National Park ServiceU.S. Department of the Interior

Golden GateNational Recreation Area

Sweeney Ridge

Sweeney Ridge bears the footprints of explorers, soldiers and citizen activists, aswell as an occasional elusive mountain lion. All who have visited Sweeney Ridgeover time have shaped its history and left their mark. As you follow their footsteps,we hope you discover what drew people to this magnificent place and why this landwas important to them.

In Their Footsteps

Have you ever been lost, only to discoversomething unexpected? Spanish explorerCaptain Juan Gaspar de Portolá, on a mission to settle Monterey, found himselfin that position atop Sweeney Ridge onNovember 4, 1769. Relying on a sailor'sexaggerated description, Portolá didn'trecognize Monterey even as he stood uponits sands, so he continued northward. Lostand ailing, his expedition eventually scaledwhat we now call Sweeney Ridge and saw"...a large arm of the sea…some sort of

harbor there within the mountains."Ironically, it had taken a land expedition to

find what seafaring explorers never discovered--the San Francisco Bay.Though Portolá had become the firstEuropean to see the bay, he realized he hadmissed Monterey, and so wrote of his historic day simply: "We traveled for three

hours, the entire road was bad, we halted

without water." Despite Portolá's initialdisappointment, the Spanish soon recognized the value of the region. By 1776they had established the Presidio of SanFrancisco, which protected the Bay Areafor the next two centuries under theSpanish, Mexican and American flags.

Discovery andDisappointment

All of us have felt fear at some time. During the 1950s, Cold War-era fears ofSoviet long-range "Bear" bombers causedthe U.S. Army to develop a weapon todestroy those planes. Nike anti-aircraftmissiles were deployed across the country,including 11 sites protecting the Bay Area.Nike Site SF-51 included a control stationatop Sweeney Ridge and a missile launching site at nearby Milagra Ridge. Bythe 1960s, nuclear capable Nike Hercules missiles stood guard on this ridgetop.Obsolete by 1974, SF-51 was abandonedunder the provisions of an arms-reductiontreaty.

Fear Factor

Artist’s conception of the Portolá expedition’s first sighting of San Francisco Bay from Sweeney Ridge in 1769.

In the 1970s and 80s, local citizens recognized new threats to Sweeney Ridgein the housing developments sprawling upnearby hillsides and a proposed 8-lanefreeway extension bisecting the ridge.Community activists organized, signedpetitions and voted to protect this

1200-acre ridgetop. Many of these samecitizen activists now volunteer to improvewildlife habitat, maintain trails and leadwalks.

Protecting the Ridge

Map of Father Pedro

Font, 1777

Soldiers guard Nike missiles. (U.S. Army photo)

(Morton Kunstler/San Mateo County History Museum

SanFrancisco

Bay

WESTBOROUGH BLVD.

SNEATH LANE

KINGS MTN. ROAD

COLLEGE AVE.SHARP PARK ROAD

FASSLER AVE.

1

1

35

101

101

280

380

28082

101

280

92

92

North

84

580

880

980

35

ELCA

MIN

OREA

L

Pacifica

DalyCity

San Mateo

Oakland

Woodside

San Francisco

Half Moon Bay

Half Moon Bay

Golden Gate

PACIFIC

OCEAN

San Bruno

Millbrae

SanAndreas Lake

LowerCrystal Springs

Reservoir

Upper Crystal

Springs Reservoir

LANDS END

FORT FUNSTON

OCEAN BEACH

PRESIDIO

MILAGRA RIDGE

MORI POINT

FITZGERALDMARINE RESERVE

PHLEGER ESTATE

PENINSULAWATERSHED(LIMITED ACCESS)

SWEENEYRIDGE

ALCATRAZ

80

HUDDART PARK

RedwoodCity

0

0

5 Miles

5 Kilometers

Pedestrian Underpass

Paved

Bike

Path

Bik

ePa

th

to

Beach

Bo

ulevard

Francisco

Boulevard

Mori Ridge Trail

Clarendon Avenue

CollegeDrive

Palmetto

Aven

ue

LagunaSalada

SKYLINE COLLEGE

Sharp

Park

Road

LundyW

ay

790'

