It’s impossible to explore the whole of Angel Island in one trip as the various sites like Camp Reynolds, Fort McDowell and the Immigration Station require time and study. For our anniversary, we explored Camp Reynolds. This time, we went to the Immigration Station and visited the museum. We also managed to hike all the way around the island via Perimeter Road, but I’ll post those pics later.
Continue reading “Numbered, Weighed, Divided: The Angel Island Immigration Station”
I have posted the first part of our tenth anniversary adventure here and now it’s time for the rest of the adventure. Ever since our first trip to the island we’ve wanted to go back to hike. This time, rather than try to hike around the entire island (about 5 miles), we chose a section and explored. We took time to really see the area we chose rather than just hike past it.
On our first trip to the island we went as guests on a company picnic. It was our first time and we loved it. Karl The Fog was around for most of that trip. It was beautiful and it made the island feel peaceful and very secluded. This past week, however, the ferry trip out was beautiful and clear. We passed close to Alcatraz and pulled into Ayala Cove. From the cove, we followed the trail south and west to Camp Reynolds.
Along the way we saw lots of butterflies on the beautiful purple spiky flowers of the ‘Pride of Madeira” (echium candicans) which were blooming everywhere. The views from the perimeter road were stunning. We could see Belvedere, Tiburon, Richardson Bay, The Marin Headlands and the Golden Gate Bridge.
On the way, we passed the old hospital. It’s located on the road above Camp Reynolds. It was kept away from the camp so as to lessen the fear among the military men.
Once we reached Camp Reynolds we went exploring. The camp was built back in the 1860s and the bake house is still used for educational purposes. Down by the shore near the brick building, we had our lunch and enjoyed the scenery. I don’t know exactly what the brick building was used for, but it’s pretty and there are many century plants to found next to it. The old bloom stalks loomed over us. From our lunch site next to the ruins of the old wharf, we could watch the ships entering the bay beneath the Golden Gate Bridge.
After a leisurely lunch, we hiked back up to the perimeter road and head south toward Battery Ledyard. The views of The City skyline and the bay were stunning. We spent a while there just enjoying the scenery. We decided not to hike further as we didn’t want to rush back to the return ferry on time. We preferred to take our time and just enjoy the day.
From Battery Ledyard, we followed the perimeter road back to Ayala Cove. Since the ferry wasn’t due for a while, we went and found a nice spot in the shade and I got to soak my feet in the cove and watch the crows. It was a beautiful ending to a wonderful day. I love sharing the view with Lastech and hope to share many more.
There are no photos of the ferry trip back to The City. A very cold wind picked up and the water was rough. While we sat outside on the deck, I wasn’t going to try to stand up for photos. 🙂
P.S. While there we came across this cairn made of sea-scoured bricks. A critter (no dogs there) then came along and left their own mark. I call it…
Photos from our first trip can be seen here, here and here.
On March 19th, we celebrated our tenth anniversary. Ok, we didn’t actually. Poor Lastech caught an evil cold, so we postponed it. I didn’t mind and it wouldn’t have been a celebration if he wasn’t feeling well. As a result, we went out last Thursday. We divided our celebration into two parts and this was the first day.
We weren’t planning much for that day, but we had an ice chest with food and went out to grill some of our favorites. We originally planned on going to a lovely spot on the Marin Headlands, but it was closed for renovation. Instead, we explored the headlands for a while, clouds and bird watching before returning to The City to do our grilling at Baker Beach. We grilled carne asada, zucchini, mushrooms and a few bratwurst. We made tacos and had a very pleasant time.
We then took a trip to the arboretum to see what wildflowers might be blooming as it’s that time of year. It was lovely and we found azaleas, ferns and wisteria blooming. We also came across an old friend. 🙂
Yes, it was our old friend the hawk. We also watched a young couple walking around the arboretum. Both were so intent on their phones that they never saw the hawk. I don’t mind technology, but I would never want to be so unaware of the beauty that surrounds me. To be so close to a hawk is not a moment to be wasted. I’m simply amazed that it has happened so many times now.
The next day we went hiking on Angel Island and that will be the next post.
Lastech managed to take a couple of pics from the pier and at the Embarcadero. They weren’t taken on the same day, but they all occurred after the storms that have been blowing through.
We have had lots of rain, small hail, thunder and lightning. The pointy eared people were not amused, but they only hid during the hailstorm. They didn’t hide for long at all. That’s evidence (to me) that the Feliway is working.
