After Mendocino there was only one goal: San Francisco. Before we got there, we stayed in a $9 "palace", rode across a red bridge coming out of the fog, and for the first time on this trip lay down on a hostel bed. Riding into a city by bike turned out to be easy. The hard part was not running out of money there. Let me tell you now: I failed :)
- ManchesterMacKerricher → Manchester KOAThe state park was closed; the KOA hiker-biker site was $9. Night: a hot tub, a free kitchen and a shared campfire.
- Coast roadManchester → Wrights BeachA grocery and sandwich stop on the way. Night: Wrights Beach.
- Golden GateWrights Beach → Sausalito → San FranciscoSausalito, fog and the Golden Gate. Night: Amsterdam Hostel.
- San FranciscoDays in the cityIn-N-Out, cable cars, the sea lions of Pier 39, Hard Rock Cafe and a $90 lesson at Hooters.
| MacKerricher → Manchester | 66 km | ↑ 540 m | ↓ 530 m |
| Manchester → Wrights Beach | 103 km | ↑ 860 m | ↓ 880 m |
| Wrights Beach → San Francisco | 132 km | ↑ 910 m | ↓ 870 m |
| Stage total | 301 km | ↑ 2310 m | ↓ 2280 m |
I could not keep a daily GPS log: in 2011 power banks were hardly a thing, and with GPS tracking on the phone battery died within an hour, which would have made recording the rest of the tour impossible. So these are approximate values from Google Maps cycling directions along the route I rebuilt from the location points on my phone. On the few days where Google pushed the route onto other roads, distance comes from my own route and climbing from an elevation model. Ferry crossings are not included.
Manchester KOA · A palace for $9
Manchester State Park was closed, so we headed to the KOA. They gave us a special price for the hiker-biker site: $9. For that we got a hot tub, a free kitchen, a free stove and laundry. At night there was a shared campfire for everyone; with a couple of beers it was a really good evening. There were four of us at the hiker-biker site. We also met a talkative man from Quebec who was travelling with his family.
The only thing missing was wifi: I could use it for just 30 minutes. In that short time I sent an email to my father and wrote to my mom on Facebook. The next two days we would stay in state parks again, and I would probably not be able to reach them. The park staff were friendly as always. I must admit it now: on this trip I fell in love with KOAs.
Sausalito · This side of the bay
After a night at Wrights Beach, the coast road brought us to Sausalito. The bay in front of us, and on the other side, San Francisco in the fog... I opened my arms and posed like an airplane. We also took a souvenir photo with the cyclist friends we had met on the road.
Golden Gate · A red bridge out of the fog
And then the bridge. The towers of the Golden Gate, which I knew from films and postcards, were disappearing into the fog. On the grass in front of it I raised my arm, and then Philip and I posed side by side. On the bridge there was wind, fog and cars rushing right past us. We had pedalled from Vancouver all the way to this bridge. Except for a few ferries, of course :)
We had pedalled from Vancouver all the way to this bridge.
San Francisco · A mix of Taksim and Bodrum
We spent our first night in San Francisco at the Amsterdam Hostel. The city felt like a mix of my two favourite places in Turkey, Taksim and Bodrum. The only difference was the hills; this city's hills can really drive you crazy sometimes. On the first evening we had burgers at In-N-Out. Not bad. The hostel was clean, and there we met a German brother and sister who were travelling around California. The wifi, however, was slow and did not work from the room.
For the second night we paid $68 because of weekend prices. Next time I will definitely book online in advance. The hostel had a free pancake breakfast, but with the crowd waiting in line, cooking was almost impossible. So I discovered Subway's $3 breakfast combo; a much better idea. One night my room was going to be full, so I moved into Philip's room. We shared it with a German couple.
Pier 39 · Sea lions and beers with no price
Pier 39 was a real tourist centre: souvenir shops, restaurants... But I liked it. Next to the pier the sea lions were making noise all the time, and Alcatraz was across the water. I bought 4 magnets and 2 cooking gloves; one glove for my mom, the other for Joylin.
The real trap in San Francisco was drinks. With food the prices were normal, but when you only wanted a drink, things changed: prices were very high, and the menus did not even show alcohol prices. At Hard Rock Cafe we had burgers, shared nachos and drank three glasses of soda. The atmosphere was good, and with fast wifi I called my family. The bill was $70. But who cared, I was already broke :)
Then we stopped at the world-famous Hooters. We all know what it is famous for; we went in calling it “a cultural experience” :) But the real lesson came from somewhere else: a $90 bill. The beer was very good, no complaints there; but the worst part of the night was the bill. That day I made myself a promise: I will never again drink beer in a place where I don't know the price.
A few days later we would get back on the bikes and leave the city behind, heading south. Ahead of us was the most famous coast road of the trip: Big Sur.
- Where we slept: the KOA near Manchester (hiker-biker site $9, hot tub and free kitchen), Wrights Beach, Amsterdam Hostel in San Francisco. For their status today: Where we stayed
- Prices in 2011: a weekend night at Amsterdam Hostel $68, Subway breakfast combo $3, Hard Rock Cafe $70, Hooters $90.
- Lesson from the road: Weekend prices go up in San Francisco; book your hostel in advance. Don't drink beer where you don't know the price.
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