The coastal features found here today were formed by the actions of waves, wind, and the movement of sand.

The geology of this part of the coastline of San Francisco consists of steep rocky cliffs which are punctuated by narrow sandy pocket beaches found at the north end of the city and long sandy stretches at Ocean Beach and Fort Funston to the south.

The local features, and indeed the entire San Francisco Peninsula, come from the northern aspect of the Santa Cruz Mountains.

Before the urban development seen today, the area landward of Ocean Beach consisted of barren sand fields inland to Twin Peaks.

The first known map of the area, dating from 1852, was made by the United States Coast Survey and describes the coastline as being entirely unaltered by humans.