San Francisco

mileshuff wrote:
BART is great at getting around the bay area except for one major problem. It is nearly impossible to find parking at one of the east bay BART stations after 7:30AM during the week. Ended up driving into SF each day during our last visit.

Shouldn't be a problem in Plesanton. Plesanton Fairgrounds is a decent RV park. Good restaurants and mall there also.

BART is great at getting around the bay area except for one major problem. It is nearly impossible to find parking at one of the east bay BART stations after 7:30AM during the week. Ended up driving into SF each day during our last visit.

Personally, I prefer not to be entering or leaving the city between 3 and 7 PM. Wall to wall vehicles. Been there and done that several times Actually I think a 20 to 30 mile radius of San Francisco is wall to wall.

Wayne

Public transportation is your best bet. Van tour, hop-on hop-off tour, cable cars.
If you are not use to driving in heavy city traffic your best bet, first time in, is ferry (can be boarded at several locations), BART, or shuttle from RV park,if provided.
Get stuck in down town traffic it can sometimes take an hour or more to just go a few blocks (like 3 blocks). Though I use to drive in it everyday; you do not want to drive the Bay Bridge or Golden Gate during rush hour. The Golden Gate can be impossible on a nice weekend....dang tourists.
Have fun it is a great city.

We stayed at the Rv park in Pacifica and first day took the safari small van tour. Pickup and drop off at the Rv park. It was wonderful and we saw and heard far more than we could ever see on our own. Second day we drove the truck to the Bart station a few miles away and walked Chinatown. Next trip we will stay at Gilroy area (as we will be touring the central coast)rent a small car and drive to fishermans warf and take a red and white ferry tour. I would not even drive my truck there say nothing of a tc. Enjoy your trip!

Friendly word of advice...when in San Francisco do NOT refer to it as Frisco!! Seems the locals aren't too friendly to that nick name. Either San Francisco or The City will work!!

I think we have given you some ideas on the San Francisco part of your trip.

Keep in mind, the more exposed your camping gear is, the more prone for theft, especially in the cities. If you go to a restaurant for example, who will be watching your gear?

I think you are doing the wise thing in researching the various options for your trip. I would further suggest making alternate plans just incase your first plan does not work out. Hopefully you will have a very nice and safe trip.

Wayne

Wayne i would gladly leave the cargo rack at home if possible. Unfortunately i absolutely need it due to the length of our trip and its contents. Just no where else to store the water hose, gen set,battery charger,coleman stove,small gas can,etc. We will be on the road about 3 months in about as diverse settings you can imagine. Our travels will include LV,DV,SF,Yosemite,etc.
Thanks all for the tips. It appears that our time in SF will begin with the Ferry and go from there. Thanks again everyone,much food for thought and it appears lots of planning and research will be on tap.

The Larkspur Ferry is one of the terminals of the Golden Gate Ferry. I do not see a terminal at Fisherman's Wharf on the Golden Gate Ferry Terminal Locations.

The Blue & Gold Fleet has tours, but is not part of the Golden Gate Ferry. It too offers FERRY SERVICES, and I think maybe there might be some confusion as to its terminals. As you can see from the link, there is none at Larkspur. I may stand corrected, but I think Pier 41 is at Fisherman's Wharf. I have never used the Blue & Gold Fleet, but can say with confidence there are no RV Parks in SAUSALITO or TIBURON. The closest would be Marin RV Park, and it is several miles away.

The next time I go to San Francisco, I will consider using the Blue & Gold Fleet from SAUSALITO or TIBURON to Fisherman's Wharf. That depends on the parking. It would be a new experience for me.

Wayne

big whitey, I was allowed to park at San Quentin because I was an employee. Based on the description of your rig, I too think maybe it is not a good idea to drive in the city. You might consider leaving your cargo rack at home. It will restrict you from many parking opportunities during your entire trip. I have a cargo rack, but soon learned it is a handicap while touring. Camping it is great.

Naio, it has been about three years since I rode the ferry. I question it goes to fisherman's Wharf, but it could have changed. I will see if I can locate a link telling us where it goes. I hope you are correct, there are times I would prefer to go directly to the Wharf from Larkspur.

Wayne