Today we had planned our trip the notorious prison island of Alcatraz. Before setting off we needed to get some lunch so we decide to try out the bakery -come café -come restaurant; Boudins on Fishermans Wharf. This establishment is famous for its sour dough bread and when we arrive there is a crowd watching one of the bread makers in the window making a turtle shaped sour dough creation. He has a microphone so we can hear him outside and he is being interviewed and filmed by the Travel Channel as we watch – so we get a real performance. This has finally set our minds to have a sour dough bread bowl (for those who have not tried this it is a round loaf some 8 inches in diameter with the centre scooped out and filled with a filling of your choice) – Karen goes for the Clam Chowder, Emily the tomato soup and Jack & Mark the Chilli.
By this time it nearly departure time for Alcatraz. We will be getting there in the time old traditional way that the prisoners would be transported; by boat from San Francisco. Alcatraz was a Federal prison from 1934 to 1963, and was a place where the worst of the worst got sent. All but one of the total 1600 prisoners who called Alcatraz home were transferred from other State Penitentiaries for being “naughty” boys (were trouble makers or had committed crimes whilst inside – like murdering a fellow inmate or worse, a prison guard). Such infamous characters as the gangsters Al Capone and Machine Gun Kelley and the Robert Stroud, the bird man of Alcatraz, were incarcerated here for the remainder of their lives. Alcatraz had no death row so here you left after completing your sentence or passed away from natural causes. This place had been a military fort for many years before being a penitentiary and had also been used as a military prison so its reputation as being a tough place to be had been around for many years. After the prison service stopped using it in 1963 because it was too expensive to maintain, the island was occupied by native Americans for several years during which some damage was done to a number of the buildings including several fires which wrecked the Governors residence. Fortunately the prison was made a National Park preserving it for the 1½ million visitors who come to see this infamous prison annually.
When we disembark the boat we arrive just in time to join a Ranger tour. This tour was to cover the escapes attempts from Alcatraz. Our guide today was a gruff New Yorker called Al Blank, who reminded Mark a bit of Kojak (aka Telly Savalas). This man is a fantastic narrator and provided a spell binding overview of the 34 people who tried to escape this prison island. Some of the attempts were creative, including the escape immortalised in the Clint Eastwood movie “Escape from Alcatraz” and others were bloody, in particular the 1946 incident where prison guards were taken hostage and the Governor had to call the marines in. The official line is that no one successfully escaped the island but some prisoners – such as those depicted in Escape from Alcatraz were never found, and were believed to be drowned. Why did no one escape ?Well the water is a cool 48 degrees Fahrenheit and the tides and currents are treacherous!
After our guided tour we go to the main cell block where there is guided audio tour that, with narration from some of the former guards and inmates, helps you form an impression of what sort of place this was in which to be incarcerated. For many the hardest thing was to be a mere 1½ miles from San Francisco and freedom. With the wind in the right direction the prisoners could clearly hear the sounds of the city, driving them literally mad. The tour takes you through the cell areas including block D, solitary confinement – although these cells were the largest and most modern in the block. We also got to go into the administration area with the control room, guard house and Governors office. Here we meet up with our old new friend Al Blank who introduces us to a fellow volunteer, John Ellis. Karen gets chatting, as she does, telling them about her work in the UK prison service. Well this does the trick and we are invited on a special tour into locked areas where most people don’t get to go. So we climb up to the stairs to where the prison chapel used to be – the panelled walls were removed by the occupying native Americans and used as fire wood. We also get to see the prison 
guards' games room and are then taken on the gun galleries where armed officers would look down into the cell block. John then takes us into a part of the cell block which was not used in the penitentiary days, but were the original cells for the military prison, and from here we climb the stairs to the old infirmary. Alcatraz was actually had a well equipped infirmary including an operating theatre and full blown sanatorium. Also here is a room where Robert Stroud (the Bird Man) was in solitary confinement for many years. Unlike the gentle, intelligent man depicted in the Burt Lancaster film, Stroud was a psychopathic killer deemed to be too dangerous to be in the area with the rest of the inmates. These areas remain closed to the general public partially due to the single access stairs but also due to the lead based paint that the continual exposure to salt water spray carried on the wind is effectively stripping off the walls. We are so lucky to see these special places. By this time we are running close to the knuckle in terms of catching the last boat back to the mainland. Unlike the inmates of this desolate place we do make our escape!
