Blue Heron Boathouse

Still a fan as Stow Lake will always hold a special place in my heart. We grew up here after all. It's such a lovely place if you never have gone I highly highly recommend it!

One day some months ago or more like a year because months fly, while strolling in Golden Gate Park with a friend, I wanted to show him Stow Lake since he had never been there before. Building it up, I shared stories about going there when we were tots hanging out by the water, my brothers & I looking at the turtles & getting too close to the water freaking out our grandma, rest her soul. I was telling him how my dad would take the whole family out on the boat and we would just have the time of our little life. Simple times. Repeatable childhood, thank you Mom and Dad!
So... We get to the boat house. It happened to be the exact date they were actually taking all the old boats OUT of the water. There was a sign posted that they were closing the boathouse. I swear to God I almost cried. My friend felt sad too and asked if I was ok. Nothing too dramatic, it was one of those moments in life that remind you that you are alive. My eyes filled with tears and I'm not exactly the most emotional chick in the world. Just felt like it was a San Francisco tragedy.

I was not told they were simply being replace by a new fleet. That would have made a huge difference in how much I drank that night. Kidding

I have returned a handful of times as of late for walks when I need to clear my brain.
So, yes, I miss my old boats being nostalgic & all but I was just happy to see boats in Stow Lake!! Albeit a new fleet, upgrades are good, I'm not completely opposed and I'm sure they were needed. When I went to rent 1 the other day I was a little alarmed by the price hikes but I guess 1 should not be surprised. If only they would rent single kayaks, I'd happily drop 20 bucks an hour for that.
Possible to get solo kayaks anytime soon please? I promise not to make too many laps around people.

Fyi...................
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/09/02_/BAFO1KV0I6.DTL

Great place to enjoy laid back water activity. Perfect for girls trip/couples/family all alike. Lake is only 4 ft deep and you boat around and is a circle back to the docking area.

On Summer stroll inside my favorite place in San Francisco which is Golden Gate Park. I come here often and in many different areas of the park.The Blue Heron Boat House is located in the Stowe Lake area of Golden Gate Park. This is the place I play the role of San Francisco tourist advisor in the dinning hall and on the outside as boats pass by. This is also the spot I be schooling the Tourist about hidden gems to go to in San Francisco. Today I got the chicken wrap. This chicken wrap was better than the typical catered chicken wrap rolls served during lunches or happy hours at conferences and meetings. The chicken was tender and spinach wrap was soft. I got tourist premium priced but you pay for the view. They also sell drinks like Fort Point Animal and other refreshments ( I usually bring my own ).

Golden Gate Park is my favorite San Francisco Tourist Trap

Enjoy a Summer stroll and try their chicken wrap

We went to this establishment to enjoy the music of our good friend, Tom Catanzaro's Jazz Quartet. We weren't disappointed! Great jazz music - Coltrane, as would be expected of Tom Cat and crew.

The establishment was a quaint and cozy old boathouse perfect for music in an intimate setting.

The FIVE star rating for the Tom Cat Jazz quartet...worth every Star!

A check off of my bucket list! Although I am a Bay Area native, there is an abundance of things I haven't done located in my own backyard.
I stumbled upon this place by accident. And I'm sure happy I did.
The ambiance is incredible. You feel like you are somewhere far far away. You also get some views of the Japanese Tea garden! I really enjoyed the close proximity of the ducks. They were unbothered by the paddle boat and waddled right on by.
I am tall! And my child is small, of course. The paddle boats were two sizes (from my observation). One for 'adults' or one for shorter stature people/youth. Of course we needed the smaller length peddles so my son could peddle the boat. Have mercy on my legs!!! They were so crunched up.
We would have stayed on the water a little longer if my legs weren't hurting.
I would definitely do it again, just in the bigger vessel.

This is where you can hire a paddle boat for the lake. It also has a snake bar with some souvenir available. The food/drinks are slightly better than you would imagine for a place like this and the menu prices (in photos) are not terrible. The best part is how the boat house is situated, on the lake. On days when it's not busy, it's a great place to stop & have some hot cocoa.

A visit to The Stow Lake Boathouse on a beautiful day is required when visiting Golden Gate Park. The atmosphere, clean park benches and super helpful employees made our first time visit amazing. Kendall greeted us with a smile at the concession stand and was able to guide us on food choices and drinks.

Highly recommend!

This boathouse brings back fond memories growing up and going on dates on the paddle boat. However, this review is specific to the jazz sessions (iykyk).

Loved the intimate setting and jazz improv. The host was really great - so funny and quirky. Felt like I got to listen to some good jazz and with a side of comedic relief.

Good times, good vibes.

NOT SAFE!! BEWARE! Everyone, including adults, should be required to wear a life vest and 4 adults should NOT be allowed to get on one pedal boat.

We were told that our family of 4 plus our 1 year old could safely get on a 4-person pedal boat. 5 mins into departing the dock, our boat started SINKING so we had to quickly pedal our way back to the dock. Water started pooling at the back of the boat and under one side of the pedals and the water kept rising. Thankfully we weren't too far, otherwise we would have gone down with the boat.

None of us were required to wear life vests other than our 1 year old and not everyone in our family knows how to swim. The employees don't care about your safety. We had to ask them how to put the vest on our daughter correctly. They didn't ask us how much we weigh or anything. I later saw signage stating that the boat has a 600 pound weight limit but I looked it up online and most pedal boats have a 400-500 pound weight limit. The staff all seems checked out and when we returned to the dock we were told "something is seriously wrong with this boat." They offered to give us another boat but we opted for a refund instead.

It's insane to think that our family could have been in serious danger if we had gone a bit further out from the dock!! Their boats are rundown and they take no safety precautions whatsoever. Be careful out there.

Experience (5/5)
Such a fun time!! The sights are beautiful and it's a good way to get some movement in as well. From the ducks to passerby to natural landmarks, there's a lot to see and take in. For the hour you get, it's more than enough time to circle around, and we even made several mini circles before finishing the loop around.
Price (5/5)
We got the pedal boat and it was ~$30-$40 an hour. A little pricey but more than worth it for the experience.
Wait Time (5/5)
We came on a weekend afternoon and there was no wait.
Ambiance (4/5)
We got the pedal boat but there are two types - a colorful green or blue kind where the seats are lower, and a white kind where the seats are higher. Our green pedal boat was pretty uncomfortable on the bottoms because of the position, so next time I would try the white pedal boat where you get to be in a higher seated position.
Service (5/5)
Employees were nice and friendly. I wish I had brought some cash on me for tip (there's a tip can by the podium where the staff are).
Parking/Access (5/5)
In Golden Gate Park, pretty accessible.

The grilled chicken sandwich was restaurant grade and had fresh avocado and a nice bun. Whoever is making it takes pride. :)

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