Quick answer
Point Bonita Lighthouse stands at the San Francisco Bay entrance in the Marin Headlands. It is managed by Golden Gate National Recreation Area and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Visitors can explore the Point Bonita Trail, watch fog roll across the water, and look for harbor seals, whales, and porpoises near the rocky headlands.
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The Headland Approach
Point Bonita sits at the southwest tip of the Marin Headlands, where the San Francisco Bay opens toward the Pacific. The lighthouse is managed by Golden Gate National Recreation Area and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Before you reach the tower, notice the headland's rough edges: wildflowers, old rescue station ruins, and pillow basalt rock formations. Battery Wallace, near the trailhead, offers a scenic pause with tables and grills overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge. Bring water, keep your eyes on the waterline, and let the wind set your pace. Look for the white tower and black lantern dome before you reach the viewing platform.
A Beacon in the Fog
The first Point Bonita light was built in eighteen fifty-five, and the tower was first lit in eighteen seventy-seven. More than three hundred boats ran aground near the Golden Gate during the California Gold Rush years, which is why this headland needed a steady warning. The tower is thirty-three feet tall, while its focal height reaches one hundred twenty-four feet above the sea. A second order Fresnel lens helps carry the light eighteen nautical miles. When fog hides the bay, the signal speaks with two blasts every thirty seconds. Stand near the lantern and listen for the foghorn's rhythm.
Lifesaving and Loss
Even with a lighthouse, the Golden Gate remained dangerous. In nineteen hundred one, the steamer SS City of Rio de Janeiro collided with Point Diablo, near Point Bonita. The ship sank in ten minutes, and one hundred twenty-eight passengers were lost. Lifesaving crews later worked from the Point Bonita Life Saving Station, using a heavy lifeboat and a lighter surfboat. Typically eight to ten men manned the station, and some say their motto was, "You must go out, but you don't have to return." Walk slowly along the rocky edge and imagine the fog swallowing a ship's lights.