MARIN HEADLANDS
Written: Nov 07 '01 (Updated Nov 21 '02)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: SF's best kept secret
Cons: often foggy and cold
The Bottom Line: SF has it all, just ask anyone who lives here....they wouldn't live anywhere else.
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| Ian_Willson's Full Review: San Francisco Bay |
Camping, bicycling, BBQ, and a nice bottle of of wine on Angel Island is what I first had in mind. It was October, Indian summer was coming and the weather was looking promising. At this time of year the ferry only runs on the weekend and all the campsites were booked solid even on the weekdays! (apparently privately owned sailboats dock here all year round).
Then I found out you can camp at the Marin Headlands for free! What? Every campground in California is at least $20, what is going on here? So I called, got the website, downloaded the map, and to my surprise (I've lived here my whole life) none, I repeat, none of the campsites were booked (Marin Headlands is only 15 minutes from SF). There's a million hiking trails, a fantastic beach, a lagoon filled with birds, a historic lighthouse, abandoned bunkers from WW II, and a marine wildlife sanctuary.
To get to our campsite, we had to drive down a one way road called Gonzelman Drive. Man, what a heart attack! This was a roller coaster in disguise. They close this road from dusk to dawn, no bicycles allowed, and now I know why. One false move and basically you die. It's really steep and there's a sheer cliff on one side. Come to think of it, what if the brakes went out in the car? Jam it into first gear and listen to the motor squeal higher than Mariah Carey before meltdown? We pitched our tents in a nice sheltered area just below the BBQ pits, explored "Battery Wallace", one of the WW II camoulflaged bunkers, then headed to Point Bonita Lighthouse. The trail swerves downhill, gets very narrow, goes through a tunnel, crosses numerous bridges, and then for the finale: you cross a bridge that has a sign: "Only 5 people at a time!" Do not look down while crossing this bridge! Huge waves are crashing far below. The whole thing is so scenic you kinda forget about the fact you had to risk your life to get here.
We then drove down to Rodeo Beach (also know as Chronkite Beach), it was about 80 degrees and the waves were pumping. Every surfer had a huge smile plastered to his face. We checked out the Marine Wildlife Sanctuary. It's basically fenced off and you have to peer through lots of fence to see the mammals. Next was the Visitor Center, which is inside the old Fort Chronkite church. Many exhibits, lots of books about the history of the area, and extremely friendly rangers made this a great stop. We picked up our car permit for the night, went back to our campsite, watched the sun set over the Pacific while the lights of San Francisco began twinkling. That night a raccoon tried many times to see what was in my backpack. I kept beaming my flashlight at him, but that didn't seem to bother him at all. The whole family got up to watch the sunrise over the Golden Gate Bridge which seemed to amuse a family of deer that was watching us.
To leave the Marin Headlands, we had to go through a long one way tunnel that ended up in Sausalito. The whole way down we were behind a cycling club with about 100 members. It looked liked we were tailing the Tour de France. We went out to breakfast in a cafe right on the bay, sailboats and seagulls, and then guess what? Instead of going home.......we went back to Marin Headlands!
Recommended:
Yes
Best Suited For: Families
Best Time to Travel Here: Sep - Nov
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Epinions.com ID:
Ian_Willson
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Member: Ian Willson
Location: San Francisco bay area
Reviews written: 15
Trusted by: 7 members
About Me:
musician for a living, chess as a hobby, and travel for adventure
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