Transportation!

Ok so the title is not that exciting, but really for me the different types of transportation that I got to take while in San Francisco were really exciting!

Cable Cars

Powell and Mason Cable Car Stop

Did you know that San Francisco is the only city in North America to have real cable cars? Cable Cars have been running in San Francisco since September 1, 1873. They were originally designed to save horses from trying to scale the hilly cobblestone streets in San Francisco.

My Grandmother lives half a block away from the Cable Car stop at Union and Mason. You can hear the cables running under the street from her house! I never knew what the noise was until last week when I visited the Cable Car Museum.

Wheel House - these pull the cable cars through the streets

Roll of Steel Cables

Mom rings the Cable Car Bell

Cable Cars are drawn by actual steel cables that are under the ground. The grip on the cable car does literally that - grips the cable and pulls the car up the hill! Amazing when you think about it!

Powell and Hyde Cable Car

Street Cars

Castro Street Car

Operating in San Francisco since 1835 the streetcars that go along F-Market and Wharves lines are more than just a form of unique transportation. The streetcars in San Francisco are moving museums of sorts. Each car originated from different places in the US. I would skip the museum, even though it is free. The museum is basically just a store - it is far more fun to stand in front of the Ferry Building and watch the different streetcars go by. They are sooo cool!

Ferry
We took the ferry to Sausalito to have lunch. There was a finger of fog just reaching over the bay but for the most part the view was clear and beautiful!! We ate lunch at a small little Italian deli, walked the main strip and then headed back to the city. On the way back the driver slowed down right behind Alcatraz so that the tourists could take pictures.

I would highly recommend that you use this as an option to see the Bay instead of taking one of those Bay cruises that cost $40.00. It is only $9.00 if you get a Clipper card which you can get at any Walgreens.

Bus
On Friday we took the bus to AT&T Park. I found it very interesting that the majority of buses that we took were electric. Although this caused a delay when one broke down it seems like a greener option for such a busy city!

A MUNI Bus zooms by our table 

I-280

 

We took the car to get to the city and mostly took the I280. It was a beautiful scenic route with only about 3 times the cars as we have in Vancouver. It only took us an hour an a half to get back from San Fran with traffic - but the 40 mins without traffic blew by. I love American Infrastructure!

Walking
We walked a lot this trip! One of the first days in the city we walked from Mason and Union to the Opera house! It was about a 40 min walk primarily up hill. I think I almost killed my mom on this walk - I have never seen her face as red as it was when we finished. One thing for certain was that we made sure to stay in shape while we were away!