Golden Gate Bridge

I have lived in Marin County for most of my life and the Golden Gate Bridge has always been my gateway into San Francisco.  There are lots of great places that provide a good vantage point of the bridge on both sides of the span, including the Marin Headlands and Fort Point which are two of my favorite spots.

Today, however, my cousin Leilani and I finally did something neither of us have done in all our years of living in the Bay Area: we walked across the Golden Gate Bridge!  Most tourists would have this as a must do item on their list of things to do when they visit San Francisco, but for locals I think we often don't get around to doing touristy things in our own backyards unless we have visitors from out of town. 

Being New Year's Day many of the observation areas were packed, so finding a place to park was a bit of a challenge.  However, we ended up finding a spot in the Presidio and walked to the south end of the bridge to start our journey.  The weather was a bit hazy but otherwise quite pleasant with sunshine, very little wind and no fog!  As we walked across to the north side of the bridge we both stopped frequently to take photos, especially at the two towers.  It was wonderful to be so close and see all the details in the construction of the bridge, especially its art deco lines and all the rivets holding things together.  We also had the beautiful afternoon sun providing some lovely lighting.

 

By the time we reached Vista Point the sun was starting to set.  The walk back was much faster and we got to watch a container ship come under the bridge as well as the sunset colors in the hazy sky.  As we approached the south end of the span we could see the lights in San Francisco as darkness descended on the City.  All in all we spent a couple hours walking around 4 miles on this beautiful landmark.  And for those interested in a souvenir, the Bridge Pavilion has some great merchandise for sale.