Bernal Heights Summit
{{Infobox mountain
| name = Bernal Heights Summit
| photo = Approaching Bernal Heights, San Francisco, California (26034682802).jpg
| photo_caption = Bernal Heights hill viewed from the north
| elevation = 475+ feet (145+ m) {{NGVD29}}
| elevation_ref = {{cite map |publisher=USGS |title=San Francisco South quadrangle, California |scale=1:24000 |series=7.5 Minute Topographic }}
| location = San Francisco California, U.S.
| map = San Francisco County
| map_caption = none
| map_size = 240
| label = Bernal Heights
| label_position = left
| coordinates = {{coord|37.7429861|N|122.4158042|W|type:mountain_region:US-CA_scale:100000_source:GNIS|format=dms|display=inline,title}}
| range_coordinates =
| coordinates_ref = {{cite gnis |id=1658039 |name=Bernal Heights |accessdate=2009-06-12}}
| topo = USGS San Francisco South
}}
Bernal Heights Summit ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|b|ɜːr|n|əl}} {{respell|BUR|nəl}}) or Bernal Heights Hill is a hill in the San Francisco, California neighborhood of Bernal Heights. Upper elevations are part of Bernal Heights Park, which the San Francisco Recreation & Parks Department manages. At its highest elevation (466 ft.) is a privately owned equipment building and 50-foot tall telecommunications tower.{{cite web |url=http://sf-planning.org/ftp/files/Commission/CPCPackets/2010.0306c.pdf |title=Conditional Use Authorization |publisher=San Francisco Planning Department |access-date=2011-08-21 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110827022031/http://sf-planning.org/ftp/files/Commission/CPCPackets/2010.0306c.pdf |archive-date=2011-08-27 }} The tower does not have an official name, but some residents call it "Sutrito", as it resembles a shorter version of Sutro Tower.{{cite web|url=https://bernalwood.com/2011/09/22/nomenclature-update-introducing-sutrito-tower/|title=Nomenclature Update: Introducing 'Sutrito Tower'|date=22 September 2011 |publisher=Bernalwood}} The park and summit are largely surrounded by Bernal Heights Boulevard.
File:Panorama from Bernal Heights Hill, San Francisco, CA, USA 2013-09-24 15-27.jpg
Ecology
Unusual flora and fauna can be found on Bernal Hill. Wildflowers include the footsteps of spring, blue-eyed grass, checkerbloom, shooting star{{cite web |url=http://sfrecpark.org/destination/bernal-heights-park/|title=Bernal Heights Park | San Francisco Recreation and Park}} and yellow mariposa lily.{{cite web |last=Hogan |first=C. Michael |year=2009 |url=http://www.globaltwitcher.com/artspec_information.asp?thingid=97686 |title=Calochortus luteus |publisher=GlobalTwitcher.com |editor=N. Stromberg |access-date=2009-12-13 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111004094242/http://www.globaltwitcher.com/artspec_information.asp?thingid=97686 |archive-date=2011-10-04 }} Bernal Hill was one of the earliest hills in San Francisco to be re-colonized by wild coyotes.{{cite web|url=https://bernalwood.com/2016/01/27/sightings-continue-as-coyote-takes-up-residence-around-bernal-hill/|title=Sightings Continue as Coyote Takes Up Residence Around Bernal Hill|date=27 January 2016 |publisher=Bernalwood}}
Geology
Bernal Hill, along with the other hills in the San Francisco area, is a folded hill; it was created by the "wrinkling up" effect of the Pacific plate subducting under the North American plate, when the North American and Pacific plates were converging around 150 million years ago. Near the summit are folded layers of very hard rock called radiolarian chert.{{Cite web | url=http://www.nps.gov/goga/forteachers/chert-faq.htm |title = Chert FAQ - Golden Gate National Recreation Area (U.S. National Park Service)}} It is a sedimentary silicate rock which gets its silica content from the shells of microscopic creatures called radiolaria. The red color comes from iron oxide. Between the chert layers are thin layers of shale in many different colors from the same red as the surrounding rock to white, green, and purple. Other types of rocks and minerals on the hill include serpentinite, jasper, and clay.