Fisherman's Wharf and Environs

Another of the large tourist draws in San Francisco is Fisherman's Wharf. That is the destination for the Powell and Hyde cable cars and for the 'F Line' streetcars which trundle from Castro along Market Street. Rare is it that there is a seat on either of those transit vehicles after they leave Market Street behind.

The Market Street cars turn onto Embarcadero and, once past the Ferry Terminal, pass piers sequentially given odd numbers up to Pier 41 which is the actual Fisherman's Wharf. One of those piers - about half way  along - is the cruise ship terminal.

 A Princess Line cruise ship. On one of my visits to San Francisco I went to SFO for the early morning flight to Toronto and found a long line for the check-in - one of these cruise ships had returned to the port early that morning and the folk in front of me were passengers from Southern Ontario who were returning home.

Pier 39 is the stop before Fisherman's Wharf and, like the other, it is a place of seafood markets, restaurants and galleries.

                                                       This is Fisherman's Wharf

Adjacent to Fisherman's Wharf  are a number of floats placed there for the use of fishermen and small boat owners. However, they have been commandeered by others - sea lions. There seems to be a large population of these wonderful creatures along the California Coast. Now they have congregated in San Francisco Bay for two reasons - plenty of seafood for them to eat (including the offal thrown into the Bay by the seafood processors) and because those floats are out of reach of the sharks. While most people go to the Wharf for the seafood restaurants and the views of the harbor, now huge crowds linger to photograph and to watch these magnificent creatures - and to be amused by the strutting of the bulls who are seeking out cows to add to their harems.

                              Some of the floats are completely covered by snoozing sea lions

And the strutting and the bellowing of the bulls - both older and younger - is amusing to watch. The above photo is of a younger one.

                                             An older bull with at least one of his harem.

                                            A mother with some younger sea lions

                                                 A young bull. Isn't he handsome?

The sounds made by the sea lions are similar to the barking of dogs and the overwhelming aroma is of fish!

Back towards the city center is a small hill upon which stands the Coit Tower erected by a widow in memory of her husband.

The following photo is of a statue of the widow Coit.

The view from the top of the tower.The bridge seen in the distance is the Oakland Bay Bridge which, on my last visit to the area, is being rebuilt and enlarged.

I went up to the Coit Tower on a Muni bus and walked back down via a series of stairs. These stairs took me through a small area that looked like an overgrown park and there I encountered wild parrots. As San Francisco is a major seaport, many sea captains settled there and,  just like in the pirate tales, they brought parrots with them.  The parrots are fed by the locals and seem to have thrived far away from their jungle homes.

Fisherman's Wharf at sunset is lovely as the following two photos show.

            The water side of the wharf (in the middle distance is Alcatraz - now an historic landmark).

                                       The Golden Gate is truly golden at sunset.

On the opposite side of Embarcadero from the wharves are all sorts of shops - including the famous Giardhelli (store and square) and their well known chocolates. Actually, there are a few other chocolate vendors there too and, to my taste, the chocolates for sale at one of them are better than the more famous brand.

Also, there is an old fashioned diner along that street - great for a grilled cheese sandwich and a chocolate milk shake and, YES! - the furnishings are right out of the 1950s. Talk about nostalgia!

John Muir Woods, Marin County

I suspect that this will be one of my shorter posts.

In the 19th Century a Scotsman immigrated to America and settled in California - his name was John Muir and he was a Botanist and, before his time, an Environmentalist. At that time industry was taking advantage of the wealth of redwood trees - large, beautiful and ideal for use in building construction. John Muir recognized that the supply of these beautiful giants was limited so he went to work to save what he could.

There are the 'Trees of Mystery' between Eureka and Crescent City in Northern California and the John Muir Woods in Marin County. Much of the rest of these giants of the forest have disappeared.

It was Ric who pointed out to me that there was a bus tour to the John Muir Woods which left from the Fisherman's Wharf area in the afternoons. I booked a ticket and went on that ride.

