I See Islais, Be India Basin
August 7, 2010
San Francisco’s Parthenon (click to embiggen):
Sutro, Silo. Silo, Sutro.
And the view of the silos from the Mad Max Compound Building Resources.
No fog to be found in India Basin or Islais Landing, just whisking over Twin Peaks.
Amazing this area isn’t developed. But given this summer’s fog, and the certain increased fogginess associated with global warming, I am sure folks will flee here, leaving the Richmond and Sunset to revert to dunes.
Islais panorama (3000 pixels) – click to enlarge.
Please reference this picture in 30 years for its comically empty appearance.
11 Comments
leave one →
Burrito Justice 
Please, a little more explanation of the Parthenon shots?
They are grain silos — Pier 90, but I don’t believe they’re still in use. Islais currently seems to be dominated by the cement and aggregate industry.
More via SFGov.
The funky angles are me screwing around with my iPhone Panorama app.
Added a few more pictures of the silos.
I know it was just an aside, but fog isn’t guaranteed to increase with global warming. One study finds it will (hotter Central Valley leads to more fog); others have found that it’s decreased over the past century (though they aren’t saying yet that it’s definitely climate change-related; stay tuned!). Fog turns out to be totally complicated! Those busy beavers the scientists aren’t sure yet which way our coastal fog will go.
At any rate, this part of the city is rad! Thanks for the pictures.
Yeah, I’ve seen conflicting reports on fogfulness and climate change.
But I do find a particular irony around the inverse proportionality of current neighborhood fogginess vs relative income.
I can only image the reaction of the Spanish/Mexican rancheros around the Mission when gringos started settling in what is now downtown. “¿Quieres vivir DONDE?”
EXCELLENT. One positive thing about a down economy is fewer areas overtaken by condos.
That cement plant has some interesting graffiti inside, unfortunately it’s well sealed.
Amazingly beautiful raw part of our city..
On the chance that you have not yet seen the glorious http://albioncastle.us/ (google site search reveals no hits for Albion Castle, or 881 Innes, or Arelious Walker Drive), they appear to have made an entire website just like a burritojustice post. Executive summary: “Water from the spring that runs into the caverns beneath the Albion Castle has been bottled as drinking water since the Albion Ale and Porter Brewery closed in 1919.”
Also, there is a really good taco truck down there, Rodriguez Tacos, and I seem to recall they even had a menu item intentionally misspelled with a “k”, (“chilakiles”), and plastic chairs next to an abandoned lot — this is as close as you get to the Mexican madre patria without crossing the border.
The 1919 and 1930 pictures are amazing. What a different world. Good reason to buy a couple of acres around you, I suppose.
I find Islais oddly beautiful But Heron HeadPark is actually a good place to go and get some sun– they even have bbq pits, if you are serious about it.