Hi..... i want to do a quick tour of the painted ladies and end up parking near the cable car line that goes down to the wharf..I will start at the golden gate park... dont need to go on the main road all the way..how should I do it and where should I park???dont want to park at the wharf and want to ride down not up...should I take a cab back up???Thanks

Driving in SF is a bad idea unless you live there. Much better is to take a map, decide where you want to go to see the Victorian houses, and use public transportation. The MUNI transfers usually give you 2.5 hours of public transportation.

I agree - get a MUNI map and take public transportation. You can easily see what you are interested in without a car. Parking at GG Park wont be an issue, but parking downtown will be. The cable car turn around is right in the middle of downtown, so parking is quite pricey.

For the MUNI, you can buy individual tickets or day passes. There is a tourist day pass that includes the cable cars. Otherwise, I think tickets for the cable cars are up to around $4-5.

If you don't want to ride the cable car both ways, you could take a cab, but it is just as easy, and more fun, to take the F-Line street car. This line follows the embarcadero along the piers and then turns up Market St through downtown and is made up of street cars from defunct lines around the world. They've got old cars from New Orleans, Milan, some cool ones from the 1940s, etc.

All the Victorians (except about 4) are west of Van Ness & South Van Ness. There are also a few a a couple blocks east of South Van Ness. The '06 fire got most everything not in these areas.

Alamo Square is where "Postcard Row" is - and parking is very easy in this area. Lots of Queen Annes in the Haight - on Masonic north of Haight. Parking is a little more difficult.

Laguna between Bush & Pine has some nice ones, and there are 4 lovely Stict Style Victorians around the corner on Calif St between Laguna & Octavia - on the north side.

Stu Dudley

I always drive in the city, being from Seattle I find it's fairly similar. A good map is all you need.
As for the cable cars I stayed in North Beached last time I was there so here is my suggestion. Take the Mason Powell line from the start near Bay street. There are parking garages nearby- one at the Cost Plus building. Then you could ride the F line from the Ferry Building back up to the Wharf and collect your car.
Oh! I just looked, someone suggested the F line already. Anyway that's what I'd do.

Here is a driving tour that passes some Victorians.

From the Lombard St motel area, take Lombard east to Gough St. From the Wharf area, take Bay St west to Gough. Head south on Gough (it becomes a fast 1 way street after some steep climbs). Do not take Van Ness south - it is ugly, full of pan-handlers, & slow. When you hit Lafayette Park, park the car (usually not a problem) & walk up the stairs near Clay St into the park. Sit on the bench at the top of the stairs & look east at the two lovely Queen Ann Victorian houses. My wife leads a walking tour in this area and she has a picture taken in 1906 from this same site, showing these 2 Victorians, with the entire city in rubble (from the earthquake) behind them.

Continue driving south on Gough until it hits Hayes St. Turn right on Hayes. This is a nice/funky shopping area. Continue west on Hayes until you reach Alamo Square Park. At Pierce St, park the car (a little more difficult - there are usually spaces on Steiner St on the east side of the park). Go to the park side of Hayes & Pierce to see perhaps the most photographed site in SF (other than the bridge). Walk into the park a little for the best views. This is "Postcard Row", with the Queen Ann Victorian row houses in the foreground, and downtown SF in the distance. If you want to see some more Victorians, drive north on Steiner (next to the park) and 1 block past the park, turn left on to McAllister. Continue west, and in the second block from 1443 to 1499 McAllister is the longest contiguous row of Victorian Stick Style houses in the City. At the next corner, turn right on Scott, and on the next street, turn right on to Golden Gate (it’s a one-way street). Continue two blocks on Golden Gate and at the end of the second block is the huge Chateau Tivoli – painted 23 different colors. Immediately to the right of it is the Seattle Block – more exquisite Victorians. At the corner, turn right on Steiner, and then right on McAllister to pass the contiguous Stick Victorians again. At the next intersection (Scott) turn left & go south on Scott. Looming on the corner of Scott & Fulton is one of the most photographed Victorians in the City - the Westerfield Mansion. Unfortunately, they have not pruned the tree in front of the house for quite some time, and it somewhat blocks the view. Continue south on Scott (more Victorians across from the park) to Fell & turn right (west) on Fell. This will take you into Golden Gate Park, and there are some lovely houses along the way (and an in-expensive Arco gas station too).


