Bay Area Reopens: Sauntering in Sausalito

Steve ponders the strangeness of life on a dock in Sausalito

The Bay Area is reopening bit by bit now that Covid-19 infections have slowed. We decided to see how reopening was taking shape north of us, so we took a day trip to Sausalito, the tony town perched on a steep cliff across the bay from downtown San Francisco.

The iconic Golden Gate Bridge, up close.

 We drove across the Golden Gate Bridge to get to Sausalito, a treat all its own. A native Californian, Steven had never driven across the bridge, so now he can mark this off his bucket list.  You emerge from a tunnel and then you are on the bridge, with views of Alcatraz and Angel islands. When the bridge opened in 1937, it was the longest and tallest suspension bridge in the world.  It has a beautiful deep brick red color, darker than I expected when viewed up close.  You can also walk across it, but bring a wind breaker. 

A hardware store in downtown Sausalito. Even the prospector outside wears a mask. 

As we exited the bridge, Google maps decided we should take a circuitous route to downtown Sausalito, via vertiginous switchbacks. Houses are perched precariously on hillsides and many seem to have nearly vertical driveways. Roads are narrow and turns are sharp.  Residences deal with it for the views, which are, to put it mildly, spectacular.

Views from a downtown Sausalito park.

We fortunately parked on level ground in the downtown area, and stopped to eat at Lighthouse Coffee Shop, the first outdoor restaurant we saw (we really had to use their restroom.) But despite it being a rushed choice, and a little windy, it was quite tasty.  I watched a stream of cyclists pedal past as I had chicken apple sausage and scrambled eggs.

Then we strolled, stopping for ice cream while taking in the views. Stores were open, but you couldn't go inside.  Instead, tables with select merchandise were wedged into the entrance.  But we were still happy to shop.  I got a puzzle and t-shirt; Steven bought a baseball cap.  It felt good to support local merchants.