Golden Gate Bridge – the official route of our West Coast bike trip
This morning we had beautiful sunny weather as we rode into San Francisco over the Golden Gate Bridge. It was a memorable event and it also brought back many memories as we made our way through Marin County with little towns like Sausalito that we’d visited many years before and then into the city of San Francisco.
We had a little over thirty miles today and the shift happened pretty quickly as we went from Redwood trees and rural roads and into city life. The early towns in Marin County were still somewhat asleep as we rode through this morning but we were tempted by the smell of many fine breakfast establishments as well as bakeries and coffee houses. However, we were on a mission to get to the city to meet up with our friend Jed and later with our friend Jim and his boys. So we pressed on and reached the Golden Gate Bridge around 10am. If our memory serves us correctly, it’s usually foggy in the morning in SF. Today we were greeted with sunny and clear skies to show us the city, the Bay, and the Pacific Ocean as we rode over the bridge.
We traversed old territory through the Marina and the parks along the water. We passed through Ghirardelli Square and skirted around Fisherman’s Wharf. We went through North Beach (the Italian district) and through China town, before reaching Jed’s near the financial district and the main shopping areas of the city. He has greeted us with amazing hospitality and is letting us stay at his place for a few days so we can visit friends, rest from the ride, and enjoy some good food.
It’s certainly nice to have put the bikes away for a few days, locked up and out of sight in the building we’re staying in. We already got cleaned up and got the laundry taken care of. We are going to rest up and figure out the next leg of the journey. So far, we’ve covered over 900 miles in a little under three weeks and only have a little less than 650 miles remaining on our route to San Diego. We’ve been discussing the Mexico part of the ride and how we will ultimately make it to Todos Santos to visit our friends. We don’t think it wise to ride in Mexico after the advice of some family members. However, we would like to make it down there whether by bus, boat, or plane. Either way, we’re working on those logistics now and still planning to ride to San Diego to see more of this amazing coast and get some more experience biking.
In summary, we’re really glad to be here. We have so many good people to spend time with while we’re here and we are excited to figure out the next leg of journey, all while enjoying a little break from the daily routine of the Life on a Bike.