I would suggest that you take the Cable Car from the Ghirardelli stop to downtonw, instead of the other way - like you planned. Do this for 2 reasons
1. The lines are usually shorter at Ghirardelli and the parking is easier
2. There are two Cable Car lines - Hyde St (which goes to Ghirardelli), and Taylor. You may be forced to get on the Taylor line from downtown, which is not nearly as scenic as the Hyde St line.

Also, make sure you sit on the east side of the Hyde/Powell car - it is more scenic than on the west side.

Stu Dudley

The closest parking is probably Mission @ 5th if you mean the cable car turn-around at the end of the cable car line coming from the Wharf area.

To get to the Wharf you can take line F MUNI trolley, $1.50.

It's much easier to find a parking on Van Ness and take the cable car California line. Just don't plan on changing the cable lines - they are packed!!

WOW you guys are awesome!!...THANK YOU..some grest ideas!!..No,I will be there only a half a day and it will be on sunday so We will drive ...have done it before years ago....Yes i need a detailed map and plan this out...thanks for the tips especially about the f-line...Ok maybe I will park down, go up on the f and down on the cables..as that is really fun!!! Thanks,,it really pays to have specific question

ok question...Where is South VanNess?I just see plain Van Ness.....

....also if i go up rather than down, I will get off at California and walk in Chinatown...can I hop on either at the Chinese hospital area??

I don't understand what you mean by up & down. The cable car goes up and then down in both directions.

You can get off the Cale Car at Calif & walk to Chinatown, but I would take it to Union Sq & walk to Chinatown from there - much more scenic/interesting this way.

South Van Ness is the extension of Van Ness south of Market St.

Stu Dudley

OK..mapped out my driving plan thru cow hollow,pacific heights and the western addition,...
plan to park in a garage called federal auto near Van Ness and jump on the east /west line (cable car) then either eat lunch first near GGP or eat downtown..
then I need to get to the wharf ...from Chinatown..pier 39..should I take a taxi?
and to get back to the car...the a bus up van ness? or taxi? when I said down I meant the wharf and up would be nob hill...I know the topo is up and down so yes sorry....then I will hit GGP for a drive by and stop at the japanese tea garden..one more thing where is the overlook for the GG bridge?? off mason ?

>>plan to park in a garage called federal auto near Van Ness and jump on the east /west line (cable car) then either eat lunch first near GGP or eat downtown..<<

How are you going to get to GGP?? - it's nowhere near where your car is parked or where the cable car will take you. Eat downtown - Tadich Grill.


>>then I need to get to the wharf ...from Chinatown..pier 39..should I take a taxi?<<

Walk - it's not far at all

>>and to get back to the car...the a bus up van ness?<<

That would work

>>one more thing where is the overlook for the GG bridge?? off mason ?<<

There are hundreds of places in the City to get a view of the Bridge. Best on, IMO, is across the bridge at the top of the hill in the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. As you ascend up the hill, you get vies of the City through the bridge, and then views of the City over the bridge - and views all the way down the coast too.

There is also a great view of the Golden Gate and the Golden Gate Bridge from a viewing platform in the Presidio at Lincoln park just a bit north of the Sea Cliff area - see the driving route below to find out how to get there. My AAA map (you should get this map) calls the spot "Eagles Point".

Here is a driving itinerary I've posted a few times before:

As a native San Franciscan and 30 year resident of the area (I lived in Southern Calif. for 26 years when I was young & didn’t know any better), I’ve come to realize that the thing that makes San Francisco unique and one of the top tourist destinations in the world, is The City’s majestic setting with the bay and ocean on 3 sides, its ethnic diversity, its many different neighborhoods, the “spirit” and love for The City that residents have (they certainly pay a high cost of living for the privilege of living here), and the many different “one-of-a-kind” sites and events that exist in The City. Most cities have a downtown and/or business district that is somewhat similar to San Francisco’s. You will find Macy’s, Nordstrom’s, Nike, Virgin records, etc in many cities in the world and San Francisco too, but that’s not why we choose to live here.

When I want to “show off” San Francisco to friends from elsewhere, this is the route I take them on.

Early in the Morning (9:00 or so) head out east on The Bay Bridge (Hwy 80) towards Oakland. Stay in the left most lane, and when you start to approach Treasure Island/Yerba Buena Island, exit left towards Treasure Island (only left turn once on the Bridge, but pay attention – it’s easy to miss). Follow the road until you get a fantastic view of San Francisco from a flat area with a large grassy area. Park the car & take in the view. After the view, return the same way you came & take the Bay Bridge back to San Francisco. There are some great views from the Bridge (I used to come home from work this way every workday for about 5 years).

Once back in San Francisco, take the first right off the bridge (Fremont St exit). At the end of the off ramp, turn left on to Fremont St (it’s a one-way street to the left/northwest). From Fremont, take the first right onto Howard, and then the first right onto Beale. Follow Beale southeast until it hits Bryant, and turn left on to Bryant. In two short blocks, Bryant will dead end into the beautiful Embarcadero, which runs along the San Francisco Bay. Up until the ‘89 earthquake, a freeway was perched above this lovely section of the Embarcadero, and it was not an attractive drive at all. All that changed when the freeway was demolished and The City spent a lot of money/time to spruce up this area. It’s now one of the prettiest & most scenic drives in San Francisco.

Continue north along the Embarcadero, past the recently refurbished Ferry Building on the right, and the Embarcadero Center on the left (I worked there for 2 years). As you approach the ultra touristy & tacky Pier 39 complex, turn left onto Bay St. Cross Kearny and then turn left on Stockton. Continue south for a few blocks on Stockton and turn left onto Lombard St (watch for the signs to Coit Tower). Follow Lombard up to Coit Tower where it dead ends. Find a place to park (difficult later in the day) and enjoy the views of the Bay and the City all around you. After viewing everything from the car park area, walk towards the tower and pass the tower (on your left) until you get a good view of the Financial District area. Notice the nice houses/apartments with the great views in front of you – wouldn’t you like to live there for a while? You can visit the tower with the 1930’s WPA murals, and then go up to the top for a little nicer view.

Once finished with Coit Tower, return to the Embarcadero via Lombard, Stockton, and Bay. Turn left onto the Embarcadero towards Pier 39 and Fisherman’s Wharf. The Embarcadero kinda turns into Jefferson St (where The Wharf is located). I loathe Fisherman’s Wharf. It’s tacky, tacky, tacky. It’s not what I would show any visitor I wanted to impress. It’s mostly T-shirt shops, wax museums, and fast food places. I can’t understand why anyone would want to visit it. I’ve read that most first time visitors want to tour this area, but few (if any) second time visitors ever return. Follow Jefferson past the Wharf until it hits Hyde St, and then turn left onto Hyde St. Quickly go over the Cable Car tracks where you will turn Right onto Beach Street, directly in front of the Cable Car turnaround.

Note – from here on, I talk about Union Square and Union St. These are two different places and are not close to each other.
You have two options that I suggest for taking a ride on the Cable Cars. The last time I did this itinerary, I dropped our guests (and my wife) off at the Hyde St. turnaround, and then I drove & met them 1 hour later at Macys & Union Square, near the end of the cable car line. You can certainly park the car & everyone can take the cable cars down & back. However, this can add about 1 hour to your journey, and the Powell/Market St turnaround (where you will line up to return to The Wharf/Hyde turnaround) is not an area I like to show guests – it’s full of pretty scruffy looking people/pan-handlers, etc. There is a parking lot on Beach St. just under Ghiradelli Square. If you decide to park in this area, it is perhaps worth the trouble to quickly walk through Ghiradelli Sq and even the Cannery. The last time I was there, many of the storefronts which were used for retail space in the early 70’s (when we first visited), were now taken over by commercial offices. Same with the Cannery. If you want to visit, don’t spend more than 30 mins – there are places you might want to linger a bit later in this itinerary. To take the Cable Car ride you will need to buy a ticket at the kiosk at the turnaround, and then get in line. Sit on the east side of the cable car to get the best views. Once the car is turned around, this will be the side that is the farthest away from where you approach the car to get in (go around to the other side of the car to board). Obviously, use whatever “persuasion” you need to either sit or stand on the outside of the car. Don’t go into the inside section – wait for the next car. After the trip (I still enjoy them after all these years) get off the Cable Car at Union Square. If you choose to do a “round trip” down & back, when you line up to return on the Powell/Market turnaround, make sure you board the Hyde St line (it’s marked on the outside of the car), not the Taylor St line (you will end up returning to someplace else). If you headed out this morning early & got on the Bay Bridge at 9 or 9:30, you should get to The Wharf around 11:00. If it’s much later than this, you had better pick up the pace.

If you do the one way trip on the cable car to Union Square where the main group is picked up by a driver (that was me the last time we did this), then for a continuation of this drive, go to the paragraph starting with “From Union Square, in front of Macy’s”.

If everyone does the “round trip” on the cable cars, leave the Ghiradelli garage by turning left onto Beach and then left onto Polk St. Continue south on Polk to Lombard St and turn left onto Lombard. Continue east on Lombard and after two blocks you will be on The crookedest St in San Francisco. If you see a line of cars as far west as Polk when you approach, go past Polk, turn left on Filbert, and then left again on Hyde until you reach Lombard. This way allows a right turn onto the crooked part of Lombard & is a little faster.

At the bottom of the crooked section, continue straight on Lombard until it hits Columbus St. Columbus is the only street north of market in this area that cuts a diagonal across the other streets. Angle right on Columbus (same direction as cable car tracks) and continue southeast on Columbus. You are now in North Beach, which is San Francisco’s version of Little Italy. This was the Italian section of The City the first half of last century, and the home of the “beat generation” in the 50s. It’s the most “alive” section of The City in the evenings. There are lots of Italian restaurants and outdoor cafes. Continue on Columbus until it kinda angles right on to Montgomery St.

Montgomery street is the heart of the Financial District. Immediately on your left is the Transamerica Pyramid. Continue south on Montgomery, and then turn right on to California St.

Continue west on California St (you will be driving along the California St Cable Car tracks). Proceed several blocks to Powell St (where you will cross another set of cable car tracks).
You are now on Nob Hill, where there are several luxury hotels. Proceed west on California St. Just past Powell, take the first right on to Mason St. The Fairmont Hotel (my favorite) is on the right and the Flood Mansion is on the left. The most elegant mansions in early (1900) San Francisco were in this area. The Flood Mansion is the only survivor from the ’06 earthquake & fire (although, most of the interior was burned). The other (and more elegant) mansions were destroyed in the earthquake & fire. From Mason, turn left immediately on to Sacramento, then left again on to Taylor. On your right is Grace Cathedral. Turn left (east) on California. Immediately on your right is the Mark Hopkins Hotel and further on are more luxury hotels & restaurants. Continue east on California, crossing the cable car tracks on Powell again. Continue on California, and several blocks later, turn left on to Kearny (it’s a one way street). Travel one block & turn left on Sacramento (which is a one way street), and in 2 blocks, turn right on to Stockton. You are now in Chinatown. Notice all the food related shops. Look for roasted ducks hanging from hooks in store front windows.

Continue north on Stockton. Cross Broadway and then angle left on Columbus. In just 1 short block, turn left on Union St (a big park will be on your right in front of you before you turn right on Union). What I just described in the last few paragraphs is the route for those who did the round trip cable car event. If you did the round trip, go to the paragraph starting with “***Continue west on Union St” – the next several paragraphs describe the route for those doing the one way cable car ride with an escort picking them up at Union Square in front of Macy’s.

From Union Square in front of Macy’s, go west on Geary (it’s a one way) and turn an immediate right on to Powell (where the cable cars go). Continue north on Powell to California St and turn left on California.

You are now on Nob Hill, where there are several luxury hotels. Proceed west on California St. Just past Powell, take the first right on to Mason St. The Fairmont Hotel (my favorite) is on the right and the Flood Mansion is on the left. The most elegant mansions in early (1900) San Francisco were in this area. The Flood Mansion is the only survivor from the ’06 earthquake & fire (although, most of the interior was burned). The other (and more elegant) mansions were destroyed in the earthquake & fire. From Mason, turn left immediately on to Sacramento, then left again on to Taylor. On your right is Grace Cathedral. Turn left (east) on California. Immediately on your right is the Mark Hopkins Hotel and further on are more luxury hotels & restaurants. Continue east on California, crossing the cable car tracks on Powell again. Continue on California, and several blocks later, turn left on to Kearny (it’s a one way street). Travel one block & turn left on to Sacramento (which is a one way street), and in 2 blocks, turn right on to Stockton. You are now in Chinatown. Proceed north on Stockton. Notice all the food related shops. Look for roasted ducks hanging from hooks in store front windows.

Continue north on Stockton, cross over Broadway, and when Stockton hits a spot where it intersects with both Broadway & Green St, turn right on Green (make sure you don’t take a sharp right on Broadway). Continue east on Green for a few blocks and then turn right on to Montgomery. Proceed south on Montgomery two blocks and turn right on to Broadway (it’s a big road). Ignore the XXX places, and angle right on to Columbus. You are now in North Beach. See the prior description of North Beach.

