Explore Laguna Honda Trails

By Joan Walsh
jwalsh14@mail.ccsf.edu

For a weekend activity or something to do after class, consider hiking through Laguna Honda Hospital Community Trails, a network of approximately 2 miles of trails located on the campus of Laguna Honda Hospital and Rehabilitation Center. This long-term acute care facility, established in 1866, houses 780 beds on a 62-acre campus. The hospital grounds offer public access to these trails, which remain relatively unknown to many people.

The location is around 2.5 miles from City College, which is a 10-minute drive or about a half hour on the 43-bus line which conveniently goes door to door from City College to the front of Laguna Honda Hospital. It’s also right across the street from the Forest Hill Muni Station. On Google Maps, the entrance is listed as Laguna Honda Trailhead kiosk.

Start at the arched entrance and take the stairs up, then veer left onto Victory Trail. The trail meanders up the hill through forested shade to sunny stretches. Start at the arched entrance, take the stairs up then veering left at Victory Trail. The trail meanders up the hill through forested shade to sunny stretches. The hum of traffic on Laguna Honda Boulevard can be heard as well as views of stylish hillside houses in the Forest Hill neighborhood. In the spring, lots of wildflowers sprinkle this trail. 

The trail continues up a hill and intersects with the Steep Ravine Trail, which also leads out to Clarendon Avenue, serving as an alternative entrance. The Steep Ravine Trail is where it gets very forested. The foliage is dense and thick with ivy engulfing most of the trees. One might feel as if walking in a different city, not in the middle of a sprawling metropolis like San Francisco. This section is very quiet and serene, with only the sounds of birds breaking the silence. The path meanders through thick vegetation for about half a mile with views of Sutro Tower in the near distance. This trail goes behind the hospital and then comes to a clearing where the hospital has a garden and some benches for patients to use.

The Steep Ravine Trail ends in a parking lot where the Troop 88 trail starts. This trail was implemented by the Troop 88 Boy Scouts and winds by a water tower before ending at Panorama Dr. From this point, you can either return the way you came or use city streets to complete a loop.

The trails are very popular with mountain bikers and have had much support from SF Urban Riders, who were the pioneers of working with Laguna Honda Hospital to develop the existing trails. According to their website, their goal is to “build a city-wide network of trails where people of all ages and abilities can ride bikes for fun and as a way to experience the outdoors in an urban environment.”

The SF Urban Riders host volunteer workdays on the second Saturday of every month, where volunteers help maintain the trails.