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Question about San Francisco and Pebble Beach (1 Viewer)

TheIronSheik

TheIronSheik

SUPER ELITE UPPER TIER
Don't usually post on the weekends, so not sure how many people will see this but trying to get some last minute advice on my trip.  I fly out Monday morning and get to SFO around noon.  I have to do a quick visit to the plant on Monday but it's not an actual work day, so I was thinking about trying to squeeze in some sights.  My hotel is in Morgan Hill, so it looks like it's about an hour from the airport.  I'll be in working in Gilroy on Monday afternoon and Tuesday.  Hayward on Wednesday.  Then maybe both on Thursday.  

I'd like to get a couple pictures of the Golden Gate Bridge so I'm thinking of going there straight from the airport.  Where is the best place to go to take a couple quick pics of the bridge?  Looks like if I had there right from the airport, that'll be my best and only chance to see it in the daytime.

The other thing is I thought I might leave Gilroy around 5 and try to drive to Pebble Beach.  I saw that for like $11, you can do something called 17 mile drive.  Can I get some good pictures of the course and/or sunset over the ocean from that road?  Monday is going to be the only day to squeeze this stuff in, I think.  Just trying to get some advice.

TIA
TIS

 
Apple Jack said:
The Marin Headlands is probably the best place to get a photo of the GGB. 17 Mile Drive is gorgeous.
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Anything I should know about 17 Mile Drive?  Especially since I might be racing against the sun setting.  Like what to make time for and what not to waste time on?  I might only have like 45 minutes on that thing.

 
TheIronSheik said:
Anything I should know about 17 Mile Drive?  Especially since I might be racing against the sun setting.  Like what to make time for and what not to waste time on?  I might only have like 45 minutes on that thing.
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I don't recall, but you'll definitely want to stop in the stretch around Cypress Point.

Edit: Not that I'd advocate for such behavior, but years ago a friend and I played 15 on CP before being busted and politely removed by the asst super. He was way cooler about it than we expected. The tee box is just off the road.

 
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TheIronSheik said:
Just saw this is on the north side.  Anything on the south side, so I don''t have to go across the bridge?
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Just about anywhere on the water. There's a parking area just before the bridge where you can walk down to the water and get photos. You can also get a less commonly seen vantage point, from the SW side, from Lands End.

 
Apple Jack said:
TheIronSheik said:
Just saw this is on the north side.  Anything on the south side, so I don''t have to go across the bridge?
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Just about anywhere on the water. There's a parking area just before the bridge where you can walk down to the water and get photos. You can also get a less commonly seen vantage point, from the SW side, from Lands End.
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Fort Point or Baker's Beach are other options. 

If you're making a special trip to the City just for a GG photo op, the Headlands vantage point is still the classic.

 
Eephus said:
Fort Point or Baker's Beach are other options. 

If you're making a special trip to the City just for a GG photo op, the Headlands vantage point is still the classic.
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The end of Fort Point at night (under the SF side of GG - where Kim Novak threw herself in the drink in Vertigo) is one of the alltime romantic spots in the world. It used to be illegal but sneakable. is it still? had a ladyfriend who liked to romantic her brains out there.

 
TheIronSheik said:
Just saw this is on the north side.  Anything on the south side, so I don''t have to go across the bridge?
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Eephus and Apple Jack have got it right for the SF side of the bridge. 

Another option would be to go to USF and get shots from the north side of the Admin Building (aka Lone Mountain). 

 
God.  It's almost an hour drive from the airport to the GGB.  Not sure I'm going to be able to do that.   :(

 
you are covering a lot of ground and the days are getting shorter. gilroy to hayward is going to be a bear. morgan hill to hayward is about an hour without traffic.  

also, i agree with baker beach/presidio, fort point, marin headlands, and a great spot near lands end/lincoln park for a bridge pic, you might be better off staying east and trying berkley or emeryville 

 
Quint said:
Is that from 101 North? That drive is a mess. 

I’d go 380>280>19th ave. 
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The latter is usually better with fewer backups but it's still a lot of driving for a selfie.

101 N would take you right near my house though.

 
Assuming your plane arrives on time at SFO at noon and picking up the rental car, getting to the GGB is going to take some time.  I would figure that is going to take you until 3ish.  The Marin Headlands is the iconic photo. 

You might also enjoy a walk along Crissy Field to Fort Point, where you will will be up close and personal underneath the GGB.  You will have a full panoramic view of the GGB, Alcatraz, Angel Island, Marin, and the Bay the entire time.

From the GGB, driving through SF, down the peninsula to Morgan Hill is going to be a nightmare as there is no way to avoid the afternoon traffic.  The 280 route passes through Stanford and rolling hills and is a much prettier, more relaxing drive than 101.  Please take advantage of this route... you won't regret it.

