March 21 marks the 60th anniversary of Alcatraz’s closure as a penitentiary, but it’s always been much more than that brief history. Alcatraz Island is a place to learn about social justice, prison reform, birds, and even flowers! The island is full of history. Come and see for yourself.

The Golden Gate National Recreation Area is doing such cool accessibility work – and has so many beautiful and interesting things to see – that it’s worth mentioning to put on your vacation bucket list.

“We’ve made every effort to be sustainable,” says Shelagh Fritz, Program Manager of Alcatraz Gardens. Scraps and cuttings are collected for compost, never hauled away. Over on the other side of the island, near the rose garden, she proudly shows me Alcatraz’s award-winning compost, lifting up a tarp to reveal a shoulder-high collection of steaming organic matter, complete with plump, writhing worms.

San Francisco's urban national park unit recently gained 14 acres with the opening of the Presidio Tunnel Tops, a green space designed by James Corner Field Operations, the lead firm for New York City’s High Line, which incorporated input from more than 10,000 residents with the help of the Parks Conservancy.

Two dozen parks have opened in San Francisco since 2020, including what The Chronicle calls "the spectacular Presidio Tunnel Tops," a triumph of imagination and generosity of Bay Area donors. Tunnel Tops cost $118 million — $98 million of which was raised by the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy.