walking Golden Gate and Sausalito
 

Planning our August trip. We would love to walk the GGB while there. I know Sausalito is on the other side of the bridge. Is it within walking distance of the bridge? My original thought was to walk over the bridge in the AM (Sat.) enjoy lunch in Sausalito and do some shopping/exploring there and then return to San Francisco via ferry? Is this too much walking? We are 20somethings and the walk over the bridge won't be a problem..just wondering about the trip into Sausalito. Thanks!!

Ya know, I did exactly that when I was a 20something with my then-boyfriend. I think we started in the Presidio area closest to the bridge, and started walking. It's totally walkable for young, healthy people, and an enjoyable time. We had lunch in Sausalito, but I don't recall getting a ton of shopping done. Then we caught the ferry back.

It’s kind of a long walk down a long hill into Sausalito, and I am not sure where along the highway a taxi would be able to drop you off to start the walk, etc. (They really can’t stop there.) If you get a warm day, it could be a long hot walk. IMO it is MUCH more fun to do this trip by bike. You can rent bikes in many places in San Fran, including right at Fisherman’s Pier, and then take the path along the bay and the park right up to the bridge (one major hill here but very doable.) Very easy to follow signs for the bridge, one side is exclusively for bikers. You can then glide downhill on the other side of the bridge and into town. You can ferry back (with the bikes too, there is a special place for them on the boat). If you really want to extend the trip, you can bike to redwood areas further away. You can make a long or shortish day of it, depends on your stamina. Take a look at the website at http://www.baycitybike.com/. There are lots of other outfits along the wharf as well and other parts of town too if you wanted to start somewhere else. Fisherman’s Wharf is just easy because it’s already along the water and easy to get to by public transport.

originally we wanted to bike it. Then I spoke with a coworker who spent some time there last year and she voiced concern. She said that the walkers and riders shared to same lane and that it was very congested. Hmmm...biking sounds like a lot of fun...but didn't want to stuck with a bunch of congested walkers. I also want to have an opportunity to get lots of pics...what do you think?

bebalm - thanks for posting this question. Great website Cicerone.

Sandy

Bikers and walkers share the same side on weekdays (not on weekends), so if you want to avoid this problem, then schedule your trip for a weekend day. But even with the shared side it really is not hard to do (and personally I would rather be on the bike than be the pedestrian....). Really I am not a biker at all, and I did not find this difficult to do with pedestrians. (And sometimes on the weekends you get those "professional" bikers with the skinsuits swearing at your for going slow...)

Sorry, for pics, there are numerous places to stop and pull the bike out of the way and take pictures, not a problem. Also with the walkers, I don't know how many of them actually make it across the bridge, at a certain point it seems to me a lot turn back, so they do peter out. You get them mostly on the San Fran side for a bit, but my recollection in doing this bike trip twice is that most people do not seem to walk the whole way. It's like 2 miles almost each way.

cool..thanks for the update. It certainly sounds like fun. Thanks for the clairifications!!

Of course, it depends on how much eating you are doing! You may want to walk, hee hee. Seriously--if you decide to walk, it's still enjoyable.

If you plan to walk, there are 2 buses going to the base of the bridge, you can easily walk from there. I like your plan of walking in, taking the ferry out.

No, it's not too much walking for young people. My then 70-year-old father done that.

My daughter biked it last year and had a blast - but they biked into Sausalito
from the bridge- less uphills

It is not that congested with walkers and bike riders. I biked it last summer and it was one of the highlights of my trip. The hill to get down to Sausalito is very steep- it was quite a rush to ride down it!
While in Sausaltio, check out a restaurant called "Hamburgers"; there will be a line out the front door. I had one of the best burgers I ever had! You get it to go and then sit on the water and watch the boats. It was a fantastic lunch!!

I biked the bridge last summer, and had a great time - I didn't think that there were too many walkers to cause a problem - I kept stopping to look at the view and take pictures, anyway. I rented from Blazing Saddles on Fisherman's Wharf - they even gave me a ferry ticket so I wouldn't have to stand in line in Sausolito. When I returned the bike, they asked if I'd used the ticket, and just added the ticket cost to my total bill. I do recommend biking from Fisherman's Wharf, there's a great bike path that goes all along the waterfront, so you get wonderful views of the bay and bridge. The long downhill ride into Suasalito was fun, too.

It can definitely be conjested with walkers who are paying no attention to the bikers or anything else on the bridge. We also found it came in spurts (like said above), at times we were pretty much alone in places (agree most of the conjestion was on the San Francisco side). It made me very nervous, so I either went very slow or walked my bike when I came near a large group of people. Didn't bother my DH at all. It was kind of a love it/hate it sort of thing -- was really glad I did it, but very glad to turn the bike in.

Saying this (I am also much older than you and hadn't been on a bike in decades), I think you should definitely do it. The area you go through, from Fisherman's Wharf area to GGB, is fantastic and really great to ride on a bike. (you will find people walking in all these areas also, but they were easier to avoid) We took pictures all along the way (and
frequently on the GGB). We stopped for a while at Chrissy Field Beach and the Palace of Fine Arts. (they give you locks with the bikes and there are bike racks everywhere). We rode across the bridge and back since we had been in Sausalito the day before, but I would do it the way you planned, taking the ferry back.

It is a ride at your own risk and go anywhere you want thing to do. We saw (can't even begin to give it a number -- how many bikes do they rent in a day?) people of all ages and abilities riding these bikes everyday we were there and no accidents. As far as congestion on the GGB, it is probably hard to predict -- probably the earlier the better. I think you have heard the worst -- go for it.

In my 20's I rode from my home in SF to Sausalito and back every weekend. I loved it. And, if I was too tired to return up that large hill, I just took the ferry back. You can easily walk or ride and the view is great. Be prepared for wind on the bridge, though, even on a hot day.