The Golden Gate Bridge

The Golden Gate Bridge isn't my favorite bridge in the world.
That would be the Mackinac Bridge in Michigan, because my
Grandpa built the steel for it when he worked at the American
Bridge works steel company in Gary, Indiana. However, the Golden
Gate is definitely the most beautiful. I must have been a civil engineer
in a past life, because I find bridges like the Golden Gate fascinating.
Next year, the Golden Gate Bridge turns 75 years old and celebrations
and improvements are being made for the occasion.


The Golden Gate is currently going through seismic retrofitting,
and as a result, there is lots of construction going on to make it
happen. I really wanted to get some good photos of the bridge,
but due to the construction, foggy weather and the fact that the
road going up into the Marin Highlands was closed for some reason,
meant it wasn't meant to be. I guess I will have to find my photos
I took on our last visit in the pre-digital camera days and make some
scans to get the pictures I want.


The National Park Service via the Golden Gate National Recreation
Area has done a good job of posting signs, and letting people know
what is going on with the bridge. I'm very impressed with the

GGNRA. They're a collection of 38 different locations, tied together

by a single organization to promote and protect the valuable natural

and historical resources. We've visited quite a few of the locations

and I'm sure over the years, we'll see the rest.

Things started to clear a bit as we were ready to depart,

leaving a great view of the city. I think that all Americans

should see this bridge sometime in their lifetime. It's a

monument of American know how, ingenuity and hard

work. All wrapped up in a beautiful setting.

Sausalito

We really hadn't planned on visiting Sausalito. It's a small,

touristy kind of place near the Golden Gate Bridge, across the

bay from San Francisco. However, I wanted to get some good

photos of the bridge and since the fog was socking in the

bridge (as usual this time of year), we had time to kill while we

waited for the fog to lift. We visited Sausalito over ten years

ago and it really hasn't changed a lot. Lots of little shops, some

interesting and some not. However, there's lots of pretty

scenery and photo opportunities. Lynn even found a really nice

yarn shop. Go figure! We found some good coffee, a fun book

shop and generally has a good afternoon of hanging out.

Marin

Even though it's right across the Golden Gate Bridge from a

major city, much of Marin County has a almost rural feeling to

it. If I lived in San Francisco, I would want to come here

frequently just to decompress from all the busy-ness of the city.


I really enjoy coming to Muir Beach when we're here. It reminds

me a bit of Taylor's Mistake, near Christchurch New Zealand. It's

compact, peaceful and there aren't huge crowds. Lynn enjoys

watching the waves and I think it reminds her a bit of the beaches

in New England, where she grew up. While we were walking on

the beach, we were lucky enough to see a small pod of porpoises!


The National Park Service and the Golden Gate National

Parks Conservancy are restoring the wetlands near

the beach, returning the area to a more natural state.


Once you drive north from the beach, the drive is pretty

steep and you'll come to the Muir Beach Overlook. Walking

down a small trail will allow you to see for miles up and

down the coast.


During World War II, this entire area was lined with small

bunker-type facilities called Base-End Stations. From these

stations, soldiers would view ships and triangulate the speed,

distance and direction to coordinate with nearby Artillery Units.

All of the hardware has now been removed, but it would have

been a cold and blustery assignment to work at one of these

stations.

While we were driving north to Stinson Beach, we saw these

interesting looking sail boats headed south along the shore.

In all, there were seven of them and they reminded me a bit of

Chinese Junks or Polynesian Catamarans. I would find out

later, they were indeed Catamarans, and of New Zealand

Māori origin! They had left New Zealand in April on a

trans-Pacific voyage to tell of the plight of the world's oceans

and of Pacific peoples. It's really amazing that one part of

"our" world is connecting with another part, so far from each

other, and totally by chance!


You can read more about the voyage and the voyagers by

clicking THIS link...


Stinson Beach is a more traditional bathing beach located

just up the coast from Muir Beach. It was a weekday, so

it wasn't very crowded. However, not a lot of people were

getting into the water since it was a chilly 56 degrees

Fahrenheit. The water never gets that warm in these parts.

It takes a pretty brave soul to swim in these waters on a

regular basis.

Just up from Stinson Beach is a really pretty drive up

Mount Tamalpais, or Mount Tam for short. It's the

highest point in Marin County at 2,574 feet and most

of it is protected parkland. There are lots of pretty

views and beautiful woods on the drive to the top.

Once you get to the top, the view is pretty remarkable. It was

a fairly hazy day, but you could still see San Francisco and the

East Bay pretty clearly, as well as most of the Marin Headlands.

Well worth the drive up the twisting road.

In other visits we've seen Muir Woods National Monument where

there are huge Redwoods and Point Reyes National Seashore.

Both of which are also located in Marin County. However, we

just didn't have time to go there on this visit. Maybe next time.