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Stories

Marquis Engle is the program director at Up on Top, an after-school and summer program in San Francisco's Tenderloin neighborhood.
Why the spirit of the national parks is growing in San Francisco’s Tenderloin

The story of how a partnership with the Up on Top after-school and summer program has inspired ‘love and beauty’ in its enigmatic program director, Marquis Engle.

An Anna's hummingbird.
Hummingbird: A poem

Take a minute to read a poem about a beautiful bird we see throughout our San Mateo park sites. 

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Our 18 Favorite Photos of 2018

The parks are fiercely visual, making it easy for photographers—both amateur and professional—to snap some truly awe-inspiring, jaw-dropping images. Out of thousands of photos taken this year in the Golden Gate National Parks, here are the 18 favorite photos from our staff photographers.

Parks Conservancy staff during a service day in the Marin Headlands in 2018.
Once interns, now full-time park staff: How our programs are launching careers

Pathways through the Golden Gate National Parks don’t always mean trails.  For many staff members at the Parks Conservancy, the National Park Service (NPS), and the Presidio Trust, their paths to full-time employment started during internships or youth programs offered in our parks.

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Winter 2019 Guide to the Golden Gate National Parks

Whether you’re an art lover or a volunteer with a penchant for planting, these (hopefully wet) winter activities will be sure to whet your appetite. Here’s the need-to-know lineup for January-March 2019.

Insects spotted in the Golden Gate National Parks, from left, strigamia, Jerusalem cricket, devil's coach horse.
Spot these fascinating insects in our parks

Hello fellow park lovers! Make sure to keep an eye out for a few of these interesting insects found in our Golden Gate National Parks recently.

A red-tailed hawk.
Taking flight: Partially migrating with the red-tailed hawk

As a new year approaches, full of possibilities, I think keeping an eye on the pair of red-tailed hawks at Lands End will continue to serve as a glorious symbol.

Taking a break at Mori Point.
Direct seeding: A future in bloom

Take a walk up to Mori Point in the spring and you’ll be amazed by the display of wildflowers. Yet over the years, with higher visitation and more compaction of the soil, we’ve seen a reduction in the bloom. This winter, we’re ready to change that.

Ramaytush Ohlone in a tule boat in the San Francisco Bay, 1816.
The Ramaytush Ohlone - Lessons on stewardship from the ancestral stewards of the Peninsula

Each day I spend with my peers at the Parks Conservancy, and with our passionate and vital cast of volunteers, I endeavor to remember the people who shaped, shared and enshrined these lands and waters.

A humpback whale is seen breaching off the coast of California in 2010.
Spouting off: Whale see you out here!

We have been fortunate to spot humpback and gray whales from the coast at Mori Point, as well as from the mountains at Rancho Corral de Tierra. We recommend heading out to the coast as soon as possible, if you want to bid them adieu.