Frommer's San Francisco 2012 - Matthew Poole [134]
During the war with Mexico, U.S. forces occupied the fort, and in 1848, when California became part of the Union, it was formally transferred to the United States. When San Francisco suddenly became an important urban area during the gold rush, the U.S. government installed battalions of soldiers and built Fort Point to protect the entry to the harbor. It expanded the post during the Civil War and during the Indian Wars of the 1870s and 1880s. By the 1890s, the Presidio was no longer a frontier post but a major base for U.S. expansion into the Pacific. During the war with Spain in 1898, thousands of troops camped here in tent cities awaiting shipment to the Philippines, and the Army General Hospital treated the sick and wounded. By 1905, 12 coastal defense batteries were built along the headlands. In 1914, troops under the command of Gen. John Pershing left here to pursue Pancho Villa and his men. The Presidio expanded during the 1920s, when Crissy Army Airfield (the first airfield on the West Coast) was established, but the major action was seen during World War II, after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Soldiers dug foxholes along nearby beaches, and the Presidio became the headquarters for the Western Defense Command. Some 1.75 million men were shipped out from nearby Fort Mason to fight in the Pacific; many returned to the Presidio’s hospital, whose capacity peaked one year at 72,000 patients. In the 1950s, the Presidio served as the headquarters for the Sixth U.S. Army and a missile defense post, but its role slowly shrank. In 1972, it was included in new legislation establishing the Golden Gate National Recreation Area; in 1989, the Pentagon decided to close the post and transfer it to the National Park Service.
Today, the area encompasses more than 470 historic buildings, a scenic golf course, a national cemetery, the Walt Disney Family Museum (see listing earlier), several good restaurants, 22 hiking trails (to be doubled over the next decade), and a variety of terrain and natural habitats. The National Park Service offers walking and biking tours around the Presidio (reservations are suggested) as well as a free shuttle called “PresidioGo.” For more information, call the Presidio Visitors Center at 415/561-4323. Take bus no. 28, 45, 76, or 82X to get there.
The Walt Disney Family Museum.
Golden Gate National Recreation Area
The largest urban park in the world, GGNRA makes New York’s Central Park look like a putting green, covering three counties along 28 miles of stunning, condo-free shoreline. Run by the National Park Service, the Recreation Area wraps around the northern and western edges of the city, and just about all of it is open to the public with no access fees. The Muni bus system provides transportation to the more popular sites, including Aquatic Park, Cliff House, Fort Mason, and Ocean Beach. For more information, contact the National Park Service ( 415/561-4700; www.nps.gov/goga). For more detailed information on particular sites, see the “Getting Outside” section, later in this chapter.
Here is a brief rundown of the salient features of the park’s peninsula section, starting at the northern section and moving westward around the coastline:
Aquatic Park, adjacent to the Hyde Street Pier, has a small swimming beach, although it’s not that appealing (and darned cold). Far more entertaining is a visit to the San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park’s Visitor Center a few blocks away.
Fort Mason Center, from Bay Street to the shoreline, consists of several buildings and piers used during World War II. Today they hold a variety of museums, theaters, shops, and organizations, and Greens vegetarian restaurant, which affords views of the Golden Gate Bridge. For information about Fort Mason events, call 415/441-3400 or visit www.fortmason.org. The park headquarters is also at Fort Mason.
Farther west along the bay at the northern end of Laguna Street is Marina Green, a favorite local spot for kite-flying, jogging, and