San Francisco Airstreamers! Need route help!

[toothpull]

Good Morning! I need route help. Leaving Paso Robles tomorrow traveling North to Tiburon and Marin RV park. We stayed there last year but came in from the North. Now I am uncertain as to best route thru SF from the South. I have read about the bad condition of the 680 and 580 with one report of numerous rivet pops! Should we circle around further East and come in from the North or guts it out thru the heart of town? Help! Don't want to pop rivets. BTW, into our 4th week out of Seattle and a great trip to Peoria, SD, wine country and while no problems I would have to say the Cali. roads for the most part are in horrible shape! Thanks all and let me know if I can help with routes and RV parks out West!

[tevake]

Having done both the thru town route. Hyw 1, and the very bumpy route more inland , I'd opt for the route 1 choice. Timing will make a big difference.
Pre rush hour in the morning is great. Also Did it heading south in the early afternoon and found it not that bad.

One advantage of very early morning is an empty lot at the Marin bridge viewpoint.
BTW. I just hopped out for a quick pic there and parked down the way in an appropriate spot.

Cheers Richard

[PKI]

The reports of 680 are greatly over stated. The reports of 580 are greatly understated, but only in the area of I5. My apology if this finds you too late.

Take your best route to 101 to 680 to 780 to 37 and then your final destination from 101.

Timing - 680 is heavy traffic in rush hour. 101 on both ends can be heavy traffic, but is drivable. Do not take 880 up the East side of the Bay. 680 is much better. Do not go East to I5. It is way too far afield.

If you take HW1, gird yourself for traffic and enjoy the experience. It's worth doing once......but only once.

Good Luck and travel safe. Pat Very Nice Rig - Yes, very nice!

[kscherzi]

The most direct route and simplest is North on Route 101 from Paso Robles to Route 280. Exit 280 in South SF to highway 1 and stay on this road through SF across the Golden Gate Bridge (which become Route 101) into Marin. I think northbound is the free direction on the Golden Gate Bridge.

The downside is driving through SF on Route 1 but that road is mostly a 6 Lane arterial that moves along at a steady pace. Last time I drove that section I followed someone pulling a huge fifth wheel so it's doable. Just time things to avoid commute hours.

[OTRA15]

Originally Posted by kscherzi

The most direct route and simplest is North on Route 101 from Paso Robles to Route 280. Exit 280 in South SF to highway 1 and stay on this road through SF across the Golden Gate Bridge (which become Route 101) into Marin. I think northbound is the free direction on the Golden Gate Bridge.

The downside is driving through SF on Route 1 but that road is mostly a 6 Lane arterial that moves along at a steady pace. Last time I drove that section I followed someone pulling a huge fifth wheel so it's doable. Just time things to avoid commute hours.

I agree that this route might be the best, but I have not lived in SF for many years.

Starting at San Jose, I-280 northbound turns into Route 1 and 19th Ave. at Daly City south of SF, which as suggested is a city street with narrow lanes of traffic, but definitely do-able with a trailer driving carefully. Also this road is fairly straight.

One question though --

With all the reconstruction of the roads around the south approach to the Golden Gate Bridge, is the tunnel under the Presidio still usable by RV's and trailers? This Presidio Parkway site gives an overview of the project and seems to indicate that the road opened last year. I have not found any height restrictions in a limited time this afternoon.

http://www.presidioparkway.org/about/

You definitely want to avoid the rush hour starting at San Jose until after you cross the Golden Gate Bridge.

Good luck!

Peter

[PKI]

It's been a lot of years, but my car pool came up 280 and popped into San Francisco a bit after 4:00pm. We stopped for a while to wait on the cars in front to move. We mounted the Bay Bridge entry ramp at just after 8:00pm. It was Oct 31st, but we really thought we were early enough to make it through before the parties started. Thoughts and deeds are sometimes very separate experiences. Fingers crossed very tightly for Toothpull. With any luck the rig is not far from the camp ground and there is a fine bottle of Paso Robles wine to enjoy tonight. Cheers - Pat

[toothpull]

I really appreciate the advise! Will let you all know how it goes...hopefully won't get stuck on the GG!

