Mount Sutro Open Space Reserve

At first I was a little ashamed that I'd never been in the forest on Mount Sutro, officially known as the Mount Sutro Open Space Reserve, even after living in the city for almost 14 years. But, after asking around, I discovered most of my long-time-resident friends haven't been there either. So now it's their turn to feel ashamed. (More after the jump.)
The Spitfire Rose

As the appeal of overlit, overcool "dives" wanes for yours truly, unassuming neighborhood haunts like Mission Terrace's Spitfire Rose (allegedly named after the British WWII fighter plane) continue to fascinate.
The Yelp page has that enticing combo of mixed experiences and low review count that raises more questions than it answers. That's all it took for the SU Corps of Urban Drunkards (SUCUD) to go on its inaugural raid. More after the jump.
The Stewardship of Precita Creek

Make no mistake: Artist and self-styled "greenbelt steward" Amber Hasselbring, pictured above (pointing) along with her field-guide-clutching partner in crime (and fellow artist), Iris Clearwater, is just as enthusiastic inspecting manhole covers like the one next to her, as she is identifying a native butterfly or monkey flower. More after the jump...
Lobos Creek & Mountain Lake

Fed by the same aquifer, but not directly connected, these bodies of water are special parts of the San Francisco watershed near the Presidio.
More after the jump...
The Attempted Homicide of a Sanctuary

Once upon a time in 2001, there was a tiny plot of shoreline, Muwekma Ohlone Park and Wildlife Sanctuary, named after the native people who once populated the San Francisco peninsula. Guerrilla gardeners had, for years, nurtured this vestige of unlikely marshland amidst the industrial zone near Hunters Point.
More after the jump...
