Lands End
National Park Service
U.S. Department of the Interior
Sutro District
Golden Gate National Parks
t first glance, the western tip of San Francisco appears to be an urban wilderness. Its rugged
cliffs, windblown forests, tiny beaches, and endless breakers rolling in from the Pacific
give the impression that natural forces are in control and humans are outsiders. But Lands End
with its spectacular views and wild character has drawn visitors for centuries.
The First People
The Yelamu, a subgroup of the
Ohlone tribe, inhabited San
Francisco before Europeans
arrived. The Yelamu collected
shellfish, gathered eggs, made salt,
and hunted seabirds and marine
mammals in the Lands End area.
When the Spanish arrived in 1776,
they forced the Yelamu to move to
Mission Dolores, where diseases
such as measles and influenza took
a high toll. Within a few decades the
Yelamu had virtually disappeared.
Shell mounds (called middens) at
Lands End contain shells, bones,
and seeds left behind by the Yalamu.
Cover: Photo of Golden Gate Bridge
above Cypress trees. NPS/George Su.
Right: Ohlone Indians illustration.
Linda Yamane.
Above: Ocean Terrace cars, 1903. John O’Neill Collection.
Left: Clliffhouse. John O’Neill Collection
A Recreation Destination
Shortly after the Gold Rush, Lands
End became a destination for San
Franciscans who were intrepid
enough to take a buggy ride over
miles of sand dunes to the ocean.
In 1863, the famous Cliff House
opened for business atop a rocky
promontory overlooking Seal
Rocks.
Starting in the early 1880s, silver
mining millionaire Adolph
Sutro bought the Cliff House
and surrounding areas and
developed an extensive set of
attractions. These grew to include
a spectacularly rebuilt Cliff
House, an outdoor aquarium,
the sprawling Sutro Baths, and
numerous shops and cafes.
Steam Trains & Trolleys
In the 1880’s, Adolph Sutro
constructed a steam train to carry
passengers from downtown to
Sutro Baths for the affordable fare
of 5¢. Later, electric streetcars
began carrying passengers to
Lands End. Landslides plagued
the railroad from the beginning,
and in 1925 the service ended
after torrential rains caused a long
stretch of track along the cliffs to
slide into the ocean.
Steam Train. GGNRA
Interpretation Collection
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Exploring Lands End
Lands End
Mile
Rock
Lighthouse
Frank H.
Buck, 1937
(shipwreck)
El
Seal Rock Dr
Ocean
Terrace
Overlook
38
ADA Accessible
Ave
18
Geary
El Camino del Mar Trail
Other Trails
Stairs
Geary
38
Beach
Information
Food Service
Restrooms
Anza
Wildlife Viewing
N
W
Balboa
E
1000 ft
200 m
0
To Richmond District YMCA
360 18th Ave/Geary Blvd
Cabrillo
26th
27th
28th
29th
30th
31st
33rd
35th
36th
37th
38th
39th
40th
41st
42nd
S
43rd
45th
0
34th
Balboa
Staircase
Scenic Overlook
Picnic Area
35th Ave
36th Ave
37th Ave
38th Ave
39th Ave
40th Ave
41st Ave
42nd Ave
45th Ave
44th Ave
43rd Ave
Anza
46th
Ocean
Beach
Point Lobo
s
To
Richmond
District YMCA
360 18th Ave
& Geary Blvd
Richmond
48th
Ocean
Beach
Coastal Trail
38
18
46th Ave
Pacific
Ocean
Dupont
Tennis
Courts
Clement
Clement
Sutro
Heights
Park
48th Ave
18
Battery
Springer
Parking
47th Ave
Camera
Obscura
East
Fort
Miley
California
18
38
47th
Sutro
Heights
Loop
Trail
La Playa
Design: reineckandreineck.com
Sutro
Heights