Traffic usually clogs at Morgan Hill through Gilroy.  When we head to Pacific Grove for the weekend, we usually wait until after 8pm to let traffic die down.

As you enter Monterey, get off at the first exit for the Pacific Grove turnoff.  Follow the signs to the Monterey Bay aquarium and enjoy the Ocean View Blvd coastal road from there that ends at Asilomar Beach/the gated entry to 17-Mile Drive.

The public beach at Carmel-by-the-Sea is worth a stop, but a little further is the Point Lobos State Reserve if you have some time and want to walk along the scenic coast line.

 
TheIronSheik said:
Anything I should know about 17 Mile Drive?  Especially since I might be racing against the sun setting.  Like what to make time for and what not to waste time on?  I might only have like 45 minutes on that thing.
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17 Mile Drive is really not that great.  I wouldn't make an extra trip to see it on limited time.

 
Eephus said:
Fort Point or Baker's Beach are other options. 

If you're making a special trip to the City just for a GG photo op, the Headlands vantage point is still the classic.
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I have great pics from fort point.  I some how was able to drive almost to the bridge on some road

I think this was fort point

https://imgur.com/mCz6Ots

 
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Maybe factor weather into your decision making? Should be sunny next few days. And note the weather you see when you wake up is often not the weather you'll have for the day. Wait for the coastal fog to burn off, often by noon. It's similar in Monterey Bay. But note it doesn't always burn off, like today.

 
Can you go to Marin Headlands before sunrise? If so, maybe I’ll go down there at like 4-5am on Friday. Flight to leave SFO is 9:30am. 

 
If I get to PB, I might hit the pro shop. They have like 9 different shops listed but I assume golf shirts are sold at the Lone Cyprus Store?

I'm putting the Chances of all my plans working at 1%. Two plans working, 4%. One plan working, 18%. 
 

Do you believe in miracles?

 
TheIronSheik said:
Can you go to Marin Headlands before sunrise? If so, maybe I’ll go down there at like 4-5am on Friday. Flight to leave SFO is 9:30am. 
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It's open but you'd need a long exposure to take a photograph. The bridge is lit up as are the city lights in the background.

 
TheIronSheik said:
Made it to Pebble Beach last night. Was beautiful. Got some great pictures and was able to buy a nice golf polo from the pro shop. 
 

I may switch hotels for my last two nights and move closer to Hayward. Not sure if that’ll help my chances of nabbing a picture of the GGB or not. 
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Hayward is closer than Morgan Hill but not really in the direction of the GGB.  Can you stay somewhere on the peninsula like South SF or Milbrae/Burlingame? Added benefit of being close to the airport.  

 
Scoresman said:
Hayward is closer than Morgan Hill but not really in the direction of the GGB.  Can you stay somewhere on the peninsula like South SF or Milbrae/Burlingame? Added benefit of being close to the airport.  
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Not sure where I'm getting a hotel.  Have to ask the guy in charge out here where I should stay.  He was saying maybe the hotel airport.  If that was the case, after work on Thursday I'd head over to Marin, snap some pictures then head to the rental car return and the airport hotel.  

My chances really have sunk, though.  Driving into work today (an 8 mile drive on 101), my back tire blew out.  So my rental car now has a doughnut on it.  When I called about exchanging my car, I was told that there are no available rental cars from Enterprise unless I wanted to drive back up to SFO.  So I don't want to be doing too much driving on that thing.

 
TheIronSheik said:
Not sure where I'm getting a hotel.  Have to ask the guy in charge out here where I should stay.  He was saying maybe the hotel airport.  If that was the case, after work on Thursday I'd head over to Marin, snap some pictures then head to the rental car return and the airport hotel.  

My chances really have sunk, though.  Driving into work today (an 8 mile drive on 101), my back tire blew out.  So my rental car now has a doughnut on it.  When I called about exchanging my car, I was told that there are no available rental cars from Enterprise unless I wanted to drive back up to SFO.  So I don't want to be doing too much driving on that thing.
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The SFO Grand Hyatt literally just opened and it's on airport property.  It's supposedly really nice.  Would be the most convenient but I assume it's pricey due to the location.  The rental car center is literally down the street.  Would be pretty easy because after dropping the car off, you just take the people mover train two stops from the rental car center to the airport hotel.  No taxis or shuttles to work out.  

 
I honestly think my only chance of seeing the GGB at this point is from the airplane.  And that requires me being in a window seat.  That window being on the right side of the plane.  And the plane taking off in a direction that brings the bridge into view.  Because we did not see the bridge coming into land.  

I mean, it's not a huge deal, because I've seen it before.  Twice, actually.  Just thought it would be cool to see it again.  I had never seen PB before, so that was the main one I wanted to check off the bucket list.  I still hope to play there one day, but at least I was able to see it in case I die suddenly.  