SHARP PARK

Baquiano Trail

Sween

ey

SanAndreas

Trail

Sneath

LaneSkyline

Boulevard

Riverside

Drive

Fassler

Avenue

Reina del Mar Avenue

LindaM

ar

Boulevard

Odd

stad

Boul

evar

d

Boul

evar

d

Terra NovaBoulevard

Crespi

San Bruno Avenue

Sneath

Lane

San Andreas Reservoir

Calera

Creek

San

250'

San FranciscoCounty Jail

PortolaGate

Nike Missile Control Site

Portolá Discovery Site1220'

ShelldanceNursery

625'

800'

975'

960'

930'

1132'

1195'

VALLEMAR

ROCKAWAY

Lane

Sneath

PACIFICA

100

400 Coast Guard Site

800

400

CollegeDriveMILAGRA

RIDGE

200

Pacifica Chamberof Commerce and

GGNRA Visitor Center

Moreland Drive

SkylineBoulevard

200

100

400

40

0

800

PedroCreek

400

400400

1200

1000

800

400

500

500

400

LINDA MAR

PrivateStables

1100

No Trailhead Parking

Sneath LaneTrailhead

Paved

Fire

Lane

380

280

35

1

1

1

280

0

0

0.5 Miles

0.5 Kilometers

SewageTreatment Facility

675'

SamTrans#140, 121, 123

Pacifica PierSHARP PARKSTATE BEACH

GGNRA parking at southeast corner of Parking Lot #2

SamTrans #14, 110, 112 & 295 SamTrans #14

SamTrans #110, 112 SA

NA

ND

RE

AS

RI F

T

ZO

NE

Trail(hiking only)

Bay AreaRidge Trail

GGNRA landsand boundary

Other parks andpublic lands

Trail (hiking and bicycling)

Picnic area

Wheelchair access

Fishing

Parking

Sweeney

Rid

ge

Trail

SHARP PARK

SamTrans#140

PACIFICASTATE BEACH

ROCKAWAYSTATE BEACH SW

EE

NE

Y

RID

GE

FAIRWAYPARKMori

Point

Cattle Hill

PENINSULAWATERSHED

City of San Francisco

San Francisco Public Utilities Comission

Service Road(Restricted)

PRIVATE

PRIVATE

Public Golf Course

PRIVATE

Limited Turnaround

SWEENEYRIDGE

MORI POINT

SAN BRUNO

Ridge

TrailNorth

Please continue the protection of SweeneyRidge by staying on designated trails andpicking up litter. Mountain bikes areallowed on fire roads, but not on single-track trails. Dogs on leash areallowed. Fires, camping, and off-road

vehicles are not permitted. Finally, protectyourself: though Spring and Fall offer thebest weather, wear layered clothing yearround as temperatures can change rapidly.Bring sunscreen and water.

E X P E R I E N C E Y O U R A M E R I C A w w w. n p s . g o v / g o g a / c l h o / s w r i

About Your Visit

From Pacifica, Sweeney Ridge trailheadsare located at Shelldance Nursery off ofHighway 1, and at the east end of FasslerAvenue. From San Bruno, trails from thewest end of Sneath Lane off of Hwy 35(Skyline Blvd), or from Skyline College outof Parking Lot #2 lead to Sweeney Ridge.

Finding Your Way

Pacifica Visitor Center650-355-4122www.pacificachamber.com

Presidio Visitor Center415-561-4323www.nps.gov/goga

Site Stewardship Program415-561-3034, ext. 3437www.parksconservancy.org

For More Information

Like their human counterparts, wildlifeexplore and defend territories. Here onSweeney Ridge the web of life is remarkably intact: mountain lions, coyotesand bobcats range in search of rabbits,mice, voles and shrews, which in turnsearch for food and water sources of theirown. And all these creatures find protection in Sweeney Ridge's native

coastal scrub vegetation. This entireecosystem is protected by the NationalPark Service. Today, volunteers protecthabitat here against invasive, non-nativeplants that threaten this delicate ecologicalbalance by displacing the native plants onwhich wildlife depend.

Ranging on the Ridge

California Academy of Sciences

Mountain lions find refuge on

Sweeney Ridge