By this time it nearly departure time for Alcatraz. We will be getting there in the time old traditional way that the prisoners would be transported; by boat from San Francisco. Alcatraz was a Federal prison from 1934 to 1963, and was a place where the worst of the worst got sent. All but one of the total 1600 prisoners who called Alcatraz home were transferred from other State Penitentiaries for being “naughty” boys (were trouble makers or had committed crimes whilst inside – like murdering a fellow inmate or worse, a prison guard). Such infamous characters as the gangsters Al Capone and Machine Gun Kelley and the Robert Stroud, the bird man of Alcatraz, were incarcerated here for the remainder of their lives. Alcatraz had no death row so here you left after completing your sentence or passed away from natural causes. This place had been a military fort for many years before being a penitentiary and had also been used as a military prison so its reputation as being a tough place to be had been around for many years. After the prison service stopped using it in 1963 because it was too expensive to maintain, the island was occupied by native Americans for several years during which some damage was done to a number of the buildings including several fires which wrecked the Governors residence. Fortunately the prison was made a National Park preserving it for the 1½ million visitors who come to see this infamous prison annually.When we disembark the boat we arrive just in time to join a Ranger tour. This tour was to cover the escapes attempts from Alcatraz. Our guide today was a gruff New Yorker called Al Blank, who reminded Mark a bit of Kojak (aka Telly Savalas). This man is a fantastic narrator and provided a spell binding overview of the 34 people who tried to escape this prison island. Some of the attempts were creative, including the escape immortalised in the Clint Eastwood movie “Escape from Alcatraz” and others were bloody, in particular the 1946 incident where prison guards were taken hostage and the Governor had to call the marines in. The official line is that no one successfully escaped the island but some prisoners – such as those depicted in Escape from Alcatraz were never found, and were believed to be drowned. Why did no one escape ?Well the water is a cool 48 degrees Fahrenheit and the tides and currents are treacherous!
After our guided tour we go to the main cell block where there is guided audio tour that, with narration from some of the former guards and inmates, helps you form an impression of what sort of place this was in which to be incarcerated. For many the hardest thing was to be a mere 1½ miles from San Francisco and freedom. With the wind in the right direction the prisoners could clearly hear the sounds of the city, driving them literally mad. The tour takes you through the cell areas including block D, solitary confinement – although these cells were the largest and most modern in the block. We also got to go into the administration area with the control room, guard house and Governors office. Here we meet up with our old new friend Al Blank who introduces us to a fellow volunteer, John Ellis. Karen gets chatting, as she does, telling them about her work in the UK prison service. Well this does the trick and we are invited on a special tour into locked areas where most people don’t get to go. So we climb up to the stairs to where the prison chapel used to be – the panelled walls were removed by the occupying native Americans and used as fire wood. We also get to see the prison 
guards' games room and are then taken on the gun galleries where armed officers would look down into the cell block. John then takes us into a part of the cell block which was not used in the penitentiary days, but were the original cells for the military prison, and from here we climb the stairs to the old infirmary. Alcatraz was actually had a well equipped infirmary including an operating theatre and full blown sanatorium. Also here is a room where Robert Stroud (the Bird Man) was in solitary confinement for many years. Unlike the gentle, intelligent man depicted in the Burt Lancaster film, Stroud was a psychopathic killer deemed to be too dangerous to be in the area with the rest of the inmates. These areas remain closed to the general public partially due to the single access stairs but also due to the lead based paint that the continual exposure to salt water spray carried on the wind is effectively stripping off the walls. We are so lucky to see these special places. By this time we are running close to the knuckle in terms of catching the last boat back to the mainland. Unlike the inmates of this desolate place we do make our escape!
The wind has picked up and it is really, really cold and while we had planned to spend a bit more time going around Fisherman’s Wharf and perhaps catching a cable car it was just too cold. We did go on to Pier 39 where we caught a street performer doing his act – a mixture of comedy, juggling and escapology. He was actually very good. The funniest thing was right at the end of his act this old couple came and sat down at the front of the stage – and soon as he had finished and started his request for donations they got up and left like rats out of a trap. It was just as if one had said the other “ … Come on dear we’ve only just arrived and now he’s finished and pleading for money – lets slip out of here unnoticed”. Their timing was impeccable, and the performer was lost for words and his eyes just followed them, and of course being at the front everyone saw this and caused a great laugh. By now it was real brass monkey weather so we did a quick run past the Pier 39 seal lions performing, as they do, on the floating platforms and then make a dash for the warmth of our car.
1 comment:
Hello again!
Now I see you are in my old home town and stomping grounds! I thought you might like to know about FOTR which stands for families on the road.
It is a large group of families that live on the road in RV's and they might be a great resource for you. Super people there.
It is easy to find, you can google it!
Happy travels!
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