Angel Island State Park California
Angel Island State Park, the largest natural island in the San Francisco Bay, offers some of the best views of the surrounding Bay Area. With great hiking trails and many other recreational opportunities readily available, Angel Island is truly a hidden gem in the midst of the urban Bay Area.
Angel Island is truly a walk through time! Beginning with the earliest inhabitants, the Coast Miwok, Angel Island was a seasonal hunting and gathering location for the local native tribes, a safe refuge and supply stop for Spanish explorers like Juan Manuel de Ayala, one of the first to map the San Francisco Bay.
From 1910 to 1940, the U.S. Immigration Station processed hundreds of thousands of immigrants, the majority from China. During World War II, Japanese, and German POWs were detained at the Station before being sent to facilities farther inland.
The Island has been a cattle ranch and beginning with the Civil War at Camp Reynolds, the Island has nearly 100 years of military history. With the outbreaks of WWI and WWII thousands of troops both returning and embarking for conflicts around the world were processed through Angel Island. In the ’50s and ’60s, the Island saw its last military service as a home to a Nike missile base.
In 1954 the transition of Angel Island as a California State Park began. Starting with Ayala Cove on the western side of the Island, park visitors had the first opportunities to enjoy the beauty of this amazing Island. In the early 60’s the final departure of the military allowed the rest of Angel Island to become park lands and the rest is history!
Location
Angel Island State Park California
Tiburon, CA 94920, United States
Hours
High Season 8:00 am to Sunset
Low Season 8:00 am to Sunset
Fees
The cost roundtrip is $15.00 for adults, $14.00 for seniors aged 65 and older, $13.00 for children aged 6-12, $5.00 for children aged 3-5, and free for toddlers under the age of 2. This cost also includes your entrance fee to the state park of Angel Island.
Area Attractions
Suggested Equipment for Angel Island State Park California:
Activities & Tips
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Environmental campsites and hiking/biking campsites are available.
Visitors can hike the foot trails and fire roads that circle the island and climb to the 788-foot high summit of Mount Caroline Livermore. Special caution should be used around the historic buildings, and in the vicinity of the bluffs, which tend to erode easily and provide unreliable footing. The main trails are well marked and are designed to avoid most hazards, including the poison oak that is native to the region.
Picnic areas are available throughout the park.
Bicycles can be used on the island-circling system of main roads and can be brought to the island on the ferryboats.
Bike rentals are available seasonally (contact the park for schedules).
Boat slips are available first-come, first-served from 8 a.m. until sunset. Overnight mooring buoys are available first-come, first-served. A fee is charged for both day use and overnight mooring, with a seven-night limit. Boaters must tie fore and aft due to swift currents.
Birds include scrub jays, hummingbirds, flickers, hawks, and owls. Near the coves, visitors may find egrets, grebes, blue herons, and brown pelicans.
Deer and raccoons, both excellent swimmers, are the only large land mammals on the island. Harbor seals and California sea lions often sun on the rocks.
Angel Island State Park is a must-visit state park in California. Check out other state parks in California here.