UpToWhereWhat can you see from Coit Tower?
A firefighter's memorial that just happens to look like a fire hose nozzle.
From Coit Tower, the terrain-limited line of sight reaches up to 110 km. The single farthest piece of visible terrain lies 110 km to the southeast (bearing 134°), at 844 m elevation. These results account for Earth's curvature and standard atmospheric refraction, computed from 30-meter resolution Copernicus GLO-30 elevation data across 1,886,303 terrain samples.
Open the interactive visibility map →Visibility by direction
The horizon is most open toward the southeast, where sightlines run 87.7 km on average; terrain closes the view down fastest to the south-southwest, at 12.5 km.
| N | 71.7 km | |
| NNE | 49.1 km | |
| NE | 18.1 km | |
| ENE | 22.0 km | |
| E | 27.2 km | |
| ESE | 65.8 km | |
| SE | 87.7 km | |
| SSE | 65.0 km | |
| S | 25.8 km | |
| SSW | 12.5 km | |
| SW | 16.1 km | |
| WSW | 43.8 km | |
| W | 43.3 km | |
| WNW | 16.3 km | |
| NW | 24.7 km | |
| NNW | 31.6 km |
Farthest named landmarks in view
142 named peaks, hills and headlands stand inside this viewshed. These are the farthest ones you could pick out on a clear day:
| Landmark | Visible distance | Direction | Elevation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Santa Cruz Mountains | 91.4 km | SSE · 147° | 1,136 m |
| Loma Prieta | 91.4 km | SSE · 147° | 1,148 m |
| Mount Chual | 91.1 km | SSE · 146° | 1,060 m |
| Bald Mountain | 85.8 km | SE · 146° | 727 m |
| Church Hill | 85.6 km | SE · 144° | 443 m |
| Copernicus Peak | 85.2 km | SE · 126° | 1,327 m |
About Coit Tower
San Francisco socialite Lillie Hitchcock Coit, an honorary firefighter nicknamed "Firebelle Lil," left money in her will to beautify the city, and this fluted concrete tower on Telegraph Hill went up in 1933 as a result. Its interior is covered in Depression-era murals painted by around two dozen artists under the country's first New Deal arts program, some controversial enough for their leftist imagery that the tower's opening was delayed. Many visitors assume its shape was modeled on a fire hose nozzle, though the architects always denied that.
Did you know?
- Lillie Hitchcock Coit was made an honorary member of a San Francisco volunteer fire company as a teenager after helping fight a fire, and stayed devoted to firefighters her whole life.
- The roughly two dozen muralists were paid modest government wages under the Public Works of Art Project, giving out-of-work Depression-era artists steady income during the crisis.
- Several murals contained socialist imagery, including a hammer and sickle, and the resulting controversy delayed the tower's public opening for months.
- Despite popular legend, the tower's fluted, nozzle-like shape was not intentionally designed to resemble a fire hose.
- From the top, Alcatraz, the Bay Bridge, and the full sweep of the San Francisco waterfront spread out below.
Frequently asked questions
How far can you see from Coit Tower?
On a clear day the terrain allows a line of sight of up to 110 km from Coit Tower. The average visible distance across all 360 directions is 38.8 km. Atmospheric conditions (haze, humidity) usually reduce practical visibility below the terrain-limited maximum.
What is the farthest point visible from Coit Tower?
The farthest terrain visible from Coit Tower lies 110 km to the southeast, at an elevation of 844 m. Earth's curvature and atmospheric refraction are accounted for in this calculation.
How high is Coit Tower?
The observation point at Coit Tower sits at 164 m above sea level (Copernicus GLO-30 elevation model).
How is this visibility map calculated?
UpToWhere traces lines of sight in 360 directions from the observer using 30 m-resolution Copernicus terrain data, correcting for Earth curvature and standard atmospheric refraction. You can run the same analysis for any point on Earth with the free calculator.
Run your own analysis
Want to know what you can see from your house, a summit you're planning to climb, or a plot of land? UpToWhere computes the same 360° viewshed for any point on Earth in seconds — free.
Try the viewshed calculator
