San Francisco, Day 2

Our 2nd day in San Francisco was spent biking the Golden Gate bridge and ride to Sausalito, a darling little bayside town with cute shops and restaurants. It was a day full of ups and downs as we decided to do this BEFORE I found out I was pregnant (I was 9 weeks along on this trip). It was a challenging day because I was tired and nauseous, but looking back now, I'm so glad we did it! (I'm not sure if Russ can say the same because I was a bit of a bear at times. :)

We started our monring by grabbing breakfast at the same little place across the street from our hotel before heading to catch a cable car. I really wanted a seat on the outside of the car for the best views, so we waited to get one. I think it was worth the extra few minutes for the great seats. We rode the cable car to the top of Lombard street, which is famous for having a steep, one-block section that consists of eight tight hairpin turns. People love to drive down it (suggested speed limit is 5mph), but we walked it. The landscaping was just beautiful!

Cable car turntable

The top of Lombard Street

We walked to get our bikes at the rental shop close by and Russ led the way to the bridge. I am not the most coordinated on a bike, so this was really outside of my comfort zone! We rode a good 5 miles before we even got close to the bridge...and several of those miles were on the roads in crazy traffic! I was never so grateful to get on the bike path in all of my life!  The ride on the National Park Bike Path was mostly flat (thank goodness!) and took us through Aquatic Park, Fort Mason, the Marina and Presidio National Park. This was the only thing on our agenda today so we took our time, stopping frequently to take in the sites and get pictures, and allowing me time to rest.

The bike path was right next to the water.

We then headed up to the base of the bridge. This was the worst part of the trip for me and I was really hating this decision to bike at all, as it was a very steep incline. I had to walk my bike up most of this part because I was just unable to pedal the incline. I felt a little better when I saw lots of other bikers having to do the same thing. I swear, when I hit the lottery someday, I am going to make an option to to somehow get your bike rentals at the top of the bridge...ha!

The bridge itself is 1.7 miles and the first half a mile was pretty difficult due to trying to avoid all the pedestrians who were also enjoying the bridge (the bike lane on other side was closed...boo!) Russ led the way and I had a bell on my bike, so I would ring it when there were people in our way. I definitely got a little bell-happy, Ha! The views on the bridge of the bay and city were just gorgeous!

At the start of the bridge!

Pic from the other side!

Once we got across the bridge, we took some great photos of the bridge, bay and city from South Vista Point.

Statue of the the Lone Sailor

From the other side of the bridge to Sausalito was another 5 mile bike ride. It was mostly downhill, but there were a few steep parts that had me walking my bike. The weather warmed up a bit and we were shedding clothes as we rode. We were also starving and the first thing we did was find lunch at the Sausalito Taco Shop. We looked around a little bit in the shops before catching the ferry back with our bikes to San Fran. I was literally exhausted!

Yep, the bike had to go down those stairs!

And through the construction tunnel to be on our way to Sausalito.

We got some amazing shots of the bridge as we traveling further away from it.

The no fun, uphill section on the way to Sausalito.

Almost there!!

LUNCH!!

Taken from the ferry on the way back to the city.

Once we docked, we had to bike a little ways further (ugh!) to return our bikes. There was actually a fire at Pier 29 that we saw on our ride so a lot of the public transportation (buses and cable cars) were shut down. That meant it took an extra long time to get back to the hotel...boo! We had dinner reservations, but were too tired to clean up to go out. So we ordered in food and called it an early night! All in all, I'm glad we biked the bridge...but I don't think I would recommend doing it pregnant! :)

Damage from the fire at Pier 29.