Week 6: Larkspur to San Francisco

Week 6: Larkspur to San Francisco

May 17th, 18th, 19th, and 21st, 2017

57.99 miles (286 Total)
18 hours and 39 minutes (133 hours 45 minutes Total)

Accounting: 

    Starting Balance                                        76.22

• Uber Earnings over the weekend                          (7.85)

    Ending Balance                                          68.37

Kombucha of the Weekend -- Sweat Tea

Voice Notes:

nada

Day 24: Bay to Breakers to Bridge

Day 24:  Bay to Breakers to Bridge

May 21st, 2017

20.37 miles in 7 hours 30 minutes

I'm adding one extra day on this hike to be a tourist in San Francisco.  And I registered a long time ago for the Bay to Breakers race.  So why not combine the two with a Bay to Breakers to Bridge run/walk?  I took Caltrain to the start of the race.  How can people be partying like that at 6:28 AM in the morning?

Only ran into a few naked men and one topless woman in this year's race.  My costume was advertising this blog.  Because I haven't been training for running lately, I would run for two blocks and walk for one one block.  A two hour time is not that bad.

After the race Laura met me at Ft. Miley, and we hiked together to the Golden Gate Bridge, first on the Cliff Walk, then up the Lincoln Highway to the bridge.  This segment had been my first leg of the 200 mile Napa Valley Ragnar Relay I did in 2013.  Back then the sandy stairs of the eroded Cliff Walk were a little more challenging with only a headlamp for illumination.

  

The Golden Gate Bridge is the ultimate tourist destination in San Francisco.  A steady stream of walkers and rental bikers crowd the sidewalks on either side of the roadway. We got an Uber from Chrissy Field by the House that Gorbachev got for dissolving the Soviet Union?

Day 24:  Bay to Breakers to Bridge

    Starting Balance                                       60.74

• Caltrain to SF                                          5.75 
• Philz Coffee and Breakfast Sandwich                    10.00

    Ending Balance                                         76.22

Kombucha of the Day -- Pineapple (fresh batch)

Voice Notes:

This Bay to Breakers crowd is fun but hard to maintain an upbeat mental attitude with all the noise on the train.

Day 23: Sausalito to The Presidio

Day 23:  Sausalito to The Presidio

May 19th, 2017

12.13 miles in 5 hours 5 minutes

I made money Ubering to downtown San Francisco today, thinking I could hike that far from Sausalito.  I miscalculated and only made it to the Presidio at the southern end of the Golden Gate Bridge.  But it did give me a chance to take a bus to Sausalito on one of the Marin County services, the green buses I was familiar with from living in the Marina neighborhood next to the Presidio when my wife Laura started her internship.

New Salesforce Tower in San Francisco

The first stop on the trail today was the US Army Corp of Engineers San Francisco Bay Model.  My main thought on walking into this place is why have I never been here before.  It is like a Discovery Museum focused on the place we live.  

Bay Model view of Golden Gate Bridge from the south

Bay Model view of Golden Gate to the west

I timed myself walking around the entire model in 12 minutes.  Since it is at one thousandth scale, that translates into 12,000 minutes or 200 hours of real world walking.  Not a bad estimate, because at week 4 I was at 96 hours of walking, and I'm guesstimating I'll be done in 8 weeks.

Floating Taj Mahal in Sausalito

The bridge comes into site around the bend in Fort Baker

Incredible number of bikers on Sausalito Ferry loop

Day 23:  Sausalito to The Presidio

    Starting Balance                                      106.74

• Uber Earnings to downtown SF                          (35.05)
• Coffee and Breakfast Sandwich                           8.47
• All Day Parking in downtown SF                         20.00
• Uber ride to Fisherman's Wharf                          7.57
• SF Streetcar back to parking                            2.50
• Uber Earnings from downtown SF                        (49.76)

    Ending Balance                                         60.47

Kombucha of the Day -- Grapefruit Juice

Voice Notes:

 The restroom Code is 159357

Where there is so much wealth you think there would be fair and equitable treatment of those not well-off.

I left my car in San Francisco

I recognize the Boston-ness of the first ride this morning.

And now I can hear that Chicago flatness in the voice of a Sausalito volunteer.

I feel at home in San Francisco.

Day 22: Tiburon to Sausalito

Day 22:  Tiburon to Sausalito

May 18th, 2017

10.78 miles in 4 hours 37 minutes

I failed to read the ferry schedule correctly this morning, and thought the only option to get to Tiburon was a tourist ferry out of Fisherman's Wharf.  So I drove for Uber to Chrissy Field instead, parked in a paid day use lot for the Bay Trail, and then took an Uber myself to Tiburon.

Hiker on Tiburon Rail Trail

Tiburon is the most exclusive place I've hiked through next to the bay.  Most likely because the rocky shoreline was desirable for wealthy San Franciscans looking for a sunny place with easy sailing access for summer recreation.  That wealthy leisure class still lives here, but seems to dedicate its free time more to tennis than sailing nowadays.

It makes sense that the litter I photograph on this stretch is the most elaborate prom invitation sign you can imagine, discarded by the roadside.  Save the planet but first raid the art supply shop before they run out of everything.