[bganso]

Lots of good advice here. Paso Robles to Bay Area is 3:00 +/-. Traffic has been lighter than normal all week as many are on Spring Break. Never easy, but you should miss most of the traffic as you'll be here mid-day.

[Devananda-E9]

I did not see anyone caution you on being sure to avoid getting on the road to Mt T. Check locally for conditions and choices. What we found was grades so steep we were at barely walking speed when we crested the divide. Very scary!

[OTRA15]

They are not going as far north as Mt. Tamalpais -- only to Marin RV Park in Larkspur per Post #1.

[toothpull]

Thanks all for great advise! I would say the 680 is quite rough...nothing popped but the road is in sad shape in many stretches. As we all know, the far right lanes tend to be the worst so move to left whenever I can for a somewhat better ride for my Friend behind me! Getting to hate towing thru our cities...sad to see how deteriorated roads and infrastructure has become..

[OTRA15]

Thanks for the post -- have fun!

[SiennaGuy]

Originally Posted by OTRA15

With all the reconstruction of the roads around the south approach to the Golden Gate Bridge, is the tunnel under the Presidio still usable by RV's and trailers? This Presidio Parkway site gives an overview of the project and seems to indicate that the road opened last year. I have not found any height restrictions in a limited time this afternoon.

I live north of San Francisco and go down Highway 101 to San Francisco fairly frequently. The tunnels on the brige approach are finished and are much better than the old roads. I also couldn't find any height restrictions but from the look of them in this photo, you shouldn't have any problems at all.

http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/articl...to-6380560.php

Once you cross the Golden Gate Bridge going north, you'll go through another tunnel which was recently renamed the Robin Williams tunnel, in memory of this longtime local resident. I couldn't find any height restrictions on it either, but looking at a photo, you shouldn't have any problems.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waldo_Grade

[toothpull]

Over the GG today both directions not towing my Friend however. Road and tunnels all good with no obvious restrictions. I don't see any problems towing here but of course avoid rush hours!

[OTRA15]

Originally Posted by toothpull

Over the GG today both directions not towing my Friend however. Road and tunnels all good with no obvious restrictions. I don't see any problems towing here but of course avoid rush hours!

From the GG did you continue south to check out the tunnels leading to Route 1 -- under the Presidio -- toward 19th Ave. and I-280 which goes down the Peninsula to San Jose? [the reverse of the route suggested a few days ago] Or did you head toward downtown SF (east) after you crossed the bridge?

It would be helpful for everyone to know if the southbound tunnels under the Presidio are new, and if they are open to RV and trailer traffic, as this would be a far simpler path to go back south IMO, given that you are just a little north of the Golden Gate Bridge. Returning via the East Bay and I-680 or another route seems like "The Long Way Back to Pasa Robles." [sounds like the beginning of a new screenplay!]

Or maybe you are continuing north to Washington and home?

Thanks for the update and Happy Trails!

Peter

[OTRA15]

Thanks SiennaGuy for the answer about the MacArthur Tunnel. With it being OK for RV's it seems like the easiest southbound route from Larkspur RV park to Pasa Robles would have been via the GGB and this tunnel to I-280 to San Jose, then south on 101 IMO.

[SiennaGuy]

Here's an expanded message. I deleted the one the Otra15 replied to include more info.

Originally Posted by OTRA15

From the GG did you continue south to check out the tunnels leading to Route 1 -- under the Presidio -- toward 19th Ave. and I-280 which goes down the Peninsula to San Jose? [the reverse of the route suggested a few days ago] Or did you head toward downtown SF (east) after you crossed the bridge?

It would be helpful for everyone to know if the southbound tunnels under the Presidio are new, and if they are open to RV and trailer traffic, as this would be a far simpler path to go back south IMO, given that you are just a little north of the Golden Gate Bridge.

