Have you ever been? Many in the Bay Area haven't. Maybe some went when they were kids on scout trips. Scouts still go there and have a big cleanup day on Angel Island. Those kids and their Scout leaders work hard.
There wouldn't be much work for us today. The plan was to take some of the family over to Angel Island and hop on a tram tour and get a sense of the amazing history of the place that has been a big part of living here.
The day started under some foggy skies in Alameda. The forecast was for some windy conditions later in the day and some fog early on. As you can see there was some fog in the "south bay" below what boaters call "the slot." If you had a huge fog machine just outside the Golden Gate and a big fan, it would blow right into the bay at the bridge and follow a path all the way to east bay shoreline. You don't have one of those but Mother Nature does. It was not the best morning to sightsee San Francisco from the water!
For navigation I could see fine as we rolled out of the Oakland Estuary and past the new Bay Bridge, then past Clipper Cove (former home of the China Clipper Planes) and along Treasure Island. After "TI" I hit the central bay and the slot. It wasn't windy but it was foggy! I wish I could say my vast boating knowledge gave me the correct heading to get where I was going. But that wasn't it!
Oh the joys of the modern world! With a USB GPS receiver plugged into my iBook G4 Macintosh and a few free charts anyone can download here and a great Mac charting program called GPSNavX I knew where I was and where I was going. It was so foggy I couldn't see Angel Island even if it was just a few miles away!
Soon enough I was moving north and the east side of the island came into view. I was moving out of the slot and could see incredibly blue skies!
Is this why homes in Tiburon cost so much?!
We pulled into Ayala Cove on the north (sunny) side of the Island and took a slip that fit the boat about perfectly.
My crew did a good job with the lines and soon the boat was tied up and we were off to pay for "parking" and hop on our tram tour.
You can read more about the history of Angel Island here. It really is a special place that has been many things to many people over the years. It was even a military base during the civil war. Soon the Immigration Station will be opened up. It is undergoing lots of work to get it read to open in early 2008. On the East Coast there was Ellis Island for Europeans who came here. On the west coast it was here on Angel Island where many Asians first came.
On the tour they tell lots of stories about all the buildings and places you see while on the 1 hour tram ride. From the stops on the west side we could look out and see where the Golden Gate bridge and San Francisco should be. The view from here is really quite amazing, but not so much today.
If you want to come and see the view better come in September or October. There is far less fog during the day and you have a much better chance of getting that great shot.
The picnic grounds are right where the ferry boats come in Ayala Cove, and there is a beach for swimming. Yes many people do! You can have a quick game of soccer, use the bbq's and have a great time just hanging out.
This is also where you start all your tours. Plus you can rent bicycles and get something to eat at Ayala Cove as well.
We had some lunches in the sun and joined in a new (to me) card game called Egyptian War or Egyptian Ratscrew. It involved slapping, and dealing and quick thinking and well things that a teenager is much better at than me! I watched, then went off to a shady tree to take a nap.
Ahh we could have stayed until dark... No wait we had to go!
A few more pictures and back to the boat. Everybody got in safely and we easily backed out off our slip. The marina was pretty full when we left.
I went back the same way as I came, the wind had picked up and the fog had lifted. So I could see, but I knew it would be a pretty wet ride back.
I was crossing the slot with the wind and waves broadside as I headed back to Treasure Island. I ran a little into them, quartering them, then back a little to port running with them. That way I wasn't rocking left to right as the "trench" of the waves rolled under me. These weren't big ocean swells, but I would guess 3 to 4 foot waves packed up pretty tight from the wind blowing in the slot all day. It was pretty wet running into the waves, man is that Rain X amazing or what?!
Just after all this rocking and rolling wasn't fun anymore, and a few people got soaked while looking at the (now pretty nice) view of San Francisco and the Golden Gate, we made it to the leeward side of Treasure Island.
Then it was a nice ride back, with a fair number of sailboats in the Oakland Estuary all having quite a good time in the breezy July afternoon.
The day ended at Jack London Square with the kids buying some tie-dyed shirts and all of us having a light meal at Scott's.
So are you going to hop a ferry to Angel Island for your own adventure? Hey you can even go on a 2 hour Segway ride there!
(doit doit doit doit)
Here is a link to bigger versions and more photos of our Angel Island trip at my Flickr page.
Oh and how's the weather? Glad you asked! Check out the Angel Island Webcam, or as they call it the Angelcam!
p.s. Big thanks to my crew and all aboard for making it a really fun day! :)
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