The detour around the Mill Valley lagoon was longer than I estimated, so I didn't make it to the Golden Gate Bridge today.  I'm still trying to make it to the start of the Bay to Breakers on Friday so I can add the "race" (for which I'm registered) to this walk.

Day 22:  Tiburon to Sausalito

    Starting Balance                                       70.79

• Uber Earnings to Crissy Field                         (35.14)
• Uber ride from Crissy Field to Tiburon                 35.82
• Breakfast Sandwich and Coffee in Tiburon               16.90
• Lemonade from Gas Station                               2.30
• Uber ride to Crissy Field from Sausalito               23.90
• Uber Earnings from Crissy Field                        (7.83)

    Ending Balance                                        106.74

Kombucha of the Day -- Dr. Pepper

Voice Notes:

The first 2 miles are always the longest. 

They still play tennis in Marin County.

Day 21: Larkspur to Tiburon

Day 21:  Larkspur to Tiburon

May 17th, 2017

14.71 miles in 6 hours 32 minutes

I took 9 different forms of public transit today, bus/train/subway/ferry to the start of the hike in Larkspur, and ferry/streetcar/subway/train/bus to get home from Tiburon.  After navigating across the Larkspur slough, I got ready for the day's walk in the Corte Madera mall before stores opened for the day.  It really struck me how they were selling the good life to only women of a certain age, a view of the world I've always bought into but never quite achieved, of simply having all the time and money and enthusiasm to live the good life of cuisine and clothing and travel so others will notice and like you.

Advertisement in The Village at Corte Madera 

I guess thoughts of the good life stretched into the walk around Tiburon, which is a small twisty road on the edge of the bay that has that look of Tahoe as a concentration of wealth and leisure.  In the middle of this stretch is Paradise Beach Park, and it did feel like an Elysian landscape when I took my lunch break there.  A hidden gem of a bayside park that will probably remain that way.

Paradise Beach Park, Tiburon

Paradise Beach Park, Tiburon

Paradise Beach Park, Tiburon

When I finally turned the corner to get a view of San Francisco, I was impressed by the four story houses that hang on the cliff side.  I dismiss their size from the water, but from the sidewalk they show the courage of living in a house hanging over the bay.

Top floor of a four story cliff house in Tiburon

Last mile to the Tiburon Ferry

I had to run the last mile to the Tiburon Ferry to make sure I caught it right at 2:25.  I thought I was going to the Ferry Building in San Francisco, but this ferry was headed to Fisherman's Wharf.  No problem, I hopped on the street car on Embarcadero to get to BART, which was crowded with a field trip of school kids.  Which was nothing compared to the Giants crowd coming home on Caltrain.  All part of the adventure.

Day 21:  Larkspur to Tiburon

    Starting Balance                                       11.99

• Samtrans ECR to San Carlos Station                      2.05
• Caltrain to Millbrae                                    3.75
• BART to Embarcadero                                     4.65
• Peet's Coffee at Ferry Building + breakfast sandwich    7.80
• Ferry to Larkspur                                      11.00
• Starbucks Coffee at Corte Madera mall                   4.35
• Ferry from Tiburon to Fisherman's Wharf                12.50
• F Train from Fisherman's Wharf to Embarcadero           2.25
• BART to Millbrae                                        4.65
• Caltrain to San Carlos                                  3.75
• Samtrans ECR to Home                                    2.05

    Ending Balance                                         70.79

Kombucha of the Day -- Cranberry

Voice Notes:

Original dictation (read phonetically):  Clearest day on the trail yet. I can see the light hell with barely any missed. I've never quite seen the Berkeley hills that clean.

Corrected dictation:  Clearest day on the trail yet. I can see Vallejo with barely any mist. I've never quite seen the Berkeley hills that clean.

Week 5: Petaluma to Larkspur

Week 5: Petaluma to Larkspur

May 8th, 12th, 13th, and 14th, 2017

42.67 miles (226 Total)
18 hours and 55 minutes (115 hours 6 minutes Total)

I made it within striking distance of San Francisco this week, hiking through all the coves of Marin County, the once small fishing and farming villages that are separated by hills that reach to the bay.  Highway 1 is a roller coaster in this stretch, as it climbs and falls into Novato, then northern San Rafael, then San Rafael, then Larkspur/Corte Madera, and finally the big cove of Tiburon, Mill Valley, and Sausalito.

Each week I have tried to find a single photo of the week's trip that I could illustrate with a rough approximation of the route.  This week I have not found one.  This is not the corner of the bay people focus their lens on, and I haven't made it to a high enough hill on the other side to grab the shot.  I'll have to render it myself using Google Earth it seems.

Finally found a view of this weeks trek at the Bay Model.

Accounting: 

    Starting Balance                                        25.64

• Uber Earnings over the weekend                         (13.65)

    Ending Balance                                          11.99

Kombucha of the Weekend -- didn't have any

Voice Notes:

nada

Day 20: San Rafael Bay to Corte Madera

Day 20:  San Rafael Bay to Larkspur

May 13th, 2017

10.80 miles in 4 hours 56 minutes

A lot of this walk was through the waterfront business district of San Rafael and to make it go by faster I talked to my Dad and my brother Mark on the phone.  I'm grateful they have been reading this blog.  I hope they find it entertaining.