Continue northwest on Columbus, and at Union St, angle left (a large park will be on your right in front of you just prior to the turn). Continue west on Union, and turn right on to Hyde St (you will be on the cable car tracks). Continue north on Hyde and turn right on to Lombard St and The crookedest street in San Francisco.

At the bottom of the crooked part, turn right on to Leavenworth, and proceed for a couple of blocks, and then turn right on to Union Street.
***Continue west on Union St. Cross Van Ness (busy street), and just past Gough St, you will enter the very pretty Union St. area. The “main section” of Union ends at about Steiner St. When we first visited this street in the very early 70s, we returned with a poster that said “If you lost your heart in San Francisco, you will probably find it on Union St”. Park the car, get out and explore. If it’s time for lunch, there are loads of possibilities. I like Café de Paris in the 2000 block, and Rose’s Café at 2298 Union (corner of Steiner). There is a simple sandwich shop on Union across the street from Rose’s, which might be the best bet if you’re trying to squeeze this drive into a “reasonable” day. If you started this drive at 9 or so, and didn’t do the cable car round trip and didn’t visit anything near the Wharf, you should be on Union St at 12:30 or so.

After visiting Union St, if you want to see where the rich people live, continue west on Union & turn left on Davisadero, and then right on Broadway. Proceed west on Broadway until it dead ends. In the last two blocks of Broadway, two of the richest people in the US reside – Larry Ellison, and Gordon Getty. Ellison’s house is the strange/wierd one on the north side of the street. Turn around on Broadway & head east on Broadway to Fillmore & turn right on to Fillmore.

If you don’t want to see the rich folks, after visiting Union, head south on Fillmore off Union. Hope your car’s transmission is working OK – during the Tour of San Francisco Bike Race in ’01, Lance Armstrong complained about the steepness of this Fillmore St hill, which he & others had to climb about 5 times.

The Fillmore St Shopping District is another one of our premier neighborhood shopping streets – and my wife’s favorite. The main section is between Jackson & Bush. Continue south on Fillmore (it’s a little gritty after Sutter St).

Proceed south on Fillmore several blocks, past the busy Geary St (you’ll overpass it) and turn right on to Fulton St. In one block you will be in the Alamo Square Historic District and the site of the famous Postcard Row that has been pictured in countless TV shows, place mats, and postcards. Continue west on Fulton with Alamo Square Park to your left. On the corner of Fulton & Scott is the Westerfield mansion -–one of the most photographed Victorian houses in The City. Turn left on to Scott, & there will be more Victorians on your right. Circle Alamo Square, turning left on to Hayes. As you proceed east on Hayes and just after you “crest” at Pierce, look slightly to your left and you will see Postcard Row – with a row of Queen Anne Victorian homes in the foreground, and downtown San Francisco in the background. Park the car ASAP (you may have to turn left on to Steiner to find a spot). Walk along the grass to where Pierce hits the park for the view – you’ll see lots of other people there also & tour busses are always close by. Assuming all the “exceptions” that I stated earlier, and only 30 mins for a sandwich on Union St. plus 1 hr shopping, you should get to Alamo Square around 2:30-3:00.

If you dawdled along the way and are behind schedule (it’s later than 3:00 by now), perhaps skip the next route up to a fantastic views from Twin Peaks. If you choose to skip this section, then after Postcard Row, head west on either Fulton or Hayes, left (south) on Divisadero, then right on Haight and drive for several blocks to get to the Haight Ashbury area (nice Victorians along the way).

