A Swell Saturday in Golden Gate Park

When singer Janis Joplin lived in San Francisco at 112 Lyon Street, she talked about a phenomenon called the Saturday Night Swindle. I guess the idea was that society, or established corporate America, convinces you to work in misery all week in anticipation of a rewarding weekend that never quite lives up to your expectations. We've all had weeks and weekends like that, but I'm sure they would be fewer if more of them were spent in Golden Gate Park.

Golden Gate Park is one of the largest man-made parks in the world. Today, it's not so different from how it was when Janis Joplin, hippies and beatniks descended on San Francisco's Haight-Ashbury district in the 1960s. But the lush landscaping that characterizes the modern park bears little resemblance to what it looked like in the 1870s when it was a barren wind-swept area consisting of sand dunes.

By the 1890s, the park was beginning to resemble what you see today, and the city of San Francisco began to crowd around its edges. In 1894, the Midwinter International Exposition was held in Golden Gate Park. The fair included a Japanese Village and a Fine Arts Building, which today exist as the De Young Museum and Japanese Tea Garden.

Following the April 18, 1906, earthquake and fire, Golden Gate Park became a temporary haven for approximately 200,000 people left homeless by the disaster.

Much later, after three-quarters of a century of use, the neighborhoods surrounding the park were being abandoned as residents moved to suburbia. Highway construction threatened the park and other parts of San Francisco. But while many were quick to abandon their neighborhood, others stood fast and fought to save it. Still others, following the counter-culture movements of the 60s, found the Victorian Mansions of the Haight an ideal source of inexpensive housing. Golden Gate Park became center-stage for a mini-revolution of sorts, hosting numerous concerts and the magical Summer of Love.

While the park immediately borders a number of San Francisco neighborhoods, including the Haight, Richmond and the Sunset, most of San Francisco's residents have convenient access by walking, light-rail or bus. The park is well-developed at the end nearest to Haight Street, and less tame nearest to the Pacific Ocean.

Perhaps the best way to see the park is to take the N-Judah line to the Ocean and walk back to the Haight. It gets cold near the ocean before it does in the Haight, so plan to arrive around 11 a.m. Pack a lunch because there aren't many food options until you reach Haight Street.

Looking at the park from the Ocean, you will see two windmills built between 1903 and 1905. Start at the windmill on your left and head in the direction of the one on your right. From there, follow the path marked on signs placed throughout the park until you find the Buffalo Paddock. If you don't see the buffalo, that's because they often hide behind a mound on the right side. Follow the edge of the fence over the mound and you should see several large buffalo.

Pass Spreckels Lake and find your way to the Portals of the Past. This is an excellent place to have that lunch you packed. The area consists of a small lake set in front of a doorway consisting of the portico of A. N. Towne Residence that once stood on Nob Hill.

Next head to the Japanese Tea Garden. It costs a couple dollars, but it's worth the fare if you have a half hour to spend taking in the delight of bridges and flowers and the aroma of tea. If you get there between 5:30 and 6:00 p.m., it's free. Next door, the De Young Art Museum and Academy of Sciences are both worthwhile stops, but the crowds take away from the tranquility of your Saturday getaway experience. The Asian Art Museum, also located in this area, is being relocated to Civic Center, near downtown, and the De Young is being rebuilt to accommodate larger exhibits.

Controversial to the plan is a large tower that's expected to hover over the reconstructed museum, and a parking garage that's expected to be built under the grove in front of the museum.

A group called the Alliance for Golden Gate Park says the design of the new museum is completely out of place in a park environment. The 160-foot tower would be the tallest object in the park--a monument that some call imposing and a reminder of an unpopular "tower of electricity" that stood in the park in the 1890s.

Another problem with the plan is that giant parking garage, which opponents say should be replaced by a streetcar extension being called the G-line. The G-line would run on the existing historic streetcar F-line tracks from Fisherman's Wharf. Only one mile of new track would be needed to bring the G-line to the Music Concourse of Golden Gate Park, preserving trees, tranquility and an environment San Franciscans hold dear.

Perhaps the most rewarding and relaxing area is the Fern Tree Grove. It's also one of the areas that has remained virtually unchanged since the park was built. The alluring shade of dense ferns native to Australia provide a sometimes needed recluse from the warm sun, but hey, this is San Francisco, so on most days they are a jacket zone.

The next and final tranquil stop before you head into the Haight District is the National AIDS Memorial Grove. Wind down the sandstone staircase and pay tribute to the many men and women who have lost their lives to AIDS. A photo on a tree, a flower placed next to a name engraved in an sadly expanding circle of victims…San Francisco has been hit hard by the epidemic, and this grove is the place where people worldwide come to expand their awareness and remember.

There are many other destinations in the park, including Strybring Arboretum, the Conservatory of Flowers and Stow Lake, but the massiveness of the park and a Saturday that's quickly swindled away may make getting to know this wonderful place a process that extends over a period of months.

Tex and photos by Eric Miller