Bay Curious

Latest Episodes:

La Llorona: Ghost or Protector? You Decide Oct 02, 2025

Show notes

In the popular telling, La Llorona is a ghost. She’s the spirit of a woman who haunts watery places, wailing for her lost children. But as with all stories, the meaning of the myth has changed over time and many people now see La Llorona as a protector. For spooky October, we explore the ghostly myth that frightens children and the more empowering version of the legend.

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La Llorona, Legend and Protector, In the Streets of San Francisco
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This story was reported by Sebastian Miño-Bucheli. Bay Curious is made by Katrina Schwartz, Gabriela Glueck and Christopher Beale. Additional support from Olivia Allen-Price, Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED.

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Bears, Coyotes, Mountain Lions While Hiking or Camping? What You Should Do Sep 25, 2025

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As we go about our lives in the San Francisco Bay Area and explore this beautiful state, it's not uncommon to encounter wild animals. Whether you're hiking in the Santa Cruz mountains and see warnings about mountain lions, or camping in Tahoe where bears have learned human ways, there are some things to know about how to stay safe. KQED's audience desk reporters Sarah Wright and Carly Severn join us with helpful tips about how to coexist in nature with the animals that also call it home.

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This story was reported by Carly Severn and Sarah Wright. Bay Curious is made by Katrina Schwartz, Gabriela Glueck and Christopher Beale. Additional support from Olivia Allen-Price, Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Alana Walker, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED.

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SF Stairways: Shortest, Longest, and Steepest Sep 18, 2025

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There are over 900 stairways in San Franciso. Some are simple wooden stairs, others beautiful climbs covered in mosaics, or utilitarian concrete steps. It’s incredibly charming and a delightful surprise to many visitors. Bay Curious listener George Krause fell in love withe stairways between photo shoots and wanted to know which are the shortest, longest and steepest stairways in the city. Many of you are stair-curious too!

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Stairways Crisscross the Hills of San Francisco. Here's Why People Love Them
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How the Filbert Steps Came to Be an Oasis in San Francisco
Where Did the Wild Parrots of San Francisco Come From?
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This story was reported by Gabriela Glueck. Bay Curious is made by Katrina Schwartz, Gabriela Glueck and Christopher Beale. Additional support from Olivia Allen-Price, Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Alana Walker, Holly Kernan and everyone on Team KQED.

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The Bay Area’s Got A Wild Pig Problem Sep 11, 2025

Show notes

Originally imported to Monterey County for sport by a wealthy landowner in the 1920s, wild boars now number in the hundreds of thousands, and they are destroying sensitive habitats and suburban lawns all over the state, including Morgan Hill, Lafayette and San Jose. Bay Curious listener Travis Mowbray wondered if there were any creative solutions to the problem.

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Invasion of the Grub Snatchers: How One Rich Guy's Boars Colonized California
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This story was reported by Rachael Myrow. Bay Curious is made by Katrina Schwartz, Gabriela Glueck and Christopher Beale. Additional support from Olivia Allen-Price, Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED.

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Amusement Parks of Yore: Playland-at-the-Beach and Idora Park Aug 28, 2025

Show notes

Summer is coming to an end, so we're taking a journey back in time to remember two amusement parks that have etched themselves into the imaginations of generations of Bay Area residents: Idora Park in Oakland and San Francisco's Playland at the Beach. This story originally aired in September of 2022, but we're bringing it back to celebrate the end of summer.

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Idora Park and Playland-at-the-Beach: Bay Area Amusement Parks of a Bygone Era
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This story was reported by Christopher Beale. Bay Curious is made by Katrina Schwartz, Gabriela Glueck and Christopher Beale. Additional support from Olivia Allen-Price, Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Alana Walker, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED.

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Reversing Extinction? Sea Otters and Butterflies Hold Clues Aug 21, 2025

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The Bay Area is a biodiversity hotspot, home to species found nowhere else on Earth. But decades of urbanization have pushed many of these animals — and the ecosystems they depend on — to the edge. Can science bring them back? In this episode, we examine the remarkable comeback of the southern sea otter and an ongoing effort to resurrect the long lost Xerces blue butterfly.

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Is Extinction Permanent? Resurrecting California's Xerces Blue Butterfly
Healthy Otters Lead to a Happy Ecosystem in Monterey County's Elkhorn Slough
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Are Seagulls Native to the Bay Area? Aug 14, 2025

Show notes

Seagulls are everywhere in the Bay Area — flocking to Giant's games in San Francisco and crowding South Bay salt ponds. But are they actually native? Once seasonal visitors from Mono Lake, they've recently become year-round residents. We get to the bottom of this gull invasion.

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Are California Gulls Native or Invasive to the Bay Area? Maybe Both
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This story was reported by Pauline Bartolone. Bay Curious is made by Katrina Schwartz, Gabriela Glueck and Christopher Beale. Additional support from Olivia Allen-Price, Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Alana Walker, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED.

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How Fremont Became Known As 'Little Kabul' Aug 07, 2025

Show notes

Over the past 40 years, Afghans have steadily immigrated to the East Bay town of Fremont, hoping to start new lives close to others who share their language and culture. We trace four waves of immigration and check in with Afghans who've chosen to settle in Fremont.

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How Did Fremont Become Known As 'Little Kabul'?
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This story was reported by Asal Ehsanipour. Bay Curious is made by Katrina Schwartz, Gabriela Glueck and Christopher Beale. Additional support from Olivia Allen-Price, Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Ethan Toven-Lindsay and everyone on Team KQED.

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Julia Morgan: A Thoroughly Bay Area Architect Jul 31, 2025

Show notes

Julia Morgan, the pioneering female architect, was born in San Francisco, raised in Oakland and educated at UC Berkeley and the the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris. She designed over 700 buildings, many of them in the Bay Area, and had a huge impact on the field of architecture. We dig into her life and legacy.

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Check out the New Angle: Voice podcast
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This story was produced by Brandi Howell. Bay Curious is made by Katrina Schwartz, Gabriela Glueck and Christopher Beale. Additional support from Olivia Allen-Price, Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad and everyone on Team KQED.

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How Daly City Became A Filipino Hub Jul 24, 2025

Show notes

Nearly one in three Daly City residents identify as Filipino, according to 2019 Census data. Bay Curious listener Ricky Tjandra wondered what makes this town just south of San Francisco such an international hub of Filipino life. We dig into more than a hundred years of history between the U.S and the Philippines and talk to current residents of Daly City.

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In Daly City, the Bayanihan Spirit Is Alive and Well
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How Daly City Became One of the Most Densely Populated Cities in the Country
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This story was reported by Amanda Stupi. Bay Curious is made by Katrina Schwartz, Gabriela Glueck and Christopher Beale. Additional support from Olivia Allen-Price, Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Ethan Toven-Lindsay and everyone on Team KQED.

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