Days: 3

Total distance travelled: 12,675.5 kilometres (7,872.98 miles)

Friday 28th June 2015

Waking refreshed (that intent to beat the jet lag seemingly having worked), we rose early, eager to beat the fog, and see that bridge that spans the Golden Gate (Golden Gate is actually the passage of water, and is no indicator at all to the bridges colour. Apparently there was a consideration at some point to repaint it safety yellow. It just wouldn’t seem right!)

Our plan was to grab a bite along the just over 5 mile distance to the bridge, and with much fresher minds, we also found ourselves prepared to attempt the most direct route (directly over the hills) rather than opt for simply the easiest terrain.

With a quick breakfast on the fly from Safeway near Fort Mason (an apple & choc chip muffin each), it was not long before I finally had my first glimpse of the Golden Gate Bridge in her distinctive safety orange, although her upper pylons remained obscured by fog.

The closer we got, the lesser the fog!

As we whittled the miles away, the fog seemed to lose heart, lessening its grip on this iconic landmark, and by the time we were climbing the approaches, the skies above were a beautiful blue!

An icon bathed in sunshine

Originally we’d thought we’d climb the approaches, start to cross the bridge and most likely turn back at the halfway point.

Once on the bridge proper however, there was no chance I could pass on this opportunity to fully cross the Golden Gate, so in short time we were across the strait, happily munching on our apples (for it was at this point in time that we finished breakfast, Pacific Rose apples they were, very tasty!)

An elevated perch had also been spied on the far side, and this was another quick addition to this random bridge itinerary.

Traversing the Golden Gate

A backdrop of blue instead of white…

Fearing it could take some time to ascend, we were thrilled with both the time it took (maybe 10 minutes) as well as the views, possibly my favourite of the bridge, so well worth the effort!

An indulgent view from my favourite perch

By the time we made it back to the downtown area, we’d essentially lost most of the day (we did sneak in a few beers at Jack’s Cannery, but I’ll cover that soon), but our jetlagged legs had managed to walk an impressive 15 miles (23-24km’s) over some pretty hilly terrain on a rather hot San Francisco day.

We appreciated the wind, but unfortunately made it back to our hotel, each of us having a touch of sunburn to various parts of our body!

Looking back from the Sausalito side of the bridge