Larkspur Ferry to SF and Tiburon

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Today’s club ride is led by Heather Barraclough. I take the Larkspur Ferry to meet up with the group at Cafe Trieste in North Beach. There are several other club members doing the same. The cost of a one way ferry ride to SF is $8.25. There’s bike racks conveniently located on the outside deck. The ferry departs at 9:15 AM and is scheduled to arrive at the SF Ferry Terminal at 9:45. It’s a fabulous excursion and I always feel like a tourist. I opt to remain out on the deck, it’s a great chance to take in the smells of the bay and have the wind blow in my face. Of course, the scenery is spectacular! Life is certainly wonderful!

After exiting the ferry, we head out to North Beach via the Embarcadero to Broadway, Columbus and Grant. We pass the Cathedral at Washington Square and continue to head towards Fisherman’s Wharf. We go by Ghiradelli Square and the Maritime Museum. No pics here, I’m on high alert due to all the traffic in the area.

There’s a little climb that takes us over to Fort Mason, the marina and Crissy Fields. We’re heading over to cross the Golden Gate Bridge. It’s heavily congested with tons of tourists. I’m constantly ringing my bell to get everyone’s attention to make room us to pass. This is definitely the most stressful part of the ride. The pedestrian traffic lightens up halfway across the bridge.

We eventually make our way through Sausalito and onto the bike path that will take us around and out to Strawberry Drive. We continue on to the Richardson Bay bike path towards Belvedere before reaching Tiburon for lunch.