Strawberry Hill is a hill in San Francisco, California, near the center of

Golden Gate Park Golden Gate Park is an urban park between the Richmond District, San Francisco, Richmond and Sunset District, San Francisco, Sunset districts on the West Side (San Francisco), West Side of San Francisco, California, United States. It is the Lis ...

. The hill occupies an entire island in the park's man-made Blue Heron Lake, and is connected by two

bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...

s to the mainland of the park. The island is covered with a variety of trees and shrubbery and contains several trails and dirt steps that encircle and lead to the top of the hill.

Huntington Falls

Strawberry hill contains Huntington Falls, the 110 foot tall, first artificial

waterfall A waterfall is any point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in seve ...

installed in Golden Gate Park that leads into the lake. The waterfall was named after railroad baron

Collis Potter Huntington Collis Potter Huntington (October 22, 1821 – August 13, 1900) was an American industrialist and railway magnate. He was one of the Big Four of western railroading (along with Leland Stanford, Mark Hopkins, and Charles Crocker) who invested ...

, who donated $25,000 to its construction.

Golden Gate Pavilion

The Golden Gate Pavilion is a Chinese

peace pagoda A Peace Pagoda is a Buddhist stupa: a monument to inspire peace, designed to provide a focus for people of all races and creeds, and to help unite them in their search for world peace. Most, though not all, peace pagodas built since World War II ...

near the shore of Blue Heron Lake. It was given to San Francisco by Taipei, its

sister city A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inte ...

, in 1976.

Sweeney Observatory

The top of the hill is a quiet and peaceful open space with panoramic views of San Francisco although the view is slightly obscured by trees. In the center of the open area are the ruined foundations of the Sweeny Observatory, built in 1891 as a public viewpoint and destroyed by the 1906 earthquake. Paths are closed to vehicle traffic. The hill is a popular destination for joggers and dog-walkers, especially on the weekends. Local high school track and cross country teams are frequently seen practicing running up and around the hill for resistance training. File:Chinese Pavillion at Stow Lake in the Golden Gate Park (TK1).JPG, Golden Gate Pavilion File:Observatory, G.G. Park, S.F. (6350583161).jpg, Sweeny Observatory Ruins after the 1906 earthquake

In popular culture

In 2024, the hill was discussed during an episode of ''The

Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. It was formed in Los Angeles in 1981 by vocalist and guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...

Report'', as Ron Quintana shared memories of first meeting drummer

Lars Ulrich Lars Ulrich (; ; born 26 December 1963) is a Danish musician who is the drummer and a founding member of American heavy metal band Metallica. Along with James Hetfield, Ulrich has songwriting credits on almost all of the band's songs, and the ...

there. Slowcore band ''

Red House Painters Red House Painters were an American rock band formed in Atlanta, Georgia in 1988, before relocating to San Francisco, California in 1989. Originally formed by singer-songwriter Mark Kozelek and drummer Anthony Koutsos, the pair were soon joine ...

'' composed a song named after the hill for their 1993 album '' Red House Painters (Rollercoaster)''.

References

{{Golden Gate Park Landmarks in San Francisco Golden Gate Park Hills of San Francisco