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Published: October 31st 2013
Views of the city from the park across the road from our apartment.Spent the day checking out the sights here in San Francisco. It was such a picture perfect fall day today - just splendid.
We started the day with a walk around Buena Vista Park which is just across from our apartment. Plenty of people jog or cycle around the park - don't know how they do it - the park is so steep - hurts the legs to walk let alone jog or cycle!
Next we took a drive over the Golden Gate Bridge to Marin Headlands - part of the Golden Gate National Recreational Area. We stopped at Rodeo Beach - the beach is dark pebbly sand and is used by surfers and city folks who like to sun bathe here..after all it's just a short drive from downtown.
A bit further along was a 1 mile return hike down to a lighthouse with spectacular views of the Pacific Ocean and the San Francisco Bay. Also the harbour seals come here to bask in the sun..the tunnel leading to the lighthouse was closed today but the walk was peaceful and very enjoyable - it was hard to believe we were just a few miles out of a
Driving on the Golden Gate Bridgemajor city
The coastal road has plenty of vista's where you can pull over and photograph the Golden Gate Bridge. Although todays weather was fantastic - most of the day the city was covered in fog (which is normal here) - so it was difficult to get any amazing shots of the bridge but still Geoff gave it his best!
Next it was time to walk across the bridge. Last time we visited San Francisco in 2009 gusty winds made it near impossible to walk across so today was the day to do the walk.
The Golden Gate Bridge is said to be "the most beautiful, certainly the most photographed, bridge in the world". It opened in 1937 and had until 1964 held the record for being the longest suspension bridge in the world, at 4,200 feet (1,280 m). At 746 feet (227m) above water the Golden Gate Bridge held the record for being the world's tallest suspension towers until 1998.
The bridge is currently receiving some major renovations to ensure it will not be damaged by any earthquakes that may hit the city. Even though it was a week day the bridge was extremely busy
The bridge tunnelwith pedestrians and cyclists.
It was a relatively easy walk over the bridge and back again to the car - that's another adventure to be ticked off the list.
Pier 39 was our next stop - for lunch and a bit of a stroll. The streets here are lined with souvenir shops and crab stalls - we had clam chowder in a sour dough bowl with a Budweiser beer on the side for just $7. Clam chowder is another one of those San Francisco things you have to do. Parking by the pier $4 per hour (metered) which is standard for touristy places like this.
Of course if you are visiting this city for the first time you would have to go to Alcatraz - the boat leaves from Pier 39 and the tour is $30 each including an audio tour and the boat ride over to the island. We did this on our last visit and remains one of our favourite places to visit.
After lunch we drove up to Telegraph Hill - a neighbourhood in the city of San Francisco and one of the 44 hills you will find here. You get fantastic views
Harbour seals enjoying a restof the city and Alcatraz from up here. Coit Tower sits at the top of the hill and is known as "The art deco tower" - it is built of unpainted reinforced concrete and inside the walls are covered in amazing murals. The ride to the top of the tower is $7 per person but we didnt go to the top of the top of the tower - we were able to get plenty of good photos from the top of the hill.
A short drive away from Telegraph hill is Lombard Street - Known as the "crookedest" street in the world, the steep hills and sharp curves of this one-way road pass by grand Victorian mansions and attract millions of tourists each year. It's just one of those things you've got to do when in San Francisco. I would sure hate to live here though - there are tourists passing by all the time! Geoff reckons its the second most crooked street in the world, Wall street in Manhattan being the first one.
We intended in driving out over the bay bridge this evening to photograph the city lights but the traffic heading out was horrendous so
Overlook of the baywe decided to have an early night and try again tomorrow night.
Two days left now until we make the journey home to Australia - mixed feelings about this - it has been an amazing 3 month adventure. We have seen and done so much it feels surreal. It will certainly be difficult getting back to normal everyday life - Let alone not waking up in a new location every other day. Never mind going home means we get to start planning our next adventure - there's always another one calling us - and we can't wait to take up the challenge!
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Tracey
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San Fran a great city..
This time last year we were over in The States.. And loved every minute of our trip.. San Fran was David's favourite city.. The clam chowder, sourdough bread... Yummy.. Such a lot to see.. Enjoy the lasts days of your journey.. Loved reading your blog.. The stories and pics are so interesting to read and view.. Thanks for allowing me to escape in my mind, and I am writing down tips for our next trip.. And the determination to save,save,save for our next trip..