Gps Coordinates  /  37.8262789,-122.423109

Alcatraz Prisoner Gardens 2013 VR Alcatraz Island

RHGG+GQ6 Belvedere Tiburon, Tiburon, CA, USA

Gardens planted by families of the original Army post, and later by families of the prison guards, fell into neglect after the prison closure in 1963.

1800's Alcatraz was sometimes refered to as Bird Island or White Island, but things changed with the arrival of people.

 Link Location Gps  /  Gps Link -122.4235774  /  Gps Link -122.4228559  /  Gps Link -122.4219896

Gps Coordinates  /  37.8265945,-122.4235774  /  37.8261957,-122.4228559  /  37.8261389,-122.4219896

For ten years, the Garden Conservancy led the effort to rehabilitate the Gardens of Alcatraz in partnership with the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy and the National Park Service.

 Link Location Gps  /  Gps Link -122.4220299  /  Gps Link -122.4220756  /  Gps Link -122.4221137

Gps Coordinates  /  37.8261118,-122.4220299  /  37.8260893,-122.4220756  /  37.8260712,-122.4221137

2013 After successful completion of the Historic Gardens Project led by the Garden Conservancy.

Today, as part of Golden Gate National Recreation Area, Alcatraz is once again a sanctuary for seabirds.

 Link Location Gps  /  Gps Link -122.4221546  /  Gps Link -122.4221985  /  Gps Link -122.4222468

Gps Coordinates  /  37.826065,-122.4221546  /  37.8260695,-122.4221985  /  37.8260772,-122.4222468

Management of the Gardens of Alcatraz transitions to local management under the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy.

 Link Location Gps  /  Gps Link -122.4222959  /  Gps Link -122.4223432  /  Gps Link -122.4223868

Gps Coordinates  /  37.8260852,-122.4222959  /  37.8260905,-122.4223432  /  37.8260983,-122.4223868

Apart from a few scattered grasses, there’s no vegetation native to this island.

 Link Location Gps  /  Gps Link -122.4224307  /  Gps Link -122.4224709  /  Gps Link -122.422511

Gps Coordinates  /  37.8261054,-122.4224307  /  37.8261105,-122.4224709  /  37.826115,-122.422511

After 40 years, they are being restored by a paid staff member and many volunteers, thanks to funding by the Garden Conservancy and the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy.

 Link Location Gps  /  Gps Link -122.42255  /  Gps Link -122.4225871  /  Gps Link -122.4226259

Gps Coordinates  /  37.8261211,-122.42255  /  37.826125,-122.4225871  /  37.8261346,-122.4226259

The Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy is now managing the gardens locally.

 Link Location Gps  /  Gps Link -122.4226628  /  Gps Link -122.4227115  /  Gps Link -122.4227633

Gps Coordinates  /  37.8261421,-122.4226628  /  37.8261513,-122.4227115  /  37.8261625,-122.4227633

The untended gardens had become severely overgrown and had developed into a nesting habitat and sanctuary for numerous birds.

 Link Location Gps  /  Gps Link -122.4228116  /  Gps Link -122.4228559  /  Gps Link -122.422899

Gps Coordinates  /  37.8261805,-122.4228116  /  37.8261957,-122.4228559  /  37.8262097,-122.422899

Sunny days are wonderful, but the elements here are fickle and unforgiving. Winds whip at astonishing speeds, and fog often envelops the island so completely that it vanishes from view.

 Link Location Gps  /  Gps Link -122.4229432  /  Gps Link -122.4229861  /  Gps Link -122.4230272

Gps Coordinates  /  37.8262214,-122.4229432  /  37.8262333,-122.4229861  /  37.8262477,-122.4230272

Now, areas of bird habitat are being preserved and protected, while many of the gardens are being restored to their original state.

 Link Location Gps  /  Gps Link -122.4230671  /  Gps Link -122.4231518  /  Gps Link -122.423196

Gps Coordinates  /  37.8262636,-122.4230671  /  37.8262935,-122.4231518  /  37.8263093,-122.423196

In clearing out the overgrowth, workers found that many of the original plants were growing where they had been planted some more than 100 years ago.

 Link Location Gps  /  Gps Link -122.4232364  /  Gps Link -122.4232714  /  Gps Link -122.4233074

Gps Coordinates  /  37.8263316,-122.4232364  /  37.826358,-122.4232714  /  37.8263795,-122.4233074

150 years, roses have bloomed and ivy has spread across the site’s 22 acres.

 Link Location Gps  /  Gps Link -122.4233414  /  Gps Link -122.4233783  /  Gps Link -122.4234085

Gps Coordinates  /  37.826405,-122.4233414  /  37.8264305,-122.4233783  /  37.8264614,-122.4234085

Four acres of gardens that thrive on the island today are part of a unique, site-specific ecosystem, carefully cultivated by a succession of residents and visitors who’ve left their mark on this once desolate space.