At a bit less than two inches, it wasn’t nearly enough rain, but we enjoyed it. We went off to go play in it of course.
We walked around without an umbrella until we were wet and soggy. It felt wonderful.
You might remember the Wave Organ, this acoustic sculpture at the end of a jetty near the San Francisco Yacht Club. We had visited before, but our timing always seemed to coincide with the tide going out. This time, we took advantage of the king tide and went back to listen for a bit.
The organ pipes are made of pvc and cement. In the 1940s, when San Francisco’s cemeteries were moved to the suburb of Colma, unclaimed headstones and monuments were reused in various places from Golden Gate Park to this location. This is how the organ sculpture was created, with some of that carved granite and marble.
While the curving pipes reminded us of the “Yellow Submarine”, the waves lapping from below actually sound like a chorus of gurgles and squeaks, even occasionally like a wine bottle being uncorked.
Well, no. This IS San Francisco and the home of the Maltese Falcon, but not this time.
We went to the Japanese Tea Garden to soak up a bit of Zen. Instead, the main pond had been drained for maintenance. Bummer. Still, we decided to walk around it to see what might be blooming. Then we found this:
This is not the same bird that we saw across the street at the Arboretum. I meant to take only a couple of pics, but it turned into a regular photo shoot. The birdie was working it for the camera.
I think I took about 90 pics. These were the best. I’m still in awe.
Here’s a vid that Lastech took with his new phone. The sound is awful, but I’m too impatient to edit it out for now, so hit the mute button. 🙂 We’ll get better at this. We just need practice.
Yesterday we ran off to the park to test Lastech’s new phone as we wanted to see how well the navigation worked. We decided to visit the Arboretum in the hope that there might be some wildlife in addition to the magnolias that were blooming.
We rounded a corner to find 3 other people staring at a tree. This is why.
I found it amazing that several people walked by and never even wondered (or noticed) what we were all looking at. The hawk was sitting in a tree next to the walkway. It was only about 7 feet off the ground.
It was a good day. 🙂
Several months ago Lastech and I were invited to go to Angel Island. While there, we took the tram tour. We did that as we had no opportunity to hike the trails at the time. My photos are limited as a result. I’ve been saving the last few as they are mostly of the the Immigration Center exterior but they are meaningful to me. In 2010, President Obama declared January 21st as National Angel Island Day.
I’ve spent my life surrounded by immigrants. Lastech is an immigrant and most of my friends are immigrants as well. One of my grandfathers came through Ellis Island. Sadly, unlike beautiful Ellis Island, Angel Island was built as a detention camp. The barracks were cramped and afforded little in the way of privacy and conditions there were deplorable. It was built to enforce the Chinese Exclusionary act of 1882. Economic fears and racial prejudice were the reason for act. From the proclamation (above link):
Unlike immigrants who marveled at the Statue of Liberty upon arrival at Ellis Island, those who came to Angel Island were greeted by an intake facility that was sometimes called the “Guardian of the Western Gate.” Racially prejudiced immigration laws of the time subjected many to rigorous exams and interrogations, as well as detention in crowded, unsanitary barracks. Some expressed themselves by carving poetry and inscriptions into the walls in their native language — from Chinese, Japanese, and Korean to Russian, German, and Urdu. These etchings remain on Angel Island today as poignant reminders of the immigrant experience and an unjust time in our history.
The station was abandoned after WWII and scheduled for demolition. In 1970, a park ranger named Alexander Weiss was exploring when he came across Chinese characters carved into the walls. It was the poetry. Due to his efforts and those of others, legislation was passed to preserve the poetry. You can read more about the station history here.
This is a translation of one of the poems
There are tens of thousands of poems on these walls
They are all cries of suffering and sadness
The day I am rid of this prison and become successful
I must remember that this chapter once existed
I must be frugal in my dailyneeds
Needless extravagance usually leads to ruin
All my compatriots should remember China
Once you have made some small gains,
you should return home early.Written by one from Heungshan
There is writing and poetry from other languages and cultures as well.
Now here are some of our pics. We intend to go back when we can hike to the center and visit the museum.
If you want to see our other posts about our Angel Island trip, you can find them here.
Angel Island: Another date with Karl The Fog
Lastech took this pic with his phone at Sierra Point yesterday morning.
