LAND'S END BEACH

A nude beach just a few miles away from San Francisco's Civic Center - what could be more convenient for getting out of that 9 to 5 garb? Take a short hike down a trail that begins near the end of Geary Boulevard to discover a little cove with sandy spots, rocks you can use to build windbreaks, great views, and - on sunny days - up to a few dozen naked sunbathers.

Clothing-optional use is permitted in this portion of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA) as long as you don't touch anyone and no one complains. Rangers occasionally visit the area on foot and horseback.

At the end of Geary, park in the dirt lot up the road from the Cliff House. Take the trail at the far end of the lot. About 100 yards past a bench and some trash cans, the path narrows and bends, rises, and falls, eventually becoming the width of a road. Don't take the road to the right, which leads to a golf course. Just past another bench, as the trail turns right, go left toward a group of dead trees where you will see a stairway and a "Dogs must be leashed" sign. Descend and head left to another stairway, which leads to a 100-foot walk to the cove. Alternately, you can follow the service road below the El Camino del Mar parking lot 1/4 mile until you reach a bench, then take the trail there. It's rough in spots, and at the end you'll have to scramble over rocks.

Presidio area resident and beach regular Joseph Friday says: "I like the little, watery grottoes. There are rocks for sunbathing but there are also patches of sand away from where you enter the beach." From the bottom of the trail, walk left (west) until you come to some nice sunbathing nooks. The wind can come up without warning, so bring a windbreak or use the rocks on the beach to make your own.

On a typical hot weekend day, the 1/4-mile long cove gets up to 30 visitors - 80 percent gay men. In May, one visitor found six nudes, all men, on the sand. Problems: Long walk; random "sex patrols" by rangers; reports of drug use; public sex on trails and nearby; fog and wind; rocky; swimming not allowed; trails other than main one are unsafe, may be closed, and/or have poison oak.

Long walk; random "sex patrols" by rangers; reports of drug use; public sex on trails and nearby; fog and wind; quite rocky; swimming not allowed; trails other than main one are unsafe, may be closed, and/or have poison oak.

NORTH BAKER BEACH

On a scale of 1-10, Jung gives it a "10 or more." Friday says he would rate it "maybe an 8.5 for its cleanliness." Borkowski, who would like more shade "from maybe a palm tree" and some bathrooms added to the beach, awards it an 8.

In a phenomenon that started two years ago, visitors at North Baker still enjoy watching playful dolphins, which often appear just offshore in groups of two to 12 from around noon to sunset. "We're still getting them," confirms regular visitor Paul Jung, a self-employed plasma TV installer who lives about 10 minutes from the sand. "We've had zero problems this season," added Jung, who usually spends two or three hours a day at the shore wearing nothing but the cigar hanging from his mouth. "I like getting my job done, then hitting the beach."

Sunbathing, volleyball playing, and people-watching are favorite activities at Baker. "It's like the cantina in the first Star Wars," said visitor Michael Joseph McMahon. "What makes it special is that about 80 percent of the crowd on the sand wasn't here five years ago," said Jung, who said visitors tend to be younger and more politically active than the Baker regulars of the 1990s. "Sometimes I wish they'd just stop talking politics, but, hey, it's an election year."

Part of the GGNRA. See Land's End entry for policy.

Take the 29 Sunset bus or go north on 25th Avenue to Lincoln Boulevard. Turn right and take the second left onto Bowley Street. Follow Bowley to Gibson Road, turn right, and follow Gibson to the east parking lot. Head right on the beach to the nude area, which starts at the brown and yellow "Hazardous surf, undertow, swim at your own risk" sign. Note: some motorcycles in the lot have been vandalized. Instead of parking in a car space (which angers car owners), a regular suggests people "park their motorcycles in the bicycle area near the lot's fence." Look for motorcycles parked next to a "no parking" sign, which actually refers to car parking only.

Long and narrow, with several tide pools at the north end (accessible only during low tide, located around the big rocks at the northern tip).

"You'll find young people, older types, men, women, Bay Area residents, tourists, gays, and straights," says former regular Ray Borkowski of San Francisco. "There should be nude beaches like it everywhere."

"There's a group who plays volleyball there who can be a little cliquish until they get to know you," Jung added. "But you're sure to meet all types, from doctors and lawyers to homeless people." On a June weekday, he counted 80 visitors. Depending on the weather, visitation ranges from dozens to hundreds. Men usually outnumber women, especially on weekdays.

