Telegraph Hill Hike

Arizona's high summer temperatures continue to cause the Our Hiking Mystery writers to seek hikes in cooler terrain. The lapses in posts are due to the long distances we must travel to hike. Do not despair because fall will be right around the corner, and beautiful hiking weather will return. In the meantime, here's a hike we did in San Francisco as part of a San Francisco City Guides walking tour. The photo at left is of Coit Tower, as seen from the Filberts Steps. Our "Telegraph Hill Hike" includes the places that the fabulous guide David Peterson took us to, but it has extended sections at the beginning and end, rounding out the hike to 2 miles. This is my first post of an urban hike along city streets so I think the easiest way to describe the hike is through MapMyWalk.  Another way to increase the intensity of this hike, would be to go all the way up and down both the Greenwich Steps and the Filbert Steps, rather than just part of the way like we did. These steps are really beautiful and are situated in an area somewhat protected from the fog and wind that are characteristic of the climate on the other side of the hill. There are thriving gardens along the steps making them desirable to the famous Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill. Some highlights of the  hike are Coit Tower, the Greenwich Steps, the Filbert Steps, Art Deco architecture, and Carpenter's Gothic architecture.

Length: 2 miles
Elevation gain: 350 feet (without the entire length of the steps)
Time it took us: 2 hours
Dogs: yes
Fees: none

Greenwich Steps

Filbert Steps

Fuchsias and Bougainvillea thriving on Telegraph Hill

Art Deco along Montgomery Street

Carpenter's Gothic purple house along Alta Street behind an old Jeep Overland with the old California license plate