Place to see: Dolores Park, San Francisco, California, United States

Dolores Park, BYOB

Dolores Park, BYOB

I happened to be in San Francisco during a rare run of 90+ degree days. In this city where air conditioning is rarer than Republicans, a superheated weekday is almost the equivalent of a Midwestern snow day.

About this place:

Dolores Park is named for the nearby Mission Dolores and is a common hangout for San Franciscans on a sunny day. The park is basically an expansive grass field on a hill with tennis and basketball courts on one side, a clubhouse and sidewalk through the middle, and great views from its highest point. Access to Dolores Park is easy: The J Church streetcar stops right in the park, or you can walk just a few blocks west from the Mission District.

In the southwest corner of the park, at the corner of 20th Street and Church, is the city's most famous fire hydrant. After the 1906 earthquake and fire, the city's water lines were ruptured, and this was the only hydrant that continued to function. Now dubbed the "Little Giant" it's painted gold to commemorate the role it played in saving this part of the city.

Postcards about Dolores Park:

  • Sloan Schang

    17 May 2008
    From:
    Sloan Schang

    I happened to be in San Francisco during a rare run of 90+ degree days. In this city where air conditioning is rarer than Republicans, a superheated weekday is almost the equivalent of a Midwestern snow day. Computer servers were crashing, commuter trains were backing up, and at least one man walked downtown streets muttering, "It's too hot...too hot...we're screwed." But at 4:00 on Friday afternoon, people poured from stuffy old office buildings and sweltering Victorian flats to revel in the breeze and views of city oases like this, the Mission's Dolores Park.

San Francisco, California, US

Discovered by Devin Poolman
on 27 October 2007.
10097 views.