 
TheIronSheik said:
I honestly think my only chance of seeing the GGB at this point is from the airplane.  And that requires me being in a window seat.  That window being on the right side of the plane.  And the plane taking off in a direction that brings the bridge into view.  Because we did not see the bridge coming into land.  

I mean, it's not a huge deal, because I've seen it before.  Twice, actually.  Just thought it would be cool to see it again.  I had never seen PB before, so that was the main one I wanted to check off the bucket list.  I still hope to play there one day, but at least I was able to see it in case I die suddenly.  
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Well, planes do takeoff here in the direction of the bridge but many turn off before reaching it.  Unless you're going to Seattle or Portland.  Even then, by the time you can see it, you're pretty high up already.  Good news is the weather is keeping the fog away pretty much all week.  Sometimes people come to see the bridge and can't even see it even from the headlands or fort point.  

 
Scoresman said:
Well, planes do takeoff here in the direction of the bridge but many turn off before reaching it.  Unless you're going to Seattle or Portland.  Even then, by the time you can see it, you're pretty high up already.  Good news is the weather is keeping the fog away pretty much all week.  Sometimes people come to see the bridge and can't even see it even from the headlands or fort point.  
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This is a great point.  I've seen it twice and both times the weather couldn't have been more crystal clear.  I remember people telling us, "You guys got really lucky.  It's never this clear."  BOTH TIMES!  So, I can't complain too much.  And the first time I saw it, it was cloudy every day we were here except for the day we went down to the bridge.  We took a helicopter ride and flew around the towers.  It's one of my fondest memories of my childhood.  Of course, as we got out of the helicopter, we saw an old man collapse to the ground with his adult children screaming for someone to help them.  So it's also one of the worst childhood memories.  To this day, my parents will be like, "Remember when we took you kids to San Francisco?"  And me and my older brother will be like, "Yeah, and we saw that old man die."  That old man's pained face is etched in my brain forever, as is the panicked face of his son making direct eye contact with me as he yelled, "Someone, please, help!"  Brings a chill to my body just typing this.

But that helicopter ride was the bomb.

 
I just got charged for a bag at CVS. Not a fan of California. And every fast food place I’ve gone, I’ve gotten a plastic straw. What’s up with that?  

 
TheIronSheik said:
This is a great point.  I've seen it twice and both times the weather couldn't have been more crystal clear.  I remember people telling us, "You guys got really lucky.  It's never this clear."  BOTH TIMES!  So, I can't complain too much.  And the first time I saw it, it was cloudy every day we were here except for the day we went down to the bridge.  We took a helicopter ride and flew around the towers.  It's one of my fondest memories of my childhood.  Of course, as we got out of the helicopter, we saw an old man collapse to the ground with his adult children screaming for someone to help them.  So it's also one of the worst childhood memories.  To this day, my parents will be like, "Remember when we took you kids to San Francisco?"  And me and my older brother will be like, "Yeah, and we saw that old man die."  That old man's pained face is etched in my brain forever, as is the panicked face of his son making direct eye contact with me as he yelled, "Someone, please, help!"  Brings a chill to my body just typing this.

But that helicopter ride was the bomb.
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Fog in October would be pretty strange. It's a summer thing.

 
If you are in Hayward then just drive out to treasure island and try and snap a shot from there of the ggb, I was on there all day today and could see a part of the ggb. Duck I hate the traffic up here

 
Have not been there in the last 8 or so years, so hopefully this is not too out of date, but it is mostly residential . You can just drive up and park somewhere on the street. Had friends who lived there and they would always have parties, you could see Marin, SF, Oakland fireworks for 4th of July etc. 

 
So if I stay at the Grand Hyatt, can I take that blue line tram from the car rental place to the hotel?  Then take it from the hotel to the airport?

 
I've been to California probably about 15 times in my life for a total of about 15 weeks.  So that's about 4 months.  A third of a year.  And I've never even felt a tiny rumble of an earthquake.  I'm starting to think these things are about as real as Bigfoot.  

I mean, I don't want to feel a 9.7 earthquake.  But I wouldn't mind feeling a 5.1.  Just enough to get the adrenaline flowing.  Same way I want to see a tornado up close.  But not too close.  I want that "roller coaster effect."  The illusion of danger while completely safe.  

 
TheIronSheik said:
So if I stay at the Grand Hyatt, can I take that blue line tram from the car rental place to the hotel?  Then take it from the hotel to the airport?
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Yes. I’m on it now and just passed the hotel as a matter of fact!  That’s assuming you used a rental agency that was located in the main rental car center. There are a few where you would’ve had to shuttle to and those would require a shuttle again. 

 
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