The Golden Gate Bridge is the most famous and prominent structures of the city
of San Francisco. Almost every tourist who comes to California's San Francisco
Bay Area visits this deep red-orange colored magnificent suspension bridge
completed in 1937. It was the longest suspension bridge span in the world
at that time and connects San Francisco to the Marin County. You will find it's
picture printed in almost all the souvenirs and tourist brochures of San
Francisco. The Golden gate bridge has also been called one of the Seven Wonders
of the Modern World. The observation areas and parking lots are located on both
the north (Marin County side) and the south side ( San Francisco) of the bridge,
although parking is relatively easier on the Marin County side. It also forms
the part of the US 101 highway (and CA State Route 1) with about 100,000
vehicles passing though it every day. There is a toll of 5 dollars when driving
south into San Francisco. The bridge is painted once every few years but some
touchup is done continuously. The speed limit on the Golden Gate Bridge is 45
miles per hour and it consists of six lanes with side/walk ways on both sides.
It is believed that the Golden Gate Bridge got its name after a mention by San
Francisco city engineer in 1927 but in reality this bridge is deep red-orange (International
orange). The construction of Golden gate bridge started in 1933 and the cost
to build it at that time was about 27 million dollars. Unfortunately the Golden
Gate Bridge is also infamous for frequent site for suicides, a jump from the
bridge is nearly always fatal.
Golden Gate Bridge Facts:
There are 80,000 miles of wire in the two main cables and it took 6 months to spin them. Each cable is made of 27,572 strands of wire. The bridge has approximately 1,200,000 rivets (600,000 rivets in each tower). The bridge has been closed three times for weather conditions due to high gusty winds of over 70 mph. The Bridge was built by 10 different prime contractors and their subcontractors.
Average height above water: 220 feet
Total weight: about 887 thousand tons
Total length: 1.7 miles
Middle span: 0.8 miles
Width: 90
As of June 2005, 1,779 million vehicles had crossed the Golden Gate Bridge.
The free CAR POOL hours, weekdays only, are from 5:00-9:00 a.m. and 4:00-6:00 p.m.
What to do on the Golden Gate bridge:
The observation areas and parking lots are located on both the north (Marin County side) and the south side ( San Francisco) of the bridge. So you should plan to park your car and walk across the bridge (or a portion of it as the bridge is quite long). On the Marin county side just before the bridge there is an exit which takes you to the top of the hills (Marin Headlands) and from there you can get a magnificent view of the bridge, the San Francisco skyline and nearby islands like the treasure island and Alcatraz. Another place for a good view is South Vista Point on the San Francisco side (can be approached from the "Last SF Exit" or from Lincoln Avenue). Fort Point and Baker Beach (nude beach) also have a good view from the south side.
Best time to go:
The Best time to visit is on a nice clear day, that includes most days in summers as there is usually no fog, late spring and Oct. to late Nov. are also considered good. Please keep in mind that the winds are high on the bridge and it can be foggy and cold even if it is not so cold in the San Francisco downtown area. Therefore dress appropriately and keep an extra jacket in case of need.
Earthquake Zone:
For those who do not know, many area's in California are prone to the earthquakes, in fact almost everyday small earthquakes rattle the area but they are so tiny that most go un-noticed. Most of the buildings in San Francisco are designed keeping these seismic activities in mind. Although the the Golden Gate bridge has fared well during previous tremors, seismic engineers are continuously working to further improve and retrofit that it is secure if a large earthquake hits. Golden gate bridge is located close to the San Andreas and Hayward faults.
Please visit the official site goldengatebridge.org for more and latest information.
Pictures of the Golden Gate Bridge, California, United States of America
*
*