The bus was a standard coach which was fine on the city's streets, on the Golden Gate Bridge and Route 101 but rather large for the 2 lane highway that twisted all over the place between the freeway and the park. As the road went up and down and back and forth for a few miles, I came to appreciate the dexterity of the driver - we did not have a mishap nor did we seem to come close to one.

 
The walking path proceeded on an elliptical route through those woods - the park is not all that large. Still it is beautiful.

There are two creeks coursing through that forest. This is Cedar Creek which  is the smaller of the two.

                                                    The larger is Redwood Creek

                                                      Also Redwood Creek

            I grew up more or less on the edge of the rain forest in B.C.so this spot felt familiar to me

                   In the midst of a dense growth of trees with a little bit of sunlight shining through

Our stay in John Muir Woods was not much more than 45 minutes long before the bus left for Sausalito. As I had been to that community a few times before, I opted out of the scheduled tea break and boarded the ferry to return to the City. Those who travel to San Francisco on the ferries are greeted, upon leaving the ferry, by a friendly face.- a statue of Mahatma Gandhi.

The simple man who was a hero to India - and to much of the world - on a pedestal near the financial heart of a major U.S. City.

Toronto Brickwords

I will be inter-mixing articles about Toronto with California locations as I go along.

When I arrived in Toronto the Toronto Brickworks was in the process of closing down and that area converted into an ecological center. The Brickworks had been there since Toronto was first founded - a hill near the back of the property was, more or less, composed of clay - the material from which bricks were created. That area is down in the Don Valley and on the west side of the river. It is well removed from the built up area so, except for the view of houses on top of the opposite bank and the hum from the freeway on the other side of the river, one could think that he/she is in the country.

 I live in the downtown area of the city and I can walk from my apartment to the brickworks in half an hour. The first part of the walk is along busy city streets until I arrive at a much used path leading down to the valley bottom. While the first one third of the walk is through the noise of constant traffic, the rest is through the forest with the dominant sound being that of birds. From the condition of the path, it is well used yet I rarely encounter others as I hike along.

Upon arriving at the bottom of the slope - and crossing another path that leads up to the city's major cemetery - the path turns north along an arterial route. A part of that route has been used as a landfill dumping site and there I encountered an anomaly - an iris in full bloom!

The Brickworks can be accessed by road or the trail that I use. There is a stairway that connects the walking path with the rear of what is now an ecological center. The international charity - 'Ecojustice' - is one of the organizations maintaining offices there.

First - the hill out back from which the clay was 'mined'.

 This pond is only one of a series - and they have been stocked with fish. I was amused on one visit when I saw a young family who had brought some bread. The children were tossing the pieces of bread out towards a pair of mallard ducks only to see each piece disappearing before the ducks could reach it. Upon going closer and peering into the murky water I saw a flash of reddish gold - large goldfish (carp) taking advantage of the largesse.

                        The hopeful pair of mallards - the carp are lurking just below the surface.

The property is laced by boardwalks and, from being an ugly brickyard, it has become a place of beauty.

 By looking at the above photo, one would not know that this is near the downtown core of a major city!

                                                      The Brickworks Eco-center

A creek runs along beside the path which passes just above the Eco-center

                         A pleasant way to spend a couple of hours on a nice afternoon.

Easter at St Michael and All Angels Episopal

As I mentioned in an earlier posting, Ric did convert to Roman Catholicism while at the University of Missouri so, when he arrived in Concord, California and into a house on Bonifacio, he walked down to the Roman Catholic Church to worship. However,  as he found the theology there quite conservative, he moved a few blocks north (and closer to where he lived) to St Michael and All Angels Episcopal. That was where he worshiped until he moved down into Oakland. When I became a part of his life, I worshiped there as well.  

In 2005 Ric had me fly down for Easter thus I experienced the ritual of that season with Ric and at a beautiful place. The weekend began with a service on Maundy Thursday a part of which is the intoning of the names of the recently departed (and Ric included the name of a mutual acquaintance here in Toronto who had passed a week or two before).

