. There are a couple side trails (unpaved) you can take for extra viewpoints as well as one to go to the peak of the mountain.

On a nice day, going for a walk or having a picnic here is the perfect family friendly activity…read more The waterfront views are beautiful, and the bathrooms are clean. There's also a parking lot available (paid). I've seen many people host birthdays and gatherings here, especially since there are BBQ pits. They even offer kayak rentals! I just wish the water were safe to swim in, that would make it even better.

This park is way too perfect in its imperfection, its randomness, its dangerousness, its utter…read moreseparation from contemporary San Francisco. I feel bad reviewing it. It should probably be five stars, but then Rec and Park will get ahold of it, shut it down for three years, completely and totally and utterly over-design it to the tune of millions and millions of dollars; and we'll be stuck with this shiny, utterly safe, manicured, beautiful-in-an-ugly-way park that will look like everything else new in our city. It's weird. I want it to stay weird. Keep bringing your kids here. Tell them how dangerous lots of parts of it are. Protect them from danger. Don't expect other people to and then sue those people for your failures as a parent. Grass and sand and paths and incomplete water towers and the bay, the greasy, dirty, oily, full-of-dead-animals bay. And watch out for sea lions! They bite.

Chic park across from Chase Center . A nice added touch to all its visitors, other SF tourists,…read moreresidents in the area, and those working at UCSF and other local businesses. Picnic tables with bbq pits, grass area, bridge, walkways, and a beautiful view

If it weren't for the Golden State Valkyries games, I wouldn't have taken advantage of this park…read more It provides a nice respite for Jamie W and me after a game because as the either enthusiastic or alternatively dejected fans pour out of Chase Center, they more often head toward the Third Street parking lots and public transit rather than the bay side. This park beckons with 5-1/2 acres of rolling lawns bordered by a long plank wood wall and landscaped with easy paths, benches, and picnic tables. Unencumbered views of the bay make this an appealing spot. It was a long time under construction, but it was well worth waiting for the resulting urban oasis. RELATED - Exploring Mission Bay? Here's a collection of places l've visited and reviewed: https://yelp.to/9ZTSiIrshd

Pretty nice and unexpected view from this trail…read more Sure it is a dirt path but it's a very very short trail. You can walk it in 5 mins. Some benches and tree stumps to sit down on and enjoy a quiet moment Best when the sun is out , enjoy the colors of the flowers! You have to park further away in the residential areas and walk into there

Edgehill Mountain Park (well, technically an "Open Space"--I wonder what the difference is) is a…read morebeautiful slice of forested hillside on the southwest slope of Laguna Honda hill. There is basically just one trail running across it from Knockash to Edgehill streets, and a couple of benches. The views are limited a bit due to the trees, but it is still a very pretty place to walk through, especially at sunset. In fact, the entirety of Laguna Honda Hill is very scenic, and I highly recommend walking up to the top while you're here. Also, what is with those crazy shingled castle-mansions? Someday I gotta get me one of those. It seems that there is a very active volunteer group that works in Edgehill Park doing habitat restoration and I've also seen proposals for a staircase down to Kensington Way, which would be awesome! You can check out their website here: http://www.edgehill.net/Edgehill-Mountain.htm

Did the Double Crosstown Trail first in March and then took on the Crosstown Trail in October…read more Definitely loved the views and route of the Crosstown Trail better! Unfortunately, I was severely underprepared for this hike since I though the Double Crosstown Trail a little easier & more in the city. Would definitely recommend actually bringing water and food since there aren't too many convenient stops on the way. Notable stops were Mission Blue Cafe and Forest Hill Station! Hiked with 15 people and took us from 8:30am to 8pm with breaks along the way. AMAZING sunset view at Lands End. Also this was during the government shutdown and the gate to Baker Beach was closed and we had to hop the gate.

Nobody believes me when I tell them there is a trail through San Francisco that is almost…read moreexclusively parks. They be wrong and the Crosstown Trail is awesome! Starting off by the bay and ending by the ocean and rounded out with multiple hills, stairwells, and gorgeous views! The trail can be done in one day or spread out across a few. There are public transit stops throughout so you can stop one day and start another day with ease. We took the one day route and had perfect views from McLaren park to ease us in to the rest of the hills :) It was a little rainy on the back end but we trekked on. We saw a few people also doing the same trail but in the opposite direction which was a fun twist. I loved the little crosstown trail signs along the route that let me know we were on the path. If you love urban hiking mixed with parks and stairs, take this hike and reignite your love for San Francisco.

We did the summit loop. 3.1m in 2hrs. Parking is $6. The parking machine is a bit troublesome with…read morecredit card payments but just keep trying. Eventually it will go through. Or bring cash and use the envelope provided to pay. There's 3 parking lots. Go to the 2nd parking lot as it's closer to the beginning of the trail. We went on a Saturday. Parked at 10:50am and there was plenty of parking. Fairly easy I would say. There's only a few sections of shaded areas so a hat is a must. There's also a few stops with bench seating to soak up the views or have a snack. Watch out for poison oak.

Love this park! This is a great park with many well maintained trails…read more The Trail up to the highest point starts from the more remote parking lot, walk on the paved road under Guadalupe Canyon Pkwy. You'll see Signal hill, (transmission towers) and paths are narrow and steep with fantastic views. The Guadalupe trail is lovely with views of the bay, and Bay Bridge, Oakland -Berkeley and San Francisco too. The Bog trail is full of water-loving trees, vines and a creek runs through it after rains. Lots of native plants and birds. To learn more about this large open space area look up when there are guided hikes, or read the bulletin boards.