San Francisco Area

Alcatraz was an interesting tour. The first buildings we saw when we docked housed the employees working at the prison along with their families. Above and behind those barracks we could see the remains of the warden's mansion. We were surprised at how many families lived there including up to 60 or 70 children. They tell us that living on the island was peaceful, beautiful and quiet. They took a boat to school each day, never saw the prisoners and believed living at Alcatraz was amongst the best times of their lives. Former prisoner, Darwin Coon, has written a book on Alcatraz and was holding a book signing at the gift shop. He was in Alcatraz in 1962 when three prisoners escaped inspiring the movie 'Escape from Alcatraz". Definitely would recommend this tour to any one visiting the area.