Concord is one of the many bedroom suburbs in the San Francisco Bay area. Much of it is upper middle class but there are pockets of the indigenous as well. St Michael and All Angels is a large church with nice facilities so it had been approached by the operators of a program which provided meals for the needy. Some of the neighbors were outraged (especially the people who lived immediately across Bonifacio from the church who erected a huge wooden fence in order to keep those 'unwanted' out).

                                                               The First Station
                                       
On Good Friday the 'Stations of the Cross'  was enacted on the spacious lawns. Fourteen symbols of Christ's crucifixion and resurrection were placed around the property and the congregation proceeded from one to the other while the celebrant (the Rev. Leslie Nipps) read the appropriate scriptural passage and somebody from among the gathered people carried the Cross. Before leaving a 'Station' the bearer passed on the burden to somebody else in the congregation. I had noticed a fellow - there initially for the 'soup kitchen' program - so, when my turn ended, I passed the cross to him. I could see that he was quite moved.

                                                     The Final Station - Christ in the Tomb

Saturday everybody gathered back at the church in order to decorate it for the Celebration of Easter. I have been involved in many 'work parties' in churches and have always found them to be fun events.

                                      The Cross as left in the Sanctuary on Good Friday.

 St Michael and All Angels ready for Easter. Watching some of the men - especially Ric and his buddy, Lawson Barnes - hanging the cloth affair above the sanctuary was, for me, heart stopping. However, the finished 'product' was gorgeous.

                                                   Flowers on and around the lectern


Waiting in the vestibule were the elements prepared for the congregation gathered on Easter.

As usual on Easter, the sanctuary was nearly full and the social hall quite crowded afterwards.

While the adults were sipping coffee/tea and munching on delicacies, the children were out on the back lawn searching for Easter eggs.

That Easter was - for me - one of the most memorable that I have experienced.

Castro and Twin Peaks

While visiting with Ric, when he went to work at the Lucent Technology offices in Alameda, I would take BART into the City. Being a 'kid' who loves rail transit, I would get off of the train at Embardadero (the first station arrived at from East Bay), go up to street level - Market - and catch one of the iconic old tram/streetcars for the ride along Market Street to the end of the line at Castro. Once there I would choose a place which served breakfast.    

A BART train pulling into Concord Station. As you can read in the overhead sign, this is the train that goes all the way to near San Francisco Airport (SFO) and Millbrae which was handy for me when I was returning home to Toronto.

My favorite breakfast place was 'Welcome Home' simply because grits was an option. Welcome Home closed a couple of years ago but I can remember it back in the 1970s when I first began to travel to San Francisco.  While not an overly large eatery, the food was good and, if dining alone, the waiter would place me at the 'community table' which was a great way to meet others.

Up the block (and I mean that direction literally as Castro went down hill from Market to 18th Street and then up a fairly steep incline  to about 22nd before dipping again) was/is The Cove which is a long time standby. When I ate lunch there I usually enjoyed the 'soup of the day'. At the corner of 18th and Castro is Harvey's (an actual restaurant - not the burger chain) while right beside the streetcar stop on 17th is Orphan Andy's - two other places where one can go for breakfast.

The corner of Castro, 17th and Market Streets on the 4th of July. In the background is a part of the huge rainbow flag which can be seen from many parts of the city.

PFLAG (which I am currently involved with  here in Toronto) has a booth at the various street fairs in San Francisco. I saw these folk first at the Folsom Street Fair and then, later, in Castro. I love the sign that this older gentleman was carrying.

Near that intersection is the Castro Theater - known for the screening of older films - even some from the era of silent movies. This is a huge draw for film buffs.

                 Looking down Castro from 17th and Market with the Castro Theater on the left.

18th and Castro looking up towards Market Street As you can see by the overhead wires, as well as streetcars and diesel buses, there are trolley coaches too.

