Best Hiking Trails San Francisco Locals Love

San Francisco runners and hikers have shifted toward the unmarked paths in McLaren Park and the Presidio's northern edges for weekday workouts.

Golden Gate Park paths fill early on weekends with out-of-town visitors, pushing city residents toward spots that stay quiet even in July. Local use of these trails supports daily exercise routines tied to the city's established hiking culture around the Marin Headlands and Bay Trail segments.

McLaren Park loops in the Excelsior

McLaren Park sits in the Excelsior district and features a 2.5-mile unpaved loop that starts near the Geneva Avenue entrance and climbs past the Jerry Garcia Amphitheater before dropping into oak woodland. Locals combine this route with the adjacent Gleneagles golf course perimeter for a longer 4-mile circuit that avoids paved roads. The San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department lists the park's trails as open daily from 5 a.m., and the adjacent UCSF campus shuttle stop at Geneva and Santos makes weekday access simple for medical center staff.

Presidio back trails near Washington Boulevard

In the Presidio, residents favor the short connector paths off Washington Boulevard that lead to El Polin Spring and continue into eucalyptus stands above the Letterman Digital Arts Center. These routes link to the larger Batteries to Bluffs Trail but stay off the main signage, keeping foot traffic low. The Presidio Trust completed trail resurfacing on these connectors in March 2025, and a citywide count released that month showed 820,000 total visits to Presidio trails in 2025 with most occurring on weekdays before 9 a.m.

Entry remains free at both locations, though the Presidio Trust asks visitors to use the paid parking lots only after 10 a.m. on weekends. Runners report the best conditions on Tuesday and Thursday mornings when fog keeps temperatures in the mid-50s. The Recreation and Parks Department mobile map updates trail conditions each week, and local running groups meet at the McLaren Park picnic area on the first Saturday of each month at 7 a.m. to cover the combined routes.