A to Z 2021 – H is for Haight-Ashbury and the Hills

I was in Catholic grammar school during the Haight-Ashbury heyday so I didn’t really get involved with the hippie drug scene. I did know a little bit about it though and a few years ago when the de Young Museum had an exhibit called “The Summer of Love Experience” we went to check it out. I wrote about that here. My husband is a little older than me and had lived in San Francisco for a while so he was very familiar with the era and the area. I do love the clothes! I really want the suede jacket and the blue crochet sweater, although I bet that one is pretty heavy.

They had flower shaped cookies in the gift shop. My coat looks like it belongs in the show, doesn’t it? After the exhibit we rode around the streets in the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood for a while. They certainly have some interesting places including some more Victorian houses.

The famous Grateful Dead House is in the Haight-Ashbury district too. It is the one in the middle with the gate but I kind of like the purple one next door. Just regular folks own it now.

• 

  Grateful Dead house then

• 

  Grateful Dead house now

• 

  Just a cool house

Also, in case you haven’t noticed so far, there are definitely a lot of hills in San Francisco! Look at what I’ve been driving through, and sometimes walking up and down, to get pictures for your entertainment! Sometimes I get a little nervous, even when I’m in my car. Thank goodness for automatic transmissions. If I had to use a clutch – I shudder to think.

• 

• 

In fact San Francisco is said to have been built on seven hills: Telegraph Hill (where Coit Tower is), Nob Hill, Russian Hill, Rincon Hill, Twin Peaks, Lone Mountain (or Mt. Sutro) and Mt. Davidson.

Mt. Davidson is the highest natural point in the city (928 feet!) so I thought I’d give that a look see. The coyote alert didn’t stop me because it was daytime and there were some other folks around so I figured the coyotes would stay away. The hike up the hill was definitely worth the view (click for 16 second video).

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

At the top of the hill hidden in the trees is a giant cross. It was Palm Sunday when I went up and people had brought some palms and left them at the base of the cross. I am amazed that you can’t see the cross until you get at the top of the hill. It is 103 feet high itself!

• 

• 

• 

• 

I didn’t know until I was writing this post that they have an Easter Sunday sunrise service every year. I bet that is spectacular. You may also remember the cross from a scene in the first Dirty Harry movie. I don’t know how they were able to run and move around on that hill in the dark. It took all my concentration in the daylight!

It seems like there are a million hills in San Francisco and I may, or may not write about a few more of them, we still have letters in the A to Z Challenge left. Hope you’ll climb them with me.