There is a height which dominates most of San Francisco - Twin Peaks just above Castro. As the service by the MUNI is exceptional, there is even a diesel bus route serving the population which lives just below the peak. One day I transferred to that bus and rode up alighting near a flight of stairs which rises to the actual peak. The view in all directions is spectacular.

 Looking down Market Street to the financial core of San Francisco. The little bits of blue to the left and to the right are parts of San Francisco Bay.

                                              The twin towers which dominate the city.

                                                 From Twin Peaks to the Golden Gate

A guy driving a convertible stopped and offered me a ride back down  the mountain but I declined in favor of  descending on foot. That was a mistake - the stairway up which I had climbed did not have a railing and I do suffer from vertigo from time to time so I had no option but to descend those stairs while sitting on my behind!

About ten or twelve blocks down Market Street from Castro is Church Street and near that corner is a restaurant - "Home" - that is a favorite of Ric's and mine. We were there for dinner one evening leaving at sunset. Outside on the street was a great sight - fog rolling over the top of Twin Peaks.

Toronto Islands

As in most cities there are 'gems' in and around Toronto. One of them is the Toronto Islands which lie less than a mile from the downtown core. At one time many people lived over there but, at some time in the city's history, much of the islands became park land with only Ward and Algonquin Islands at the eastern end still being inhabited.

The islands have frequent ferry service from downtown (the ferry docks are at the foot of Bay Street) with those watercraft serving three spots - Wards Island, Center Island (where there is a small amusement park and a 'hobby farm'), and Hanlan's Point - at the western end - which is serviced by a 'barge ferry' so heavy vehicles are able to cross. As an inveterate walker/hiker I usually cross on either the Wards Island or the Hanlans Point ferry and hike to the other.

One of my trips over there was on a drab and dreary spring Saturday with the Out and Out hiking group and I took this photo of the downtown skyline - ten or more years ago the skyline was very different. Now there are many new condominium, apartment and office towers along the water front.

From the Wards Island ferry dock many 'tourists' either walk south (ahead from the ferry slip) to one of the beaches or follow the paved roadway west to Algonquin and Center Islands. However, usually I turn east and walk around the edge of the Wards Island residential area. The gardens are lovely and, some of the residents also cultivate the 'empty land' across the path adding to the beauty.

That is a woman standing at the far end of the flower bed - she is watering the plants and lawn.

Bicycles are the transport of choice and the 'streets' are no more than paved lane ways.

Along the road from the Wards Island ferry slip to Center Island one passes a lovely privately owned and operated restaurant, the fire hall and police station. There is a public school over there but it is located at the other end of the islands - students are transported there by school buses. Also, there are facilities for city children to stay in class groups and many of the public schools in the city take advantage of that.

I had lunch at that lovely little cafe one day and the following photo is of the centerpiece that was on the table.

There are islets that are both uninhabited and accessible to the public. On one of them I saw this slough (and on the drab and dreary spring Saturday).

                                               I am attracted to light and shadow on water.

Close to Center Island is the Island Church which is maintained by Anglicans and Roman Catholics in cooperation. Also, it is a popular spot for weddings.

 
The footbridges that connect Center Island and nearby spots are gracefully arced affairs. This is so dragon boat and other boat races can be held unimpeded. On the walk over from Wards Island - upon reaching the bridge connecting to the amusement park and the ferry slip - Center Island Beach is to the left and the rest is to the right. The swimming beach is very popular on hot and muggy summer days.

A part of the amusement park is this little railway.

                                        I am a kid at heart and I have ridden on that train!

Just beyond the amusement park is 'Far Enough Farm' and the following photos are of some of the residents.

Continuing on towards Hanlan's Point one passes the school, an old and abandoned lighthouse (supposedly haunted) and a trout pond before arriving where this photo was taken - one of many picnic areas along a passage between the islands which is much used by tour and pleasure boats.

                   During the summer months moor-age along this waterway is at a premium.

As the month of May is here and the weather is warming up it is time to think of another stroll through the Toronto Islands.