Kayaking San Francisco Bay

There are various ways to get to San Francisco from Oakland, one can drive, take Bart, take the ferry or other boat and I suppose one could walk or bike but it's an awful long way around. Last weekend the Kayak Guy and I paddled kayaks from Jack London Square Oakland to Crissy Field San Francisco. Then we drove back to Oakland which is why the planning and prep for the annual paddle across the bay takes more effort than the actual paddling.

The planning began months before the trip, the Kayak Guy consulted the 2010 Tide Log back in November to pick a day. The ideal time for paddling to San Francisco is when a strong tide will carry the boat most of the way. This year the full moon and strongest tide was the afternoon of January 30, but due to other commitments we had to paddle on Sunday January 31.

The week before the paddle, the Kayak Guy and I talked about it a lot, made mental lists of gear needed, and chose a time schedule for the trip. Maximum ebb would be just after 2:00 at the Golden Gate so we should try to be on the water around 1:30.

The night before the paddle I started packing up gear into various bags. One bag of kayaking gear, one bag of dry clothes to change into after the paddle, and a pile of biking gear for dropping off the car.

The day of the paddle we made a wonderful, hearty breakfast of pancakes with a pineapple sauce. After breakfast we began carefully loading the car. Both of our bikes went into the car along with bags of dry clothes. Any gear kayaking gear needed to be not in the car but in my apartment. We left Oakland around 10am and drove to Crissy Field where we luckily found a great parking space right next to the beach. We unloaded the bikes and very carefully made sure our wallets, the key to my apartment and the car key got into my biking backpack. The Kayak Guy then discovered his marine radio and water bottle were in the car and so they were also put in the back pack.

Once we determined nothing else we needed was left in the car we bicycled along the Embarcadero in San Francisco to the Embarcadero Bart Station. As we approached Justin Herman Plaza one of the parrots that lives in a nearby park was squawking at the people below. The bird's bright green and red feathers were a very pleasant site on a gray day. We bought Bart tickets and hopped on the first train to the East Bay. At the West Oakland station we disembarked the train and biked to Jack London Square.

Back at my apartment I changed into kayaking gear while the Kayak Guy made lunch. Yummy chicken, guacamole wraps fueled us for the upcoming paddle. Everything needed for the paddle was packed into dry bags, most importantly the car key and apartment key but also cell phones etc. Shortly before one o'clock we gathered our paddles and dry bags and walked over to California Canoe and Kayak. At the kayak shop I donned a wetsuit, and the Kayak Guy his drysuit, picked up PFD's, spray skirts, tow rope, pump and rescue float.

For the voyage across the bay I chose to paddle the Willow, a light well handling boat, one of my favorites. We set off from the dock around 2:00. Very quickly we passed by the large container ships docked at the port and made it out to Middle Harbor Park in about 45 minutes. The sun had come out and there was just a slight wind. Enough wind that a local kite aerial photographer was flying his enormous red kite high above the park and the kayaks appear as a small speck in one of his pictures!

Middle Harbor Park is at the end of the protected waters of the estuary. So finally, we were out on the bay. The water wasn't too rough, a few swells from passing motorboats but one of the nice things about kayaking in winter is fewer other boats are on the water. We chose to paddle along the east side of Treasure Island. This is a longer route than going by the west side but affords a magnificent view of the building of the new Bay Bridge. It's quite a sight to hear and see the traffic of the cars going over the Bay Bridge way above you.

After passing Treasure Island the current started pulling the kayak out toward the North Bay so I had to paddle hard to head toward San Francisco. The water was a little rougher than I like out in the large expanse of the bay, which isn't to say it was very rough, just that I like very calm water. Being out in the middle of the bay makes me feel very small in that vastness of water. But then clearly seeing the skyline of San Francisco makes the distance seem not that far afterall.

The next milestone is Alcatraz, and the paddle between the two islands was relatively easy though we had to fight some current to stay headed to San Francisco. The Kayak Guy suggested this summer we do a paddle to touch all three islands Treasure, Angel and Alcatraz in one day. A seal would occasionally pop his head up near the kayak and seemingly surprised at seeing a boat would dive back under water with a big splash. We paddled around the north side of Alcatraz where flocks of cormorants fish and perch. After rounding Alcatraz we headed for the San Francisco shore.

The current was still going out the Golden Gate but wasn't terribly strong at this point. Still we had to choose a proper angle to be sure we weren't swept past Crissy Field. The domed top of the Palace of Fine Arts is an easily identifiable landmark from the water. Though we knew the car was somewhere in that vicinity we weren't sure exactly where we parked. As we approached shore however, we saw the orange windsock that flies over the bathrooms by the parking lot and knew we were in the right place.

It was nearing 5:00pm as we landed the kayaks. About twelve miles in three hours. The clouds had come in making for a dark evening, and no golden sunset. We quickly loaded the kayaks onto the car, changed into dry clothes, and headed for home. Back in Oakland we put away the kayaks and all the gear, finishing the day with a drink at Kincaid's. It was a long exhausting, exhilarating journey which I look forward to doing again - but not until next year!


*Please note kayaking across San Francisco Bay is not for novice paddlers. The Kayak Guy is an ACA certified kayaking instructor, we wear wetsuits, dress appropriately and take along safety equipment.