A Social Distancing Roam Around The Hills

Please note: these current postings are designed to be undertaken on your own, whenever is convenient for you. We are not allowed to roam freely en masse these days, but we are allowed to get exercise. The dates are there purely to keep the Meetup forms happy.

This route is one we took for the second ever roam a few years ago, and have repeated since:

Start in Duboce Park. Sit by the little tree on a slight rise, adjacent to the N-Judah stop.
Cross Duboce at the intersection with Noe.
Walk down Noe to 14th St.
Pause in the planters if you like.

Turn right, and walk up 14th St to Castro.
Cross Castro at the lights, and turn left, along the wall of McKinley Elementary School.
Turn right on Henry.
Walk up the block and climb the stairs at the end.
Continue up Roosevelt Way a few yards (check out the beautiful gardens).
Turn left at Buena Vista Terrace, a few yards long.
Turn left at 15th St and look for the path next to the tennis courts.
(NEW - see comment below!)
Walk up the path with the courts on your left, and follow the signs to the summit.
Take care on the path, and listen out for red-tailed hawks.
When you emerge in the open space, you can turn either left or right to find stairs that take you to the top of Corona Heights.
Enjoy the view.

Looking south from the summit rocks, look for the steps down to the left (the downtown direction).
Take the steps all way the down, below the Randall Museum, to the tennis courts.
With the courts on your left and the rock face on your right, walk towards the community garden beds and the dog run area.
You can sit on a little bench between the fig and lime tree, behind the basketball court, swing on the swings, or use the bathroom (it's the only one on the route!!)

From the bathroom, follow the roadway down to States St.
Cross at the pedestrian crossing.
Turn right, and in a few feet, look for the stairs leading down away from the street on your left.
At the bottom of the stairs, turn immediately right to get into Ord Court.
Walk to Ord St, then look across the street for the bottom of the Vulcan Steps.
Admire the garden there.
Enjoy the pretty cottages on the way up the steps.

At the top, turn left on Levant St.
Pet the madrone tree on the sidewalk.
Turn right onto Lower Terrace.
At the top, turn left onto Roosevelt Way.
At the intersection with 17th St, turn right and walk up 17th St.
Before you get to Clayton at the top of the hill, look for the stairs on the right.
Take the stairs, enjoy the view of the ocean, and continue uphill on the road until you get to the top of Mount Olympus. Congratulate yourself on going somewhere few people go.
Sit on the statue plinth, and look up the history!

At the far end, look for the Bay Ridge Trail signpost, which will guide you down a staircase to Upper Terrace.
At the bottom, turn left.
Follow Upper Terrace across two intersections, until you come to Buena Vista Park.
Cross the road, and take the pathway leading to the left into the park.
Look for the first wooden stairs leading up to the right, follow those to the sandy summit (there is a big fallen tree when you get to the top).
Continue to the next part of the summit, a little patch of grass. Sit.
Ponder that the name of the park is less appropriate now that the trees are so tall.

Go down the stony steps.
Keep descending through the park in the same direction, though there are many adjacent staircases you can take.
Let yourself meander.
Aim for the tennis courts at the east end of the park.
Come out on Buena Vista Ave, and aim for the tall 1930s apartment block (between Duboce and Haight).
On the uphill side of the block, take Adah's Stairway and enjoy the new plantings.
Continue downhill on Waller St.
Take great care using the pedestrian crossing at Castro/Divisadero!
After crossing, turn right on Castro, then left on Lloyd.
Cross Scott, and enjoy the labyrinth!

Walk uphill on Scott, and before the Harvey Milk Center, take the drive that brings you back to Duboce Park!