 Link Location Gps  /  Gps Link -122.4234404  /  Gps Link -122.4234758  /  Gps Link -122.4235112

Gps Coordinates  /  37.8264895,-122.4234404  /  37.8265194,-122.4234758  /  37.8265462,-122.4235112

Numerous heirloom rose hybrids, including a Welsh rose (Bardou Job) that had been believed to be extinct, have been discovered and propagated.

 Link Location Gps  /  Gps Link -122.4235428  /  Gps Link -122.4236641  /  Gps Link -122.4236655

Gps Coordinates  /  37.8265777,-122.4235428  /  37.8266374,-122.4236641  /  37.8266045,-122.4236655

Many species of roses, succulents, and geraniums are growing among apple and fig trees, banks of sweet peas, manicured gardens of cutting flowers, and wildly overgrown sections of native grasses with blackberry and honeysuckle.

 Link Location Gps  /  Gps Link -122.4236972  /  Gps Link -122.4236641  /  Gps Link -122.4236951

Gps Coordinates  /  37.8265657,-122.4236972  /  37.8266374,-122.4236641  /  37.8266662,-122.4236951

Many of the plants selected by these unheralded gardeners proved to be excellent choices for the harsh and barren environment, flourishing through the four decades of neglect that followed the prison’s closing.

 Link Location Gps  /  Gps Link -122.4237349  /  Gps Link -122.423776  /  Gps Link -122.4238114

Gps Coordinates  /  37.8266912,-122.4237349  /  37.8267138,-122.423776  /  37.8267331,-122.4238114

For 150 years, a succession of soldiers, families of correction officials, and inmates cultivated gardens hewn on the rocky, windswept island of Alcatraz.

 Link Location Gps  /  Gps Link -122.4238445  /  Gps Link -122.4238805  /  Gps Link -122.423921

Gps Coordinates  /  37.8267516,-122.4238445  /  37.826772,-122.4238805  /  37.8267913,-122.423921

Alcatraz’s current visitors experience an island that is alive with colorful plants gathered decades ago from around the world, and complemented by newly introduced plants.

 Link Location Gps  /  Gps Link -122.4239559  /  Gps Link -122.4239942  /  Gps Link -122.4240328

Gps Coordinates  /  37.8268183,-122.4239559  /  37.8268434,-122.4239942  /  37.8268661,-122.4240328

Gardens, tidepools, nesting birds, stunning bay views tended by The Golden Gate National Park Conservancy is a premiere spot for viewing colonial nesting seabirds. 

 Link Location Gps  /  Gps Link -122.424063  /  Gps Link -122.4240836  /  Gps Link -122.424084

Gps Coordinates  /  37.8268927,-122.424063  /  37.8269218,-122.4240836  /  37.8269497,-122.424084

Most seabirds nest on inaccessible offshore rocks. Alcatraz visitors can see the mating, nesting and parenting behaviors of these charismatic creatures up close.

 Link Location Gps  /  Gps Link -122.4241075  /  Gps Link -122.4241214  /  Gps Link -122.4241047

Gps Coordinates  /  37.8269751,-122.4241075  /  37.8269927,-122.4241214  /  37.8270056,-122.4241047

The name Alcatraz itself came from Spanish explorer Juan Manuel de Ayala who named one of the islands in the bay "Isle de los Alctraces" or "Island of the Seabirds" for the multitudes of avian life he observed.

The first humans to interact with these birds were Native Americans, who hunted and possibly collected eggs for food.

 Link Location Gps  /  Gps Link -122.4240857  /  Gps Link -122.4240711  /  Gps Link -122.4240529

Gps Coordinates  /  37.8270196,-122.4240857  /  37.827035,-122.4240711  /  37.8270525,-122.4240529

Through the Alcatraz Historic Gardens Project, the partner organizations preserve, rebuild, and maintain the gardens. 

Arrival of the U.S. Army and Lighthouse Service, came families who wanted to beautify the island. They brought soil and plants and established gardens.

 Link Location Gps  /  Gps Link -122.4240356  /  Gps Link -122.4240199  /  Gps Link -122.4240003  /  Gps Link -122.42398

Gps Coordinates  /  37.8270723,-122.4240356  /  37.8270925,-122.4240199  /  37.8271128,-122.4240003  /  37.8271252,-122.42398

Created by those who lived on the island during its military and prison eras, and interpret their history, horticulture, and cultural significance for visitors.

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We left some touring brochures below let us know how you got along.

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Freetoursbyfoot.com/alcatraz-tours/

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Alcatrazislandtickets.com/Alcatraz-Island-Tours/

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Thetourguy.com/travel-blog/usa/san-francisco/alcatraz/how-to-visit-alcatraz-island/

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Alcatraztoursf.com/san-francisco/city-tour