Today, we drove into San Francisco so that I could run the Golden Gate Bridge. I’ve been wanting to do it for awhile, and Catalina was supportive of letting me do it.
On the drive there, we noted we were passing close to the wavy part of Lombard Street; and there was no traffic on a weekday. So we took a slight detour and drove down it. Then we turned around the block and did it again. Third time though was the best as there wasn’t a slow car in front of us.
Once we got to the west side of the Presidio, we found a free parking spot on the side of the coastal road. Lovely view from there.
Then we split up. She went off to walk along beaches and cliff sides while I did my run.
I had planned to run on the ocean side of the bridge going out, but after trying to navigate the many paths in the area, I discovered that the west side was closed; I think for maintenance. So I had to do the Bay side for both the out and the back.
I will admit, I was slow. It wasn’t because I was a bad runner, but because I was taking pictures all the time. It was a nice sunny day, if a bit windy, and there are scenes that you don’t want to forget. I even got pictures of me touching the main cable supporting everything.
At the far (north) side, I did a bit of running, mostly up to Hendrik Point. That is where you can get the most scenic pictures of the bridge. And it was a good day to be there with the conditions.
On the way back I was more focused. I already had the pictures so I could concentrate of trying to pass slow bicyclists. I even got kudos from some of them for passing them. Of course they passed me when it started going downhill.
After that, I found my wife and walked along the beach with her. Following dinner, we decided to take the long way home and drove across the Golden Gate Bridge again. Then we stopped off at various scenic places, because I had properly scouted them a few hours before. Best part of being a runner tourist is doing research for the other travelers.