In the 1970s, before the GGNRA was formed (see later text), a radio station had a “best view of San Francisco” contest. The view from Twin Peaks won. It’s a little tricky to get there, so pay attention. After Postcard Row, head west on either Hayes or Fulton, and south (left) on Divisadero. Divisadero will kinda flow left into Castro St (follow the traffic). Proceed south on Castro until you hit Market (big intersection), and turn right (west) & go up Market St. Market St will flow into Portola after Market St stops it’s steep uphill climb. Shortly Market St. changes to Portola, look for a Twin Peaks Blvd on your right and then turn right on to Twin Peaks Blvd. & keep following this street up to the “top of the world”. You’ll know when you have arrived at the view point. After the view, follow Twin Peaks Blvd North (not the way you came up – get a map). At 17th St. Twin Peaks will become Clayton. Shortly after crossing 17th, angle to the right on to Ashbury, and then turn right on to Frederick and then left on to Masonic. Proceed north on Masonic to Haight (there are some lovely Victorians along Masonic). Turn left on to Haight.
You are now in the Haight Ashbury district (locals call it “the Haight”). Proceed west along Haight & enjoy the sights & people. Haight will dead end into Golden Gate Park. Turn right on Stanyan, and continue in the right hand lane slightly past the entrance to GG park (no left turn allowed into park). Just past the no left turn sign, turn right on a cloverleaf road that circles into the park. Drive down JFK drive through Golden Gate Park. Notice the wonderful Conservatory of Flowers on your right that was opened up in Sept ’03 after years of restoration. Continue on JFK drive (look for the Buffalos just after Spreckels lake) until you hit the ocean. Turn right on the Great Highway, and continue as it passes the Cliff House & becomes Geary Blvd at about 39th St. Continue east on Geary & turn left on to 36th St. Proceed north on 36th two blocks until it ends at Lincoln Park & then turn right on to Clement. If it’s clear, you can see the Bank of America Bldg. in the distance.

Turn left on 34th St. and enter Lincoln Park. Continue on to the Palace of the Legion of Honor. This is one of our major art exhibition places (along with some other uses). It was built by Alma de Bretteville Spreckels, who married into the Spreckels fortune (sugar), built the museum, and donated it to The City. A few years ago it displayed the Toulouse-Lautrec exhibit, last year the Degas exhibit, and also has the largest collection of Rodin statues outside of Paris.

After passing the Legion, take the right (only way you can go) on to El Camino Del Mar. Get the camera ready for some fantastic views of the Golden Gate. I always take guests on this route. You will be driving along a golf course. Just before you leave the course and enter a residential area, park the car & walk to the viewing platform to your left – you’ll see it from the road. Return to the car & continue along El Camino Del Mar. You will enter the Seacliff Area which (I suspect) has the most expensive homes in the City. Robin Williams lives there – look for a dinosaur topiary peeking over a hedge on his home (it’s not on the immediate waterfront). When entering Seacliff, keep left whenever you can – especially paying attention to a “Y” onto Seacliff Ave. Just after this Y, turn left on to a dead end & perhaps have a look at China Beach & the views from there. Continue along Seacliff Rd as it snakes around and exits the Seacliff area at 25th St. Turn left (east) off 25th on to Lincoln. Proceed north on Lincoln for some more exceptional views of the Golden Gate and the Bridge.

Lincoln will eventually twist around, and go under the Golden Gate Bridge. Immediately after it goes under the bridge, look on your left for a sign to the Golden Gate Bridge. Follow this up and cross the Golden Gate Bridge.

Head north across the Golden Gate Bridge. Just past the bridge, take the Alexander Av. exit towards Sausalito. When you get to the stop at the end of the freeway off ramp, turn left & go under Hwy 101. Proceed like you are going back across the bridge to SF, but take the road to the right that goes up-hill, just before actually getting on 101. There will be a sign that says you are entering the Golden Gate National Recreational (GGNRA) area. Continue up on this road – it’s called Conzelman on the map. You will see what are (in my opinion) the best views of San Francisco – The GG Bridge in the foreground & The City behind it. This was formerly a military area that is still laced with bunkers, gun turrets, underground tunnels etc. It was opened up in the ‘70s. The views of The City, the Bridge, and the Golden Gate are breathtaking. You can see down the San Mateo Coast from up here. Go all the way to the top until you hit a much smaller one-way road. On the way up, get out & enjoy the sights. Kids will love the bunkers & gun turrets. At the top where the main road ends, there is the largest gun turret, where you can climb up to for an almost 360 degree view. This view is best in the evening when the sun is in a position to light up the bridge & highlight downtown.

Return the way you came up to this area. Check the time. If there is any time left in your schedule, take a quick pass through Sausalito – otherwise head south back to SF. If you opt for the Sausalito visit, once you get to the junction just past the tunnel under 101, head straight to Sausalito. Just follow your nose (bearing right whenever possible), until you end up on Bridgeway – the main road along the bay in Sausalito. Drive along Bridgeway, enjoying the views back to the City. Continue North on Bridgeway until it joins 101 and you can return to SF over the Golden Gate Bridge again.

Stu Dudley