Lands End, at San Francisco's northwest corner, is where the city's urban trails meet the Pacific. Its main path is the Coastal Trail, part of the California Coastal Trail, which follows the old Cliff House Railway railbed along the cliffs. Along the way are stands of cypress and eucalyptus and views of the Golden Gate and the Marin Headlands.

The route

  • Start at Lands End Lookout: the visitor center by the Merrie Way parking lot opened April 28, 2012, and covers the area's natural and cultural history. The NPS says the wheelchair-accessible trails start here.
  • Coastal Trail: per Wikipedia, it's accessible as far as the Mile Rock Overlook and open to bikes up to the Eagles Point steps. The San Francisco Crosstown Trail ends at Lands End.
  • Mile Rock Beach: a spur trail leads down to Mile Rock Point and the beach, with views of the Golden Gate. Remains of old shipwrecks show at low tide.
  • USS San Francisco Memorial: it honors the World War II cruiser, which took 45 hits and 25 fires during the 1942 Battle of Guadalcanal, according to the NPS. The overlook next to it has been improved.
  • Loop back: the NPS suggests taking in the city from the Legion of Honor overlook and returning on the El Camino del Mar Trail. The West Fort Miley batteries have a grassy picnic area.

History

The Yelamu Ohlone lived at Lands End before Spanish settlement began in 1776, according to Wikipedia. The Spanish named the westernmost point "Point Lobos" for the sea lions, or lobos marinos, that hauled out on the rocks. In the 1880s, Adolph Sutro built a steam train from downtown that charged a 5-cent fare. The NPS notes that Lands End was at the center of an early civil rights case, Harris v. Sutro, in 1897.

Stay on the trails and keep back from the cliff edges. For the sites at either end, read our Sutro Baths story and our Fort Miley history.