Crosswinds and the Golden Gate Bridge

How to get across the Golden Gate Bridge? We had driven across numerous times, on our way to somewhere else, but this time we wanted to cross just for the sake of experiencing the bridge itself. We thought of walking across, but how would we get our 10 year old daughter to walk the 1.7 miles to one side, and turn around and walk all the way back? My husband suggested walking halfway across, and then back. That would never do. I could never boast to my friends, “I have walked half-way across the Golden Gate Bridge!” So we decided to park our SUV on the north side of the bridge, ride our bikes across the bridge, towards the city, and then back again. Sounds easy, right? But I didn’t realize that the bridge was really alive! That is right, the bridge bounces from the movement of traffic, it roars from the traffic crossing it, and it is laced with intimidating crosswinds off the ocean and oncoming traffic. I wasn’t psychologically prepared for the undertaking—but it was too late, I found out all of these things once we had already begun our journey! We had spent the entire day biking around Golden Gate Park, and decided to tackle this little jaunt towards the end of our day. Needless to say, we started riding our bikes on the east side of the bridge, heading south towards the city, during evening rush hour.

So, as I rode my bike along the narrow path sandwiched in between the oncoming traffic and the outside bridge railing—one side looking like the edge of the earth, the water looming 245 feet below—I was horrified when the first large diesel truck drove passed me. Whoosh—the bridge lashing out a crosswind that shoved me towards the water. Okay, this is not the joy ride I had in mind. Yet the view, the span of the reddish Art Deco suspension bridge pointing towards the city, was beautiful beyond description. The evening fog from the west was just starting to roll in. I looked ahead, hubby and 10 year old daughter were just buzzing along—they were not getting beaten to the bridge's edge by the crosswinds. Hmmm, hubby weighs a lot more than I do, and daughter is so tiny—she is closer to the ground than I. I had never heard anyone talk about these crosswinds, so I knew there must be a solution. I glanced over to the west side of the bridge, at bikers traveling north. They were not being beaten by the winds. But I noticed they had their heads tucked low, against their handle bars. Problem solved—I needed a lower profile. The enjoyment now began. I had conquered the beast! We stopped at the first tower to admire the surrounding scenery. But my eye caught something I had never seen when driving across the bridge—a bright yellow box labeled “Crisis Counseling”.

This bridge is dotted with 13 call boxes, a reminder that the bridge is not just a light-hearted-material-logo for the city of San Francisco; it is also the most popular place in the entire world to commit suicide. According to statistics, there is an average of one new suicide every two weeks. How sad, something so beautiful having such a dark reputation.

As I battled the crosswinds to stay safely on the bridge, I couldn’t imagine—looking below at the kiteboaders dancing on top of the waves—someone actually jumping off of this bridge.

Hmmm, moving right along . . . here are some interesting facts I found out about the bridge. It took 4 years and cost more than 35 million dollars to build. Upon completion in 1937, the Golden Gates’ 4200 feet long main span was the longest suspension bridge span in the world. The weight of its road is hung from two cables that pass through two main towers located towards each end of the bridge. There are 80,000 miles of wire in the main cables. The paint color of the bridge is officially called International Orange, chosen to compliment the surrounding area and make the bridge stand out in the fog. The two towers rise 500 feet above the roadway. There are 5 traffic lanes; yellow markers are moved to adjust to the traffic flow. The road going across the bridge is part of both Highway 101 and Highway 1. The toll is $6 per vehicle going into the city. Outbound traffic, pedestrians, and bicycles are toll free.

Above: Family on the south (San Francisco) side of the Golden Gate Bridge.

Below: Heading back across the bridge.

I was relieved to find out when we were riding back, going with the flow of traffic, there were no more crosswinds to contend with. Whew!

After we had completed our ride, I felt a big sense of accomplishment. What a rush—a real “high” from life. Even my daughter was amazed at the feeling she was left with after crossing that red sleeping giant.

Check! Another thing marked off of my “Someday Summer List”! Now off to Ghirardelli’s to celebrate!