Four stairways in a row climb from Leavenworth to Hyde on Russian Hill, three of which run through. At the top, on Hyde, runs one of the cable car lines.
Heading north, the first, and my favorite of these stairways, is Havens. This unique little staired alley doesn’t run through to Hyde, so it’s an up ‘n back down again. On the way back down on the upper part, counted 76 steps. The main stairway (first pic) merges into two stairways, upper and lower, then back again to one main walk/stairway (second pic). The lower part passes under a tree (third pic). At the end of the walk you'll see a fountain and bench.
The houses on the north side of Havens are the backs of homes on steep (31.5) Filbert with its two sidewalk stairways (fourth photo, this the south one). It’s up one and down another for stairlovers around here.
One street after Filbert is Greenwich, curving around and up: part stairs, part narrow walkers’ pathway.
Next to Greenwich is the famous Lombard Crooked Street, also with two sidewalk stairways, cars winding slowly down its bricked middle part, and lots of tourists with cameras.
After Lombard, on the opposite side of the street, corner of Chestnut, is tiny Fay Park Garden with its two white gazebos. Like Havens, there’s only one way in and out.
Here’s a story about Fay, from the Russian Hill Neighbors group, showing the gazebos:
http://www.rhn.org/pointofinterestfaypark.html
The San Francisco Art Institute is SF Landmark #85. Since I’ve always liked its Spanish Colonial Revival architecture and tiled courtyard fountain (800 Chestnut, between Leavenworth and Jones),
http://www.noehill.com/sf/landmarks/sf085.asp
did a quick walkthrough out to its long back stairway and down to Francisco, where to the left a short distance away is the Francisco stairway (fifth foto).
Havens at Leavenworth
Havens steps and walkway
Under and up on Havens
Filbert 's south sidewalk steps at Leavenworth
Francisco steps
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