Strawberry Hill (San Francisco)

Strawberry Hill
Strawberry Hill in Golden Gate Park
Highest point
Elevation	404 ft (123 m) NAVD 88[1]
Coordinates	37°46′07″N 122°28′32″W[2]
Geography
Strawberry Hill Location in San Francisco
Location	San Francisco, California, U.S.
Topo map	USGS San Francisco North

Strawberry Hill is a hill in San Francisco, California, near the center of Golden Gate Park. The hill occupies an entire island in the park's man-made Blue Heron Lake, and is connected by two bridges to the mainland of the park.

The island is covered with a variety of trees and shrubbery and contains several trails and dirt steps that encircle and lead to the top of the hill.

Huntington Falls

Strawberry hill contains Huntington Falls, the 110 foot tall, first artificial waterfall installed in Golden Gate Park that leads into the lake. The waterfall was named after railroad baron Collis Potter Huntington, who donated $25,000 to its construction.^[3]

Golden Gate Pavilion

The Golden Gate Pavilion is a Chinese peace pagoda near the shore of Blue Heron Lake. It was given to San Francisco by Taipei, its sister city, in 1976.^[4]

Sweeney Observatory

The top of the hill is a quiet and peaceful open space with panoramic views of San Francisco although the view is slightly obscured by trees. In the center of the open area are the ruined foundations of the Sweeny Observatory, built in 1891 as a public viewpoint and destroyed by the 1906 earthquake.^[5]

Paths are closed to vehicle traffic. The hill is a popular destination for joggers and dog-walkers, especially on the weekends. Local high school track and cross country teams are frequently seen practicing running up and around the hill for resistance training.

• 
  Golden Gate Pavilion
• 
  Sweeny Observatory Ruins after the 1906 earthquake

In popular culture

In 2024, the hill was discussed during an episode of The Metallica Report, as Ron Quintana shared memories of first meeting drummer Lars Ulrich there.^[6]

Slowcore band Red House Painters composed a song named after the hill for their 1993 album Red House Painters (Rollercoaster).

References

1. "Strawberry Hill". Peakbagger.com. Retrieved 2014-03-07.
2. "Strawberry Hill". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved 2014-03-07.
3. "The Waterfalls of Golden Gate Park". Archived from the original on 2017-10-21.
4. "Stow Lake". Archived from the original on 2013-08-18.
5. "Sweeney Observatory". Retrieved 2009-03-17.
6. Chirazi, Steffan; Richardson, Renee (January 17, 2024). "Old School Memories with KJ Doughton, Brian Lew, and Ron Quintana". The Metallica Report (Episode 25 ed.).