Stairways are Heaven
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Tower Trail Trek

5/16/2013

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At the top of the long Vista Lane stairway (about 261 steps, first pic), 93 more (second pic) climb from Crestline into Twin Peaks Park. Twin Peaks on a weekend, especially with good weather, is full of people climbing up and down each peak (each side of each peak has long stairways; too crowded up there for me: third pic).

Fourth pic: trail next to Twin Peaks Blvd. 

Over the guardrail from Twin Peaks Blvd. on the west side (fifth pic), a narrow trail descends past Twin Peaks Reservoir (sixth pic). Marview in Midtown Terrace is the street at the foot of this trail (seventh pic). Here you can't miss the unmarked trailhead for the uniquely beautiful trail that encircles Sutro Tower. 

Only encountered one jogger and one mountain biker this time. Having expressed concerns recently about some favorite Glen Canyon trails, also hope the "Tower Trail" won't get too enthusiastically "improved" upon -- as in please keep at least some of our trails on the wild side. Overly manicured parks are borrrring. 

You'll be out in the open at first (could just stay here forever, especially on a sunny, warm day), above Midtown Terrace homes (pics 8 thru 12). 

Then you'll curve round on a narrow dirt trail through a secluded forest until finally stepping out to La Avanzada, then Dellbrook, and across Clarendon to the Aldea residential area. This is a delightful way to hike from Twin Peaks Park over to Mount Sutro's trails. (Pic 13: Foot of Sutro Tower from afar, upper right; the two towers behind that are on Twin Peaks). Could use another Midtown Terrace to Sutro Forest skyway here across winding Clarendon though. 

The Aldea UCSF resident is sorta like the Presidio's Baker Beach Apartments: there's a delightful maze of walkways and short stairways to take you from one street to another between the buildings. 14th pic: An Aldea neighborhood stairway. 

Over to the permits-only Surge parking lot via the pedestrian walkway along curvy Medical Center Way (pic 15: Showing Sutro Forest's North Ridge and Fairy Gates trailheads) for the short trail behind the Edgewood Ave. homes out to Farnsworth Lane (149 steps, last two pics). I don't do the same trails each time… as in the '60s song "Magic Bus" by the Who, "… Each time I go a different waaay," and a "Magic Mountain" instead of a bus.


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1. Vista Lane Steps. Crestline down to Burnett.
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2. Crestline steps into Twin Peaks Park
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3. Twin Peaks Park
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4. Trail next to Twin Peaks Blvd.
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5. Twin Peaks Blvd., Midtown Terrace homes, Sutro Tower trail
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6. Twin Peaks Reservoir
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7. Trail down to Marview in Midtown Terrace
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8. Tower Trail
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9. Trail around Sutro Tower
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10. Trail around Sutro Tower
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11. Trail around Sutro Tower
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12. Twin Peaks from Tower Trail
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13. Mount Sutro, Sutro Tower, Twin Peaks
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14. An Aldea neighborhood stairway, Mount Sutro
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15. North Ridge Trailhead, Fairy Gates Trailhead
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16. Farnsworth steps down to Willard
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17. Farnsworth stairway, Edgewood to Willard
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    I like meandering around on San Francisco's park trails and public stairways, sometimes taking photos, and enjoying nature and the outdoors.

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