Story: Scenic way is not alway the longest way

I travel from Sonoma county to San Francisco from time to time to go to trade shows and expos for work. One of the faculty I work with suggested we take the ferry on one such trip and now I take the ferry when ever I go to SF.

The Golden Gate Ferry has 2 routes to San Francisco, one from Larkspar and the other from Sausalito. You can check the website for the schedule http://goldengateferry.org From my area it is a short drive south on Highway 101 to Larkspur in Marin county. Parking at the ferry terminal is free.

The ferry ride to San Francisco takes about 30 to 45 minutes, depending on which ferry you get. Some of the boats are actual faster than others. The schedule is posted as to which boat and the running time. Regardless which ferry you take, it saves me the stress of about an hour and a half stop and go commuter drive across the Golden Gate Bridge and down to the Embarcadero. With no car to park in San Francisco, you save again on stress and the $20-30 in parking fees.

As you exit the ferry, you can get a transfer, which is good on all Muni vehicles (except cable cars) to and from the San Francisco Ferry Terminal. Besides Muni, Bart is only about 2 blocks away as as well as an Amtrak stop about a block south.

I usually walk as the Ferry Terminal is right at the bottom of Market Street, and most of the areas I need to go are only a few blocks from there. Besides, this area of San Francisco has been recently renovated.

The San Francisco Ferry Terminal now is full of all sorts of shopping and dining spots, including a Peet's Coffee, usually my first stop. For a full list of Merchants you can visit their web site.
http://www.ferrybuildingmarketplace.com

Now for the real reason to take the ferry. The scenic views of the bay, Angel Island, Alcatraz Island, the Golden Gate and Bay Bridges, and views of San Francisco from water level. So far most of the morning trips have been foggy, either me or the bay, hence the stop at Peet's Coffee. But some of the afternoon and evening trips have just been amazing clear. It has given me a new appreciation of the bay that I grew up on. (Yep, I am a local Berkeley-ite) Another thing I noticed while photographing from the ferry is that the light in the especially around sunrise and sunset changes so dramatically and in such a short period of time the same mountain can look different in just a couple of minutes.

There are a number of ferry's that are in service and the configuration is different on each one. If the weather is clear and the bay calm, I highly recommend the rear outdoor seating. The ferry will back from the dock, then turn away from the city when it is leaving San Francisco, so you have a great opportunity to photograph the city from water level. Then It heads north, close into Alcatraz and Angel Islands. The Ferries also have a full bar, room for bikes, and all vessels have wheelchair access.

There is the trip to Sausalito, originally an artist community which is where the other ferry route goes. But I will save that for another article.