Follow Geary west until it branches off into Pt. Lobos Ave. towards the Cliff House. Below Louie's Seafood is the ruins of the Sutro Baths. It is hard to image the baths that once stood here. I used to stare at the posters taped into the window at Louie's and in the Cliff House gift store and marvel at how the pools and bunkers used to be the buildings in the posters.I having been hanging out at the Sutro Baths on and off since 1979. I must say the city is doing a great job of ruining the ruins in the name of safety. New paths, rails, and cement filled holes seem to sanitize the hillside and stairs.
This was my first time back in at least ten years. Much has changed. The biggest disappointment was the bunker that had the whole history of the baths painted in 1.5 inch green letters around the walls, covering every square inch of space. It is now painted over with gray cement paint.
Steve and I sat on the wall. The day was beautiful, uncharacteristically hot for the San Francisco coast. Lone hikers, couples, and families explored the area, some like us just came for the serenity of the ocean.
If you go, "leave only footprints and take nothing but photographs."
