Artist dates + How to find the fairy doors in Golden Gate Park

Fairy door in Golden Gate Park, SF

This is a fairy door.

Left by magical fairies in Golden Gate park. Don’t you love it?

I had been searching for it for months (unsuccessfully) when a friend told me a hilarious story. “I was changing Owen’s diaper in a little woodsy area near the Japanese Tea garden. You know, for privacy, right? When suddenly I looked up and I was surrounded by a team of Segues. They were all looking for a fairy door precisely in the grove where I had stopped. It was disturbing and surreal.”

She gave me the best instructions she could, Along the side of the Japanese tea garden, there is a fence, a path, a log, etc… but I was still confused when I went searching again last week. I had an artist date with my friend Danny Gregory who flew out for the Hockney show. After marveling at the paintings for hours, I proposed we get some air and search for the mythic fairy door. (I have a history of taking Danny weird places. Last time he was in SF I took him to the Pyschic Eye for a chakra healing)

Inside were wishes and bells, rocks + shells, love notes + acorns. Fairy stuff. Next time I will bring my kids + some glitter.

If you’d like to find the fairy door, here are some simple instructions:

  • -Head to Golden Gate and try to park near the Arboretum or the Japanese Tea Garden

  • -There is a paved pathway that lies between Stowe Lake and the Tea Garden.

  • -Walk up the paved pathway for about 100 feet (Stowe Lake will be on your left) until you see a big eucalyptus log (approximately 18 feet long) that is broken in two. It will be on the left side of the path.

  • -At the end of this log is the fairy door!

Paved pathway between Japanese Tea Garden + Stowe Lake, Golden Gate Park, SF

The eucalyptus log with the fairy door, Golden Gate Park

 

 

 

6 Comments

  1. Rachel
    Posted January 25, 2014 at 4:07 am | Permalink

    NO.

    WAY.

    I was thinking this evening about how I want to put a fairy door somewhere around my house! This is a sign!

  2. Posted January 30, 2014 at 7:46 pm | Permalink

    i promised myself not to open any non-work related email today, but then I saw the fairy door and couldn’t resist. i love myself some fairy magic. swoon. and i of course love your site as well:)

  3. Shani
    Posted January 30, 2014 at 7:57 pm | Permalink

    There is a second fairy door in one of the trees in the concourse in front of the DeYoung museum. It’s in a living tree and is the original – the one you found (which has eluded my efforts to discover it so thank you!) is intended to replace the one in the living tree as it will be removed some day. I can’t really give directions to the original door but it’s one of the outer trees on the northeast side of the “grove” between the DeYoung and the Academy of Sciences. There is usually a string around the base of the trunk and the door is on the south side of the tree. Happy hunting!

  4. Posted January 30, 2014 at 10:46 pm | Permalink

    Thanks so much for this. I live in Vancouver BC but early next week I’ll be in SF for a few days on my way to New Zealand. I’ve been looking for interesting things to do in SF – this is great.

  5. Posted May 7, 2017 at 7:39 am | Permalink

    They were hoarded, polished and adored, the ultimate find for a dedicated beachcomber.

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4 Trackbacks

  1. By Faery Door Brings Magic to Golden Gate Park on June 21, 2016 at 8:44 pm

    […] alert! Blogger and “life coach + mentor” Andrea Scher found the fairy door in January 2014, and leaves the following […]

  2. […] for fairy doors! Search online for several different fairy doors that can be found in the park. Here’s one near the Japanese Tea Garden. Not your thing? Check out the Detour App for guided walks around the […]

  3. By Call of the Wild: 5 of the Best San Francisco Adventures | Dollar on July 24, 2018 at 2:47 am

    […] Look very closely to the left of the path between Stow Lake and the Japanese Tea Garden to find the tiny fairy door carved into the end of a fallen eucalyptus tree. The fun is in the search. If you can find the […]

  4. […] Look very closely to the left of the path between Stow Lake and the Japanese Tea Garden to find the tiny fairy door carved into the end of a fallen eucalyptus tree. The fun is in the search. If you can find the […]

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