Why is San Francisco Interesting (before 9:00 a.m.?)

Mark Slavonia (MJS) is an investor, a pilot, and an avid cyclist. He wrote about radio altimeters, rowing machines, traveler’s checks, and more. He posts other things that are interesting on his website. 

Mark here. I think that San Francisco is best enjoyed in the early morning. Many of my favorite things to do in San Francisco are uncrowded at dawn, but become a frustrating crush by midmorning. Jet lag is your superpower. Even if you’re in town on business and have a full day of work starting at 9:00, you can get a lot of the best that the city has to offer by getting out early.

Golden Gate Bridge
Early morning is the best time to visit the Golden Gate Bridge. There are loads of great places to go for a run in San Francisco, but if you’re going to do only one short jog, run the Golden Gate Bridge before your first meetings of the day. It’s a 3.4 mile round trip. Reduced crowds isn’t the only reason why early morning is the best time to visit the bridge—it’s also much less windy in the morning. The bridge’s east sidewalk opens to pedestrians daily at 5:00 a.m.

Golden Gate Bridge at dawn (taken from the viewing area on the NE end of the bridge)

Muir Woods
If you’ve got a bit more time and access to transportation, you can also visit the giant redwood trees at Muir Woods National Monument in the morning. The park opens at 8:00 am and is just a 20 minute drive from the Golden Gate Bridge. If you arrive before 9:00 you’ll have the place virtually to yourself. If you’re driving, parking spaces must be reserved in advance. Because the largest redwood trees grow in the alluvial flats and valley floors, the walk through Muir Woods is surprisingly tame, more a stroll than a hike, but there are lots of more rugged hikes nearby. 

Coffee, Cable Car, Croissants
You could start your day at Equator Coffee’s Fort Mason location between the Marina and Fisherman’s Wharf, which opens at 6:30. Get a coffee to go but skip the pastries because the best is yet to come.

The Golden Gate Bridge, as seen from Fort Mason

A short walk east through Fort Mason will take you past spectacular views of San Francisco Bay and the Golden Gate Bridge, and you will arrive at Aquatic Park, where you can see the intrepid open-water swimmers who brave the cold water. If you have extra time, you can continue east a few blocks to see the sea lions that relax on the docks by Pier 39. Then hop on the cable car at Beach Street and Hyde Street.

The San Francisco cable car system starts running at 7:00 a.m. Early morning is really the only time that you can realistically have the signature cable car experience of being right on the edge of one of these ancient contraptions as it clatters its way across San Francisco. Before 8:00 a.m. it’s likely to be just you, the conductor, and the grip. There’s a bewildering array of ways to pay your cable car fare, but luckily there’s a ticket kiosk at the north end of this line. 

Ride the entire length of the Powell/Hyde cable car line for about 25 minutes to its southern terminus at Market Street, then walk southwest on Market two and a half long blocks. This stretch of Market Street through the Tenderloin and Civic Center neighborhoods isn’t charming, but at this early hour it’s safe.

Turn right on McAllister and head into Arsicault Bakery at 87 McAlllister Street. In a city of great bakeries, Arsicault’s croissants are a consensus standout. Arsicault’s original location on Arguello Boulevard always has a long line of customers, but this McAllister location is much less crowded.

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Golden Gate Park
San Francisco’s central park has always been more for locals than tourists. The main thoroughfare in the Park was closed to cars in the pandemic and has become a fantastic promenade peppered with pop-up seating areas, art installations, and creative uses of this space recently reclaimed from cars. It’s another great place to run in the early morning and it pairs well with a spin on the city’s bike share system and a visit to some of the bakeries mapped below. 

Go West for Beaches and Baked Goods
San Francisco has a thriving bakery/cafe scene that’s mostly concentrated on the less-touristy western half of the city. There are almost too many places to mention but one of my favorites is Devil’s Teeth. Their Noriega Street location is just three blocks from the beach and is open at 7:00 a.m. Grab a cinnamon roll that’s as big as your head and wander down to Ocean Beach to watch the waves. On weekends the Great Highway, adjacent to the beach, is closed to cars and becomes an emergent park. 

Bakery Cafes of the San Francisco’s Wild West

Go For a Cruise
San Francisco has an active community of people who commute by ferries, and the San Francisco Ferry Building itself is a beautiful landmark with fancy eateries and coffee shops. Early risers can take a half-hour cruise on the San Francisco Bay outbound from the ferry building starting around 7:00 am and have a virtually empty ferry boat with unbeatable views of the city and the bay, then just turn around and join the commuters on the ferry back into the city. There are several different ferry routes to the East Bay or Marin. If I had to pick one route, I’d recommend the 7:20 a.m. outbound to Larkspur. (MJS)

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Thanks for reading,

Noah (NRB) & Colin (CJN) & Mark (MJS)

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