Golden Gate Bridge

After spending some time walking the trails along the Pacific coastline at the western shores of The Presidio, we leisurely made our way to the Golden Gate Bridge.  

The weather was beautiful so we were in no hurry.  It was sunny, the skies were deep blue, and temperature was comfortable in the upper 80s but bordering on uncomfortable if we were in the sun and out of the cool Pacific breeze.  In those situations, it felt like it was 100°!  Considering it was still wintertime and we had at least four feet of snow at home, this was very welcomed weather for these northeasterners.  A leisurely stroll on a trail overlooking the Pacific Ocean sounded like a great way to spend a day in San Francisco!

We took our time exploring some of this coastline, hiking from overlook to overlook.  We scrambled up embankments and ladders to historic big gun batteries fortified along this western coastline with spectacular views of the Pacific Ocean.  We continued to get closer and closer to the Golden Gate Bridge. 

I have to admit that I may have been a little too focused on shooting landscape photos throughout this entire trip and often forgot about shooting some photos of the people accompanying me.  We passed through some iconic scenery while traveling by rail and I didn't want to miss the opportunity to capture any these places in photographs.  Actually, I was so focused on capturing as much landscape in photos that I fought sleeping while we were on the train (which wasn't the best plan for keeping my health stable).  

When we arrived in San Francisco, I already had some places in my mind that I knew I wanted to capture in photos so this was definitely something I had in my thoughts as we explored.  The Golden Gate Bridge was one of these places and I made sure to capture her from as many angles as I could in the short time we had in San Francisco.  That being said, as we approached the bridge, I did remember to take some time to capture some people photos.  Fortunately, having an iconic bridge in the background of some people photos came to my mind before it was too late.  So, there are actually some photos of people in this blog entry!

The waves were crashing on the shore below our perch high above the Pacific Ocean and the Golden Gate Straight.  Ahhh...  mentioning this body of water reminds me that I wanted to write about the name of the Golden Gate Bridge.  

It seems that many people think the bridge is named for its unusual color but then are confused to learn that the color is actually 'International Orange' and not a golden yellow.  The bridge is actually named for the body of water it spans...  the Golden Gate Straight...  and not the color of the bridge.

Before the start of the gold rush era (the late 1840's), this body of water was named "Boca del Puerto de San Francisco" (mouth of the port of San Francisco) by Spanish colonists who also established The Presidio.  The Presidio was subsequently passed to Mexico and then, shortly before the gold rush, a US Army captain renamed this body of water "The Golden Gate Straight" because it reminded him of the harbor in Istanbul (formerly known as Byzantium and then Constantinople) named the "Golden Horn".  He also referred to it as "a golden gate to trade with the Orient"...  in stark contrast to today's "byzantine" and backward US economic-political attitude...  an irony which definitely crossed my mind as I looked out toward the Orient across the Pacific Ocean.

So, the name "Golden Gate" has nothing to do with the actual color of this iconic landmark bridge.  Although one can't help but wonder about the golden reference when seeing the golden sun setting behind this beautiful suspension bridge.  Technically, however, the bridge is named after the body of water...  the Golden Gate Straight...  which we see in this next photo...

Below, is a view of the Golden Gate Bridge spanning across the Golden Gate Straight with Fort Point at the base of the bridge.  Fort Point may look familiar to Hitchcock fans and fans of the movie "Vertigo" which was filmed at Fort Point...

Here is a rare photo of me with the beautiful Sheila...

For most of our walk out onto the bridge, we kept our eyes turned to our right and toward downtown San Francisco and the San Francisco Bay but, when we had walked almost halfway across the bridge, we noticed a wall of fog making a surprise attack rolling toward us from our left and the Pacific Ocean!  Here is a photo of this wall of fog rolling over the hills to the northwest of the bridge as it approached us...  

Looking east, toward downtown San Francisco and the San Francisco Bay, the city is still under clear skies and sunshine...

The temperature was dropping quickly as the fog approached us.  We were excited to be lucky enough to capture some scenery with sunny and clear weather and then to also get to see the bridge become enveloped in fog!  The timing of the change in weather was perfect!  In this next photo, the leading edge of the fog is just beginning to roll under the bridge and into the San Francisco Bay...

Here is a short video of the fog rolling in under the bridge, heading into the San Francisco Bay and toward San Francisco and Alcatraz...







Next up is a sequence of photos showing the fog quickly and quietly fill the bay area...

Downtown San Francisco is now barely seen through a break in the fog as it continues to blow in...  by this point, being on the bridge was quite chilly and windy...

Considering the sudden change in weather, we were all beginning to get quite cold.  The wind had picked up and the fog was cold and damp so we made our way off the bridge...  

Earlier, as we were walking out onto the bridge in the sunshine, I think I actually said to Sheila that I had hoped for some more interesting weather while we were able to photograph the bridge.  Sunny and clear is always welcomed but sometimes a bit of "a thicker, visible atmosphere" can make a scene more interesting.  Within minutes, the fog surprised us by quickly rolling in from the ocean.  It was like someone was listening and pushed this wall of fog toward us so I would have a chance to photograph the bridge in the fog.  

Although we were all excited to have such beautiful sunny weather, we were definitely thankful to have experienced being on the Golden Gate Bridge in sunny, clear weather and also as a wall of fog enveloped us.

We walked back to the little National Park area at the base of the bridge so we could catch a shuttle bus to take us to The Palace of Fine Arts...  our day wasn't over just yet...