Pacific Heights Hidden Courtyard Garden: A Quiet Sunday Loop

Pacific Heights keeps its most secret hidden courtyard garden behind grey concrete walls at the Swedenborgian Church, on the corner of Lyon and Washington. From the sidewalk you see only treetops, a gate and a modest roofline, and most people hurry past on their way to the stairs. The church welcomes visitors on guided Sunday tours after its morning service, which makes Sunday afternoon the natural time to step inside. A few blocks north, the hedge-lined Lyon Street Steps give the same walk a grand, sweeping finale.

The church is still a living congregation, and its buildings and the connecting garden have changed remarkably little since the Victorian era, which is rare in a city that rebuilt itself after the great earthquake and fire. Textured grey walls shelter the garden from Lyon Street, so the outside world drops away the moment you pass the gate. Inside, old trees, gravel and simple planting set a mood closer to a country chapel than a city lot. It is often described as one of California's earliest pure Arts and Crafts buildings, and the garden feels like a quiet extension of that idea.

The design drew on a circle of notable Bay Area names, including A. Page Brown, A. C. Schweinfurth and Bernard Maybeck, and the result is famous among architecture lovers for its hand-hewn timber, its fireplace and its rough-barked roof beams. The church is a National Historic Landmark, and the congregation describes its tours as relaxed, educational looks at its history, architecture and theology. That spirit matters for visitors: you are being welcomed into a home of worship, so come curious, listen to the stories and let the guide set the pace.

This is a working church, not a public park. Plan your visit around the Sunday tour rather than wandering in during the service, and keep the garden visit quiet and unhurried. Visitors here tend to be architecture fans with cameras, couples quietly scouting a wedding venue, and neighbors who have walked past the wall for years and finally want to see what lies behind it. The unwritten rule is to ask before photographing people, to speak softly, and to treat the garden as a place of reflection rather than a backdrop.

If you cannot make Sunday, the walk still works. The church's exterior, the wall and the trees above it are worth a slow look from Lyon and Washington, and the surrounding blocks are full of shingled and stucco houses with front gardens. Then continue north on Lyon toward Broadway. Just be honest with yourself about expectations: without the tour, the Swedenborgian garden stays mostly hidden, which is part of its charm.

From the church, walk three blocks north to Broadway, where the Lyon Street Steps drop toward Cow Hollow. They connect Pacific Heights with the Presidio's Broadway Gate and the flats below. What makes them special is the gardening. The steps descend through a series of terraces with finely trimmed hedges and flower beds, framed by mansions on both sides. Halfway down, the view opens over the Palace of Fine Arts dome and the bay.

Look for the odd notch in the Presidio wall between Vallejo and Green streets. The otherwise ruler-straight boundary bends around a small green oval there, a leftover from an early land grant that carved a piece out of Presidio land. Local historians call it one of the earliest traces of San Francisco's colonial chapter that you can still see from a public stairway. Most stair climbers jog straight past it, so slow down and read the wall.

Expect serious fitness climbers doing repeats, which is why the steps fill up on weekend mornings. You will also see dog walkers heading into the Presidio, photographers waiting for clear light over the bay, and families finishing a Presidio walk. Keep right, let runners pass, and do not stop on the narrowest landings for photos. The calmest window is often late on a weekday afternoon, when the climbers have gone and the hedges glow in low sun.

Start at the Swedenborgian Church for the Sunday afternoon tour. Walk north on Lyon to Broadway and descend the Lyon Street Steps slowly, pausing on each terrace. At the bottom, head east to Union Street for coffee, or climb back to Broadway and enter the Presidio's tree-lined paths through the gate at the top of the steps. Then work your way back through Alta Plaza Park, whose terraced stairs and lawns offer one more quiet garden pause and a long view over the rooftops before you finish the loop.

Short on energy? Skip the climb back up and catch a bus from the flats instead. Want a gentler day? Walk the top of the steps along Broadway, admire the view and the hedges from above, and avoid the descent entirely. If fog rolls in, the hedges and stone stay beautiful, but the bay views vanish, so save the photo stop for a clear day and focus on the church garden instead.

Use the Karpo APP to shape the loop around the church's Sunday tour. Tell Karpo how much stair climbing you want, whether you prefer the Presidio trails or Union Street cafes, and when you plan to eat, and it will help arrange the stops into a realistic afternoon with a sensible order. Karpo suggests options and organizes them for you. For tour questions and group visits, reach out to the Swedenborgian Church community directly.

Transit: several Muni lines run along Presidio Avenue and Union Street within a short walk of Lyon Street. Costs: the Lyon Street Steps, Alta Plaza Park and the Presidio paths are free. Footwear: the steps are steep, so wear shoes with grip. Etiquette: the mansions along the steps are private homes, so keep voices down and stay off the landscaping. The steps are unsuitable for strollers or wheelchairs, but the church sits on a level corner.

Photography: morning sun lights the bay views from the top of the steps, and the church garden looks best under soft overcast skies. Weather: Pacific Heights catches the wind off the bay, so carry a layer even on sunny days. Kids: the steps feel like an adventure to older children, while the church tour suits teenagers and adults. Timing: allow about two hours for the full loop, including the tour and a coffee stop.