Parking
Lot
Battery
Livingston
38
Su
tro
He
igh
ts L
oop
Tra
il
Sutro
Baths
(ruins)
Louis’
Restaurant
Seal
Rocks
West
Fort
Miley
Lands
End
Parking
Lot
os Ave
Lob
int
Po
Tunnel
Entrance
Fo
rt Mile
y Cir
Lincoln
Park
Municipal
Golf
Course
g
Le
Lands
End
Overlook
Point
Lobos
Battery
Chester
Veteran’s
Administration
Hospital
Seacliff
Lake
18
ion
of
Ho
no
rD
r
ir
ley C
t Mi
For
Veteran’s D
r
ar
lM
de
ino
am
El C
Sutro
Baths
Upper
Trail
Cliff
House
ar Trail
El Camino del M
El Camino
del Mar
Parking
Lot
Ohioan,
1937
(shipwreck)
Palace
of the
Legion
of Honor
f
clif
Sea
o del Mar
min
Ca
32nd Ave
Mile
Rock
Overlook
USS San
Francisco
Memorial
Lincoln
Park
Municipal
Golf
Course
il
Coastal Tra
44th
Lifesaving
Station
Overlook
El
Cam
ino del Mar
Eagle’s
Point
Overlook
Painted
Rock
il
Coastal Tra
29th Ave
Lyman
Stewart,
1922
(shipwreck)
China
Beach
Eagle’s
Point
Mile
Rock
Lookout
Trail
30th Ave
Lands
End
Point
31st Ave
Mile
Rock
Beach
To
Golden
Gate Bridge
& Presidio
Dead
Man’s
Point
Cabrillo
Cabrillo
Frank H. Buck, wrecked off Lands
End, 1937
Merrie Way
Dutch
Windmill
Golden
Gate
Park
Fulton
Fulton
Dr
kes
Chain of La
What is now the Lands End
parking lot was originally part of a
“pleasure ground” and “midway”
known as Merrie Way when it was
constructed in 1895. Merrie Way
held several rides and sideshows
transplanted from the 1894
Midwinter Exhibition in Golden
Gate Park. Later, a ferris wheel, a
roller coaster, an indoor mirror
maze, and a “Haunted Swing”
were added. Merrie Way was never
a financial success and shut down
within a few years.
Spreckels
Lake
John
F Kenned
Merrie Way & Firth Wheel, circa 1896
GGNRA W.C. Billington Photo
Shipwrecks
The rocky shores, swift tides,
submerged rocks, and dense fog
of Lands End have always made
the Golden Gate strait difficult to
navigate. Since the 1850s, at least
a dozen ships have failed to make
the passage and sank in the cold,
treacherous waters. These include
the City of Rio de Janeiro, which
sank near Land’s End in 1901, with
a loss of 128 lives.
Frank H. Buck shipwreck, 1937. GGNRA
Interpretation Collection.
The Cultural Forest
Lands End was originally a nearly
treeless expanse of dunes and
rocky hills covered with low-lying
coastal scrub and grasses and a
few sheltered pockets of willow
and live oak trees. After the arrival
of Europeans, livestock grazed the
grasses and scrub brush, and the
trees were cut for firewood. By the
20th century, the only trees in the
area were ornamentals growing
on the private grounds of Sutro
Heights.
Beginning in 1933, the City of
San Francisco and the federal
government’s Civilian Works
Administration (CWA) planted
thousands of Monterey Cypress
around Lands End to ‘beautify’
the area. After years of neglect,
efforts are underway to prune and
thin the trees of Lands End to
create a healthy forest.
Above: Lands End, circa 1935. California
Historical Society.
Lands End Today
Lands End is undergoing major
changes to restore its grand views
and make it a cherished San
Francisco destination area. For
more information on volunteer
opportunities, please contact
the Golden Gate National Parks
Conservancy at (415) 561-3077 or
[email protected].
Overlook, 2008. Stephen Wheeler.
Printed on recycled paper
EXPERIENCE YOUR AMERICA™
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