We wanted to know more about how to best visit Alcatraz Island and discover all its natural and historic secrets.   So we asked Alcatraz tour guide and author, Brian Stannard, about the best time of day and year to visit this stunning rock in the middle of the San Francisco Bay.  And we found out about where the cool, ‘off-the-beaten-path’ spots are, that many don’t realize they can explore. 

It’s always good to hear from someone who has spent years working on and thinking about a place, to know where they like to spend their time on the island, because while over a million people visit Alcatraz Island every year, as our guide tells us, ‘you can zig, while everyone else zags…’

Here’s our interview with Alcatraz Tour Guide and author of Alcatraz Ghost Story, Brian Stannard. 

BAS: What’s your favorite spot on Alcatraz Island?

Brian Stannard: “In the summertime, The West Road is an oasis and is often overlooked. This area provides stunning views of the Golden Gate Bridge, and during this time of the year there’s an incredible amount of birdlife ranging from cormorants to western gulls that are just hatching.

The West Road is a loop that can be explored from either direction. From the lighthouse, follow the road on the Golden Gate Bridge side of the island to the big staircase that connects to the recreation yard. This leads back into the cellhouse. Or the loop can begin at the recreation yard, going down the big staircase.”

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Does it make a difference what time of year you visit the Rock?

SUMMER
Although San Francisco has a marine climate that doesn’t have seasons comparable to New England, Alcatraz has its seasons. The bird life is incredible in the summer. Even though there aren’t significant weather changes, I find it fascinating that the birds have their own clock and consistently return to Alcatraz in late May. Then in September like a switch of a light, they’re gone.

Summer gets crowded, but there is a rhythm to a summer day: A full boat of visitors arrives to Alcatraz, this huge group disembarks and moves up as a solid mass to the cellhouse.

There is only one way to get to Alcatraz, the official boats which arrive every half hour. If the entrance to the cellhouse feels crowded, do something else for fifteen minutes to get out of the flow.

I suggest to zig, when everyone else zags. If it feels crowded, explore areas other than the cellhouse first. The New Industries Building offers the Red Power Exhibit, a Smithsonian-worthy display chronicling the Native American Occupation of Alcatraz of 1969-1971. 

The Red Power Exhibit is in the New Industries Building, which can be found via a well-advertised fork in the road going up the main hill. The Red Power Exhibit is open most days, but the hours vary daily based on staffing. Be aware that the Red Power Exhibit is usually only open during the Day Tour hours.

FALL
Autumn is the one time of the year when it’s warm and there are incredible sunsets for the boat rides to and from Alcatraz. 

In November, there’s the Sunrise Ceremony on Thanksgiving, but throughout the entire month of November there are typically a lot of events and reunions commemorating the beginning of the Native American Occupation of Alcatraz in 1969-1971. Richard Oakes, the charismatic organizer of the Native American Occupation, had a strong presence on the 16th St. Corridor of The Mission in the 1960s.

WINTER
In winter, when it’s not raining, might be my favorite Alcatraz season. This is when I encourage locals to visit because the boat tickets rarely sell out, and people can be spontaneous about their trip. So long as it’s not raining, a random weekday in winter is the best as there aren’t a lot of crowds.

The Agave Trail
In the wintertime (typically January-April), there’s an added bonus at Alcatraz… The Parade Ground and Agave Trail. In the summer, these areas feel like a scene from Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds so they are closed to people most of the year to keep the peace.

To access the Parade Ground from the West Road, look for the sign pointing out the creatively named Windy Gulch Staircase. This area is typically windy, and it leads into a gulch. 

The access point for the Agave Trail can be a bit trickier, but I tell people that once they’re on the Parade Ground, look for the trees that look like they’re from a Dr. Suess book. They’re the visual cue that the Agave Trail staircase is nearby. Fun fact! Agave plants bloom just once in their life and then they die. The bloom occurs at ages ten to thirty of the plant’s life.

The Agave Trail is a snapshot of all great things about the Bay Area: remote nature existing side-by-side with urban vistas.

SPRING
Spring also lends itself to beautiful boat rides. The boat ride to and from Alcatraz is an important part of the experience, and the Marin Headlands and Oakland Hills are a deep green after the winter rains. The open bow of the boat is the best place to hang ou,t even if it gets wet. That’s part of the trip!

Best time of day to book a ferry to get to the Island?

I suggest doing an Alcatraz day tour first to fully experience all the outside beauty. After that, a night tour is the next level. I don’t think there are ghosts, but Alcatraz at night definitely has a strong atmosphere to it, and again, the boat ride at night takes on a heightened majesty with the city lights.

In the day, things are open-ended for exploring, and there isn’t much of a sense of time limits.

ALCATRAZ NIGHT TOUR

The night tour is a bit more bracketed and scheduled. At a certain point, we do have to close down. You don’t have to go home, but you can’t stay here!  If there are time options for a night tour, take the earliest time available to maximize the overall amount of time on the island. 

Is it best to eat before or is there good chow on the Rock?

There isn’t food on the island, so eat first or pack light snacks. The boats sell food, but it’s best to eat well beforehand and bring a backpack with snacks/ice coffee.

Alcatraz Cellhouse

Best question you’ve ever gotten while giving a tour?

I love learning from visitors. I met some visitors from Australia who were visiting on behalf of John Killick, an Australian bank robber and escape artist. In 2000, he was incarcerated at Silverwater Prison in Sydney and persuaded his girlfriend at the time to steal a helicopter and land it in the recreation yard. They escaped! For a little while anyway, until they eventually got caught.

Killick is now in his eighties and out of prison, but on probation. It is his life goal to visit Alcatraz, but the authorities won’t let him leave Australia. His friends visited and Facetimed him while here. I knew nothing about this crazy story until working here!

I’ve become email friends with him. He was a bank robber, but prided himself on being of the John Dillinger school of bandits who robbed banks and made a point of not hurting people. In my correspondence with him, he seems genuinely remorseful of what he’s done, and he’s focused on having good relations with his friends and family.

Strangest question you’ve ever gotten while giving a tour? 

“Where did Johnny Cash play?” Another funny one was, “Where was Jim Morrison’s cell?” and then I realized they meant Frank Morris, the mastermind of the famous “Dummy Head Breakout” as seen in Escape from Alcatraz.

Most interesting Historical fact? 

I think it’s interesting that Alcatraz, in its most natural habitat, really is solid rock. All the soil was brought in from Angel Island. I also think it’s interesting that Alcatraz, as a prison phenomenon, got its start at the Civil War, and the first prisoners were Confederate sympathizers.

The prison band in the 1930s were the Rock Islanders, and Al Capone was a big music guy who played banjo and mandolin. If you ask me that question tomorrow, I might give you ten different answers. Alcatraz is a fascinating place! 

You’ve written a book called Alcatraz Ghost Story so, how haunted is the island? If I want to see a ghost when and where on the Rock should I go? 

We get asked about ghosts all the time, but I joke that the mainland of SF is probably more haunted given its history of cemeteries that got moved to Colma in the early 20th Century. The Lincoln Park golf course by Land’s End is a former cemetery that was disturbed.

I’ve also heard that the Anza Branch Library is haunted, and of course, Mission Dolores and its vicinity are most likely haunted in my opinion.

The “ghost” in my title is a reference to relationships not working out and people “ghosting” each other. I heard an expression that went, “Every love story is a ghost story,” and that influenced the “Alcatraz Ghost Story” title. The book is about a real prison marriage between Roy and Dollie Gardner and their struggles to keep things going.

To reserve your Alcatraz tickets, visit the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy site:

Alcatraz Reservations here

This post is brought to you by Alcatraz City Cruises

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