Seeing Alcatraz from the Agave Trail

I have been fortunate enough to visit Alcatraz Island before, but it is always a cool outing. Plus you get a boat trip, too.

Nice views on the way out to the island, plus great time for a selfie.

Here’s the building you walk up to as you get off the boat.

Found a nice map there at the ranger station just under the “Indian Land” sign. Read about the 1969 Native American Occupation.

Self-guided tours usually head to the right up the zig-zag hill to the cell house, but I was please to learn that I was there for the very limited opening of the Agave Trail which is shown at the bottom of that map above. Time to head out and say goodbye to my boat as well as this beautiful seagull.

A clear reminder that you are on the prison grounds when you walk by this sign at the southernmost tip of the island.

Like the trail name suggest, there is lots of agave along this less traveled section of the island.

Incredible views, too!!

After climbing up the staircase you end up at the parade grounds and the views continue.

The picture above is at the edge of the parade ground. Hike up some more! About half the way up you can go right up the hill to the cell house or to the left like I did into the West Side Gardens.

Beautiful view of the Golden Gate Bridge from this north side of the island.

Then it was time to turn around and head up another hill to the recreation yard.

The red arrows show the path I traveled.

This brought me back to the crowds in the “You Are Here” cell house.

Bars, bars, and more bars…

Walking the tour backwards, I finally come outside and you can see the lighthouse and the remains of the warden’s house. And yep, why not another selfie!?!?

The warden’s house is almost fallen completely down and mother nature is taking it over.

A nice view of the parade ground from above with the skyline and the Bay Bridge in the distance as well as the lighthouse and warden’s house behind me. Here is another picture of the skyline.

Then it was a time to walk down the hill that most tours are coming up. I remember that hill from the last time I was here and so glad I was walking down it.

I found another friend at the end of the walk that looks like the one I saw at the beginning.

I was happy to see a US Coast Guard cutter when waiting for the boat to arrive back at the dock for my trip back to the city.

I highly recommend a visit to Alcatraz Island if you take a trip to San Francisco. You should also watch So I Married an Axe Murder which is set in San Francisco and has this great Phil Hartman (rest his soul) scene in the cell house.