The middle of San Francisco is the last place most people would expect to find a lush, mountainous 19-acre forest teeming with eucalyptus trees, blackberry bushes, owls and woodpeckers, but that’s exactly where folks will find the Interior Greenbelt, adjacent to the 61-acre Mount Sutro Open Space Reserve on Mount Sutro.
The Interior Greenbelt, owned and managed by the Recreation and Park Department’s Natural Areas Program, just reopened this past weekend, thanks to an ongoing partnership with the Sutro Stewards, a volunteer group dedicated to improving and revitalizing Mount Sutro through a variety of trail and plant restoration projects.
The Sutro Stewards, along with Recreation and Park staff, have also worked hard to restore a half-mile stretch of old hiking trail that begins at Stanyan Street and 17th Street in Cole Valley and leads to the Interior Greenbelt and Mount Sutro.
The Interior Greenbelt trail is a pathway into another world. Right smack dab in the middle of urban San Francisco is this breathtaking, lush and natural park land that I would venture to guess most San Franciscans have never even visited... but should.
On June 6, we officially reopened the trail in honor of the 19th annual National Trails Day, which promotes our nation's hiking trails, their surrounding natural areas and the hiking experience.
I want to take a moment to thank all of our park volunteers who’ve helped to uncover one of the city’s most incredible park resources.
Our department continues to rely heavily on the generosity and goodwill of our volunteers, to the tune of 130,000 hours each year. Our ongoing partnership with Sutro Stewards is one of the shining examples of what can be accomplished when we all are compelled to work together toward a common goal.
While Mount Sutro may currently be one of the best kept secrets in San Francisco, I’m happy to say that I’m going to be telling all my friends about this great new trail that starts at Stanyan and 17th and leads them on an adventure to one of the most beautiful park spaces in the city.
To find out more about the Interior Greenbelt or how you can volunteer with Rec and Park, click here.
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