November 11, 2024
Arrival
I touched down at SFO on a rainy November Monday for a work onsite. This was the first time I’d ever personally experienced robust rain in California (I was beginning to think it was a myth!). Water dripped from the terminal ceilings as I made my way to the cabs. The Bay Area is among the richest communities in world history. But apparently that didn’t guarantee much of anything in terms of public works.
A short while later I’d checked into my hotel in South San Francisco. There were a few hours of the workday left, and I could have grabbed a cab to our nearby offices in Oyster Point. But it was Veterans Day. And I reasoned it would be downright unpatriotic to show up at an office on this oft-shunted national holiday.
So instead, I grabbed a cab to the base of nearby San Bruno Mountain. San Bruno rises over 1000 feet above the Bay, just south of San Francisco. It ascends steeply out of the suburbs and office parks, coated in golden brown grasses and stubbly rocks. On numerous work trips I’d glanced up and thought “I should hike that one day.” Knowing I’d be moving on from my current company in a month or so, I figured there was no time like the present.
Urban wildlife
I got dropped off in the parking lot of an elementary school set against the hillside. I negotiated a gate blocking off the jeep road up the hill from the suburbs. The road climbed under a canopy of fragrant eucalyptus trees.
Just before rising out of the trees, I spotted a lanky gray creature slinking away into the brush. I’m pretty sure it was a coyote. It seemed remarkable to me that I’d spot one in such an urban-adjacent setting. Before I could pull out my camera it was gone.
Undeterred, I continued up the hillside. The trail grew steep and the views more expansive. I saw a massive American flag on nearby “Sign Hill.” Looping roads lined with small-lot homes spiraled about in all directions. Apparently development of homes on the northern slopes of San Bruno inspired Malvina Reynolds’ poignant song “Little Boxes“.
San Bruno Mountain
I trudged up the slope to the high ridgeline. There were no trees or shade after that first little grove. The “trail” was steep with loose dirt and rocks. This was hardly a popular Bay Area hike. The few folks I saw en route to the ridge looked mostly like local homeowners out for a workout.
Eventually I gained the ridge, about 1000 vertical feet above my starting point. Immediately I was treated to stunning views of San Francisco proper. The city by the bay glistened in the afternoon light. No fog in sight!
I turned left, and followed a more rolling and gentle trail along the ridgeline. It led towards a large cluster of radio towers and low-profile buildings.
A Unique Location
San Bruno Mountain is geologically distinct from the other numerous mountains and ridge lines on the peninsula south of San Francisco (the Santa Cruz Mountains). Those peaks mostly sit southwest of the San Andreas fault, on the Pacific Plate. San Bruno Mountain, in contrast, is northeast of the fault, on the North American Plate.
Beyond this, these hills also sit closest to the Golden Gate, and foggy San Francisco, supporting a dewy and moist environment for rare plants to thrive. As I walked along the ridgeline, occasionally on scenic single track trails, I was treated to waxy bushes coated in moss and lichen.
It was quite a unique experience for the Bay Area!