New market under construction along the waterfront in San Rafael

Then I tried to walk to San Quentin Point, the end of the run of hills that separate San Rafael from Larkspur.  But the trail was fenced off.  I guess they don't want pedestrians strolling on the bay side of the prison.  So I had to walk up and over that hill using the Sir Francis Drake Boulevard exit off of 580.

Sir Francis Drake Boulevard exit off of 580

After getting over that hill I realized my day would end at the Larkspur Ferry Terminal, not the Bay Trail parking spot where I had left my car in Corte Madera.  Given another chance to use ferry transit to the trail I was going to take it.

Special Event Ferry in Larkspur

Across from the Larkspur Ferry Terminal is a statue of either a Spanish Conquistadore or Don Quixote himself.  Still off chasing some impossible dream.

Statue in Spanish armor across from Larkspur Ferry

Day 20:  San Rafael Bay to Larkspur

Accounting: 

    Starting Balance                                       17.85

• Uber earnings to Corte Madera                         (13.26)
• Uber ride to San Rafael Bayside Park                   13.10
• Trader Joes raspberries, Cobb salad, and choc. bar      8.57
• Planet Juice egg bagel and coffee                       6.70
• Uber earnings from Corte Madera                       (22.90)

    Ending Balance                                         25.64

Kombucha of the Day -- Lemonade

Voice Notes:

The voice in my head that does the most worrying ends up misdirecting me from what I want to do.

Caring for people isn't the same thing as caring what negative things they think about you. I wish I'd figured that out a while ago.

I never thought until now that walking the bay might be a demonstration of work ethic.

Day 19: Northern San Rafael to San Rafael Bay

Day 19:  Northern San Rafael to San Rafael Bay

May 13th, 2017

10.99 miles in 5 hours 4 minutes

This morning in the park near the Marin County Civic Center there was a fund-raising 5K where I got a free cup of coffee from a booth that was promoting their product. 

Marin County Civic Center designed by Frank Lloyd Wright

Later in the day I snuck a little picnic table space in a day use area of China Camp State Park reserved for a for-profit off-road trail 5K!  While there I think I heard a wise man comment on the venture capitalist nature of the Bay Area, and how that results in a certain sort of froth (of freebies is my assumption).  I had thrown out the froth of my free coffee by then (after I had refilled it at a 711).

Cars parked for trail run

That for-profit trail race interests me in a few ways:  running or walking on trails I've finally found is so much nicer on my feet.  After two stress fractured heels I pay attention to that kind of thing now.  And the fact you simply pay for the services required to safely enjoy the event keeps you away from non-profit commercialism of the hobby that happens at a lot of other events.  Do people who golf have to be raising money for something every time they tee up?

The trail 5K I've been looking for?

The hike through the balance of China Camp State Park was very peaceful.  To me it felt like a remote state park in the Midwest, not an urban park in the middle of the Bay Area. But this deer I ran across had kind of an urban attitude and stood his ground the entire time I walked by.  I haven't been scared by a deer like that since I was quite young.

A deer with attitude

Day 19:  Northern San Rafael to San Rafael Bay

Accounting: 

    Starting Balance                                       70.03

• Uber earnings to and from Marin County Civic Center   (72.66)
• 7-11 coffee and breakfast sandwich.                     4.42
• Uber ride back to Marin County Civic Center.           16.06

    Ending Balance                                         17.85

Kombucha of the Day -- Margarita Mix

Voice Notes:

The design of the 2016 and 2017 Toyota Prius somehow makes me feel like the world's going to be OK, because things are going to be cool and efficient.

The Marin County Civic Center designed by Frank Lloyd Wright sits at the same dramatic point of the landscape as his eventual Lake Monona building in Madison, built over the place where my Mom worked for the State Dept. of Health.

Today I am walking N. San Pedro Rd. which seems like the original highway that connected this northern part of San Rafael with the main valley. Also the road to Petaluma and Novato.

A prohibition against talking to yourself makes it hard to practice.

I could've and should've done this hike 28 years ago. 

As always I need to pay more attention to my large muscles  and my core so that the small muscles in my feet and heels and ankle last longer.

In a way this is like the bicycle trip to California through California that I took. It was a way of taking a timeout from work to wait for the future.

Of course I'm keeping prepared.

But the thing is I really like the version of myself on this trail. So that's a pretty high bar for any venture to allow for them to pass my audition.

And I don't mean allow me to go hiking all the time I mean allow me to be true to myself.

Of course this means I have to work for myself. But there's always a need for others.

Went past a park employee in China Camp State Park using a lawn or hedge trimmer to take out fennel before they grow too high.

I think I took a break and sat down at a picnic table at the next one over from the lead singer in Cake.  I overheard mild discussion about Bay Area culture and the froth of speculation which seems his style. 

And there I was the only person in the park typing away on their laptop.  Programming actually.