Presidio Trails - South Side

     I'm always late. I have awful time management skills, and it's something my manager at work and my mother at home always complained about. But I try! I really do. Alas, it prevented a JAG hike yesterday, since I kept pushing it back and then Greg couldn't deal with me anymore (sorry, Greg). Annie was avoiding us as per usual, so it was just going to be the two of us. Since JAG fell apart - I asked Kelly (honorary member of JAG) if she was free - and as luck would have it, she could join me for a quickie impromptu hike.

     For a quick NEW hike, I used the app Transit and Trails (available on iPhone and Android). This way, I was able to sit in the car wash (the Mini was filthy) and do a 'hikes near me' search to see a map of all local hikes. I picked something in the Presidio, so that we wouldn't have to drive to far, but it was still far enough away that I wouldn't have walked there. We ended up starting with the Mountain Lake Trail, and parking on 12th street, just at the edge of the park (although it gets so congested that I'd recommend parking on California so that you don't get boxed in).

The hike:
     Starting at the end of 12th St around 3:45pm, we walked through the park and then turned right at the lake (it looks like there's some construction, on the West side of the lake, so we didn't go that way). All of this is considered the Mountain Lake Trail. However, it turns out that we veered off of the path and ended up on a few different trails - all detailed here. After going around the East side of the Lake, we made it onto the Park Trail - which takes you on the West side of the golf course. This leads down to the Bay Area Ridge Trail, where we headed East. I really liked this one - and saw a few other people, plenty of them with dogs. On this one, you'll walk through some beautiful wooded areas - which culminate in a wood masterpiece called 'The Spire".

Looking up at this will make you dizzy because of the clouds moving so quickly above. Try it!

And here is Kelly, emulating The Spire...

     Soon after (and still along the Bay Area Ridge Trail), we came upon the Presidio Cafe...which was probably a sign that we needed a drink - we took it. It looks like table service is closed after 3, but you can still order at the bar and sit down wherever you like. Note to single girls: this place is crawling with men...take advantage. After a rewarding glass of wine each, we were back on the trail which then re-connected us with the Mountain Lake Trail - heading West back to the park. It was pretty chilly by then (around 5:30 pm), so we were happy to be back in the car. We were only gone for maybe 2 hours, and it was all easy to slightly moderate at points - perfect for squeezing in a late hike on Sunday...when you realized that all you did all weekend was eat, drink, and lounge around. But not so if you make it to the Presidio trails!