Greenwich Steps!
About 2 years ago we moved to the base of Telegraph Hill in San Francisco. We’re on the Bay side of the hill and our apartment faces the hill, which is so green. It amazes me that we live in the 2nd most densely packed city in the U.S. – from our windows we can’t see or hear any cars (no street or parking lot to be seen). Yeah, that means NO TRAFFIC NOISE. What a concept, huh?
View of the Golden Gate from Telegraph Hill
On our side of Telegraph Hill there are 2 sets of stairs leading to the top of the hill. There’s the Greenwich Steps and the Filbert Steps. For those that haven’t seen these stairways, I’ll attempt to explain. Greenwich and Filbert, the actual streets with cars, dead-end at Telegraph Hill, and yet, the “streets” (without cars) continue. It’s very steep there and thus these two streets become stairways. There are rather expensive homes along the steps with no direct auto access. (Imagine moving day!)
Blooming!
Both stairways are very green year round, thanks to the climate and to the folks that live on the hill. Flowers of all sorts bloom along the stairways. Each time I climb the steps, I can’t help but think, “Only in San Francisco”. There are about 400 steps, so it’s a bit of a climb, but well worth the effort. At the top is famous Coit Tower and a statue of Christopher Columbus. And what a view from the top! You can see the Bay, the Bay Bridge, the Golden Gate Bridge, the North Beach neighborhood, among other sights.
Over the past couple of years I’ve walked the steps frequently and many times I’ve carried my camera along. The following slide show is an sample of the views.