There are several tunnels under the Presidio. One set of them connects the Golden Gate Bridge to Richardson Ave. and then to Lombard St. (Highway 101). There are northbound tunnels and seperate southbound tunnels. These are known as the the Doyle Drive (or "Presidio Parkway") tunnels and they recently opened. An RV shouldn't be a problem. Here's the photo that I posted earlier.
http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/articl...to-6380560.php

Notes: This part of Lombard St. is a regular, heavily trafficked city street. This is NOT the part of Lombard St. that's known as the Crookedest Street in the World (There's no way to drive an RV down that crooked part of the street). Also, if you're headed north on this route, one of the last buildings that you see before you get on the bridge approach is the Palace of Fine Arts. It's on your right. It was originally constructed for the 1915 Panama-Pacific Exposition. It's brown and has several columns and a dome that you can see from your vehicle. If you're headed south, it's one of the first buildings you see as you enter San Francisco, and it's on the left.

There's also a tunnel that connects the Golden Gate Bridge to Park Presidio and then to 19th Ave. (Highway 1). This is the General MacArthur Tunnel. One tunnel serves both northbound and southbound traffic. There's a concrete barrier between the northbound and southbound traffic. It's not new, but you shouldn't have any problems with your RV. I frequently see big RVs going through this tunnel.
https://www.google.com/maps/place/Sa...76adff!6m1!1e1

If you decide to go down the coast on Highway 1, there are another pair of tunnels in Pacifica, which is about 30 miles south of San Francisco. These are known as the Tom Lantos Tunnels (or the Devil's Slide Tunnels). These are new and like the others, you should have no problem with an RV. These tunnels replaced the old Devil's Slide road. It was called Devil's Slide because parts of that old road would fall off the cliffs during landslides. Chunks of roadway would end up in the ocean almost every rainy season. The new tunnels avoid that old route entirely.
http://www.dot.ca.gov/dist4/dslide/

Here's more info about Devil's Slide: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Devil%...e_(California)

[SiennaGuy]

More on tunnels in the San Francisco area:

The San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge is made up of two sections. One section goes from San Francisco to Yerba Buena Island. The other section, the eastern section, goes from that small island to Oakland. The two sections are connected by a tunnel that goes through the island. While it's high enough to handle RVs and big trucks, there have recently been problems with chunks of concrete falling from the inside of it. You may not run into problems but expect there to be construction delays until they fix it.
http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/articl...nk-6812704.php

By the way, the eastern section of the bridge is new. It's really beautiful any time but at night, it's spectacular. During the day, you'll see the old bridge being torn down, which is fun to watch.

Highway 24, east of San Francisco, has yet another tunnel. This is known as the Caldecott Tunnel.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caldecott_Tunnel

There are several bores through the hillside, each handling a lane or two of traffic. Big trucks go through it, so RV heights should pose no worries. I couldn't find any propane restrictions, either, HOWEVER, the Caldecott Tunnel was the scene of a horrible fire in 1982. A gasoline tanker truck exploded in the middle of the tunnel, killing 7 people. The tunnel acted as a chimney for the smoke and flames. These kinds of tankers are no longer allowed there unless it's in the middle of the night when there's no traffic. Still, I'd make sure that your propane is OFF before you enter this tunnel.

[SiennaGuy]

Here's some info about the Palace of Fine Arts that's near the approach to the Golden Gate Bridge:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palace_of_Fine_Arts

[SiennaGuy]

Even more on tunnels in the San Francisco area:

There are two small tunnels that connect Alameda (an island in the bay) to Oakland (a city in the east bay). They're known as the Posey Street Tube and the Webster Street Tube. They both go underwater under the bay. These are old tunnels--according to Wikipedia, the Posey Street Tube opened in 1928 and the very similar Webster Street Tube opened in 1963. They both have height restrictions. The maximum height for both is a bit over 14 feet. I wouldn't go through them with an RV.
Here's a map:
https://www.google.com/maps/place/Po...5bd9109cb5a293

Here's info about these tubes:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Posey_...r_Street_tubes

As alternatives, there are bridges that connect Alameda to Oakland, the closest one to the tubes being the Park Street Bridge.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Park_Street_Bridge

Here's a map of the Park Street Bridge:
https://www.google.com/maps/place/Al...ff99cf60016f14

A bit of trivia: The Pan Am China Clipper sea planes once used Alameda as their airport. They also used Treasure Island, also in the San Francisco Bay. Treasure Island is an artificial island that was built off of Yerba Buena Island for the 1939 Golden Gate International Exposition. As I mentioned earlier, the San Francisco Bay Bridge has a tunnel that goes through Yerba Buena Island.