Military fortifications of the governments of Spain, Mexico and the United States guarded the entrance of the San Francisco Bay from 1776 to 1994.
As part of the same process that closed Castle AFB, the northernmost end of the peninsula was transferred to the National Park Service to become a massive new public park.
Several recent trips have left me absolutely amazed at how much there is to do within the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. The GGNRA encompasses the Presedio, Alcatraz Island and more than 30 other sites of natural and historic interest in the Bay Area.
My favorite place in the entire monument is the first one I ever visited.
After Bodie State Historic Park, it's my second-favorite historic location in California.
This location is Fort Winfield Scott.
The fort was built between 1853 and 1861 to protect the entrance to the most important natural harbor on the Pacific Coast. With brick walls 5- to 7-feet thick and a height of three stories, it's an imposing building. Partially restored, the fort looks much the way it did 150 years ago.
Organized around a central courtyard, the rooms and hallways provide nearly an hour of good exploring. On my first visit I was 10 years old and absolutely thrilled to be let loose in this labyrinth of dimly lighted passageways and chambers.
Even better is the view from the roof.
The architect of the Golden Gate Bridge altered the design to prevent the demolition of the fort. Standing on the roof of the fort you can stare directly up at the bridge and out across the bay. Most of the cannons are gone, but you can see where they were mounted.
California never seriously swerved towards secession, but there were definitely moments when its future must not have seemed clear. Colonel Albert Sydney Johnston resigned his command of the Army's Department of the Pacific to join the Confederacy on the day after Fort Sumter.
Throughout the war the fort watched vigilantly for Confederate ships. The Shenandoah was the only one that came close to raiding the harbor. It would have, too, if its commander hadn't been informed that the Confederacy had already surrendered.
Fort Point is one of the most substantial and best-preserved 19th century military sites west of the Mississippi River. As long as you can climb three staircases, you'll find it completely accessible to you. It's a great place to explore, to relive history, to take photographs and to enjoy a magnificent view.
There's also a lighthouse on the roof.
The fort is just isolated enough that you can forget what time period you are in.
The low number of visitors also helps. You'll definitely want a camera and a windbreaker, and you might want a flashlight. If the fort looks familiar, it might be because you saw it in Alfred Hitchcock's "Vertigo."
"Sentry at Golden Gate" is an excellent short history available on the National Parks Web site. I used the site to verify the history in this column and I enjoyed reading a lot of the stories I'd never heard before.
Costumed volunteers are often on site to interpret the fort's history.
Last weekend I was there with a group of students from Golden Valley High School and we enjoyed listening to a military band playing in the courtyard.
Usual hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Friday through Sunday.
It's easy to combine a visit to Fort Winfield Scott with explorations of other areas within the GGNRA. A large Civil War reenactment is staged at the fort in January each year, and candlelight tours are offered in the winter months.
If you're interested in experiencing the Civil War outdoors, check out the reenactment in Mariposa on April 17-18. Fresno also holds an excellent reenactment every year at Kearny Park. This year it will be Oct. 3-4.
Adam Blauert is an avid outdoorsman and local historian who enjoys fishing, backpacking and exploring the western states. He can be reached at adamblauert@yahoo.com.
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