Golden Gate

National Recreation Area California

Explore This Park

Park Tools

There are park alerts in effect.

show Alerts »

Tunnel to Marin Headlands Closed

The tunnel on Bunker Road from Alexander Avenue in Sausalito towards the Marin Headlands is closed for construction. Please follow the detour signs to Conzelman Road (just above the north end of the Golden Gate Bridge) to go up over the hill. More »

Muir Beach (but not nearby Muir Woods) parking lot closed June-November 2013

Muir Beach parking lot will be closed from June-November 2013 due to construction. Restrooms or nearby parking will not be available at Muir Beach during this period. Pacific Way is closed except to residents. Check back for updates or call (415)561-3054 More »

CAUTION: Post Storm Damage to Coastal Trail

The Presidio Coastal Trail segment just north of the Pacific Overlook and adjacent to Lincoln Blvd remains CLOSED indefinitely. We have posted signage to alert bicyclists and hikers and with information for safe trail alternatives. More »

Lands End History

historic image of Cliff House with Sutro Baths and ocean in the foreground

photo courtesy of San Francisco Public Library

The First People

Long before Europeans arrived in North America, the Yelamu Ohlone tribe lived at Lands End in seasonal settlements. Here at the ocean's edge, they found everything they needed: hillside springs gushing with fresh water; trees and brush for shelters; and easy access to the shore, where they fished and hunted for otters, sea lions, and sea birds. For leisure, they played stick games and told tribal stories. Spanish settlement of San Francisco, which began in 1776, ended the Yelamu's traditional life at Lands End.

A Remote Place to Enjoy Nature

Under Mexican rule, this rugged section of coastline was part of a large land grant called Rancho Punta de Lobos. After California joined the U.S., the only visitors to this secluded and inaccessible area were naturalist who braved the long journey out to the coastline to observe marine mammals.

After the Gold Rush, San Francisco's population exploded and the downtown area got very crowded with new buildings and neighborhoods. Real estate developers, looking for new ways to make money, saw Lands End and its unparalleled beauty as an excellent place for a new restaurant and overlook. Entrepreneurs designed the new Cliff House as a fashionable resort for the wealthy and encouraged San Franciscans to travel out to the city's edge. To help people get to this far-off place, a private company constructed a brand new road called Point Lobos Avenue, making travel to this picturesque and rural place much easier. By the 1860s, a horse-drawn stagecoach made the trip every Sunday from crowded downtown San Francisco out Lands End.

Adolph Sutro Develops Seaside Recreation

During the 1880s, millionaire Adolph Sutro purchased property at Lands End and dramatically transformed the area into a popular seaside destination. Sutro strongly believed that all San Franciscans, rich or poor, should take advantage of Lands End's beauty. To provide inexpensive transportation, he constructed a passenger steam train from downtown San Francisco to Land End for the affordable fare of ¢5 cents. Sutro designed and funded the elegant Sutro Heights public gardens, the famous Sutro Baths and the 1896 Cliff House, which replaced the original building after it burned.

historic image of visitors in horse-drawn carriage in Sutro Heights garden

Visitors enjoying Sutro Heights garden in the 19th century.

PARC, NPS

To get directions to Lands End and learn more about activities there, please visit the Lands End visitor information page.

To learn more in-depth information about the history of Lands End, please visit these other pages and documents:

History and Significance of the Adolph Sutro Historic District
(excerpts from the National Register of Historic Places nomination form, NPS, 2000) (PDF file, 120 kb)