Golden Gate National Recreation Area
The recreation area stretches across San Francisco, Marin, and San Mateo counties, joining the Presidio, Marin Headlands, Muir Woods, Fort Point, beaches, and former military landscapes.
Artwork inspired by Selden Connor Gile
The recreation area stretches across San Francisco, Marin, and San Mateo counties, joining the Presidio, Marin Headlands, Muir Woods, Fort Point, beaches, and former military landscapes. It is a network, not one gate. Useful scale comes from three specifics: established, 1972; area, 82,000+ acres; and counties, Three.
Choose one geographic cluster—Presidio and Fort Point, Marin Headlands, or southern coast—and connect ecology with the military or civic history underfoot. Individual sites have different reservations, fees, hours, parking, dog rules, and closures; cliff edges, surf, fog, and traffic remain serious hazards. Close attention to Presidio, Marin Headlands, and coastal batteries turns the visit from a collection of sights into a connected argument about this place.
- Established
- 1972
- Area
- 82,000+ acres
- Counties
- Three
Quick guide
- Establish scale
- Choose one geographic cluster—Presidio and Fort Point, Marin Headlands, or southern coast—and connect ecology with the military or civic history underfoot.
- Slow down for
- Compare Presidio with Marin Headlands, then use coastal batteries to test what the site is trying to communicate.
Know before you go
- Establish scale
- Choose one geographic cluster—Presidio and Fort Point, Marin Headlands, or southern coast—and connect ecology with the military or civic history underfoot.
- Slow down for
- Compare Presidio with Marin Headlands, then test that reading against coastal batteries.
- Place in context
- Established: 1972; Area: 82,000+ acres; Counties: Three
- Plan the arrival
- For Golden Gate National Recreation Area, use Golden Gate Bridge Welcome Center, Golden Gate Bridge Plaza, San Francisco, CA 94129 as the reviewed public arrival point. Before visiting.
Good to know
Individual sites have different reservations, fees, hours, parking, dog rules, and closures; cliff edges, surf, fog, and traffic remain serious hazards.
Notice these
- Presidio
- Marin Headlands
- coastal batteries