Top Biking San Francisco

San Francisco presents a biker’s dilemma: biking is one of the best ways of getting around (public transportation still leaves something to be desired), yet the steep hills make it nearly impossible to have a smooth ride. Locals know to navigate via The Wiggle, a brilliant zigzagging route that snakes through most of the major neighborhoods (Downtown, SoMa, Mission and Castro, the Haight, Golden Gate Park) without ever hitting any major inclines. Helpful green signs along the route point the way.

Outdoor enthusiasts who are in relatively good shape should consider spending one morning biking across the Golden Gate Bridge to Sausalito. It’s a beautiful bike route and gives first-time visitors a great overview of the city. You can rent a bike at Fishermen’s Wharf and start the 3-hour ride that takes you high into the hills of San Francisco as you make the ascent towards the graceful bridge. Once on it, you will encounter lots of other cyclists, from young to old, all of whom have the same goofy smile: there’s something truly wonderful about biking across this landmark. Once across the bridge, it’s another ten-minute ride down to Sausalito, a groovy little town with galleries, shops and restaurants where you can have an al fresco meal with gorgeous views. Best of all, you can take a ferry straight back to Fishermen’s Wharf (be sure to take the right one, as two leave from Sausalito and the other one lets out at the Ferry Building), making for a more gentle conclusion of this half-day tour. For an extra bonus: the ferry takes you straight by Alcatraz.