Because the parking lots fill quickly, police sometimes ticket illegally parked cars. Expect fog, wind, a few gawkers (usually in the afternoon on the rocks above the beach), and large crowds on hot days as well as uncomfortably warm sand. Swimming is allowed, but signs warn of hazardous waves. Readers also have complained about public sex acts near middle Baker, where the nude area begins. "If they want to avoid problems, women should come to the north end of the beach," Jung suggests.

GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE BEACH

"On a scale of 1-10, I'd give it a 10 for scenery but only a 5 for the crowd," Friday says.

Want privacy? Then you might want to pick a beach other than Golden Gate Bridge Beach, which attracts dozens and sometimes even hundreds of visitors on warm summer weekends. Because of new, easier access, more people than ever have been streaming onto the trio of rocky enclaves that are also known as Nasty Boy Beach and Marshall's Beach.

"It's a very cool beach," says one recent visitor. "And it's really nice to walk in the water here. On the nicest days in low tide, you can go out up to 150 feet." Adds reader HFH, who wrote to us in July, the beach path "used to be somewhat dangerous, but no more. As a result, there are more women, couples of all types, and actually a few children and fishermen."

In the spring, look for bowers of flowers on the bluffs.

Part of the GGNRA.

The old way to get to the beach was by going to North Baker Beach, parking in the main lot, and walking north along Lincoln Boulevard, passing the sand ladder that leads to North Baker. Just north of the ladder trail, look for a dirt road with a gate, leading to Battery Crosby. Follow it, then hike up the trail immediately on the left (south) side of the old fort to the top of the bluff. Take the trail straight west as it goes downhill toward the ocean, while wearing, if possible, long sleeves and pants to protect against poison oak. At a small, crumbling, concrete bulkhead, the trail goes north along the bluffs and eventually down a shorter, steeper section with small steps cut into the gully. The main path ends at the south end of Golden Gate Bridge Beach.

But now there's a new starting point just west of Langdon Court, where there are some parking lots, across Lincoln Boulevard from Fort Winfield Scott. The new trail leading down from the Lincoln area even has some wooden steps and railings. Says HFH, "The entire cliff above the beach was closed for quite a few months while the cliff was cleaned up and replanted."

A series of three small rocky beaches located below Fort Scott. The main beach trail tends to be slippery, heavily eroded, and dangerous. "In spring and winter, you'll probably be following a cascade of muddy prints," Friday says.

Weekend usage can top 100, 200, or even 300 visitors on the hottest days. Most visitors are nude. During the week, a few dozen users is the norm.

"I had to stop going there because it was such a gay pickup scene," said one visitor a few years ago. "On weekends, you feel like a piece of meat on display." Now, though, the crowd is more varied. Problems include: rocks; trash; wind and fog; unsafe swimming conditions; sex on the beach; muddy cliff trails; and often too many people jammed into too little space.

FORT FUNSTON BEACH

More renowned for its dog lovers and hang-gliding fans, on warm weekdays - when no rangers are around - a few brave naturists throw down their towels at Fort "Fun in the Sun," on the south side of the city. They're sometimes tucked away between the sand dunes on the shore.

What to expect: dogs on parade. As you exit your car in the big parking lot, you may see a virtual "dog show in motion." The four-footed procession includes mutts big and small along with purebred and designer dogs accompanied by their human guardians. Hang gliders from a nearby glider port and horseback riders from a local rental stable are other common sights.

The dunes only attract occasional topless and naked sunbathers. GGNRA rangers have been trying to roust them for years by acting on the one or two complaints they receive each year.

Part of the GGNRA, which issues citations if rangers see you nude or receive complaints.

From Ocean Beach, drive south on the Great Highway. After Sloat Boulevard, the road goes uphill. From there, curve right onto Skyline Boulevard, go past one stoplight, and look for signs for Funston on the right. Turn into the public lot and find a space near the west side. At the southwest end, take the sandy steps to the beach, turn right, and walk to the dunes. Find a spot as far as possible from the parking lot. Do not go nude here on the weekends, and if you don't like dogs, go elsewhere.

Soft, sandy dunes where you can make your own private, semi-secluded nude beach.

Families use the beach on weekends and holidays, so nude use often dries up then.

Lack of tolerance by rangers; privacy problems on weekends; crowded parking lot on warm days; rough water; may be seen from overhead by hang gliders; roaming, sand-kicking dogs.