Middle Harbor Shoreline Park
We spent a wonderful morning doing a brisk walk from one end to the other end of the lovely Middle Harbor Shoreline Park, located in the middle of the Port of Oakland. This park is a delightful waterfront area that celebrates the long maritime and Naval history of this harbor basin and also is an ongoing project to restore natural habitats and create a refuge for shorebirds.
The views of San Francisco, the Bay Bridge and the Golden Gate Bridge are spectacular…and today the conditions were perfect! Seeing the container seaport and cargo ships up-close was great fun. With the help of informational boards, we were able to ID some of the birds we saw. Some were year round residents, some Summer visitors and others were Winter visitors.
It is a stellar birding area (bring binoculars). There are lots of places to sit and observe nature and the seaport, and lots of nice picnic tables and open grassy fields for running around and kite-flying. Lots of easy parking and it’s free! This is a great destination for visiting grandkids
Directions from East Bay: 24 to 980 west, towards Oakland; Exit at 11th/12th St. off ramp; Continue straight and turn right at 7th St.; Continue on 7th past Maritime St. to the stoplight at Middle Harbor Rd.; Proceed through the intersection and take the first right turn into the Middle Harbor Shoreline Park parking lot.
