Golden Gate Bridge

The Golden Gate Bridge is San Francisco’s eye catcher and connects the San Francisco peninsula with Marin County. Where the Golden Gate Bridge got its name, you ask? The bridge crosses the Golden Gate strait. And why the orange color? Because it enhances the visibility in the fog.

The iconic orange bridge - who doesn’t recognize it from movies, advertising and TV shows - was designed by Joseph Strauss and built between 1933 and 1937. It’s a great piece of engineering. The extraordinary bridge makes quite an impression with its size (2.7 kilometres long - making it one of the longest bridges in the US - and 227 meters high). Ships can easily pass underneath, since its clearance above high water is about 27 meters. The six lane highway is hung on two main cables that are almost a meter thick. These two cables each consist of almost 28,000 (!) smaller cables. The bridge draws some nine million visitors per year. The most fun way to see the bridge is by foot or bike. There’s an almost three kilometres long footpath/bicycle lane. Walking will take you 45 minutes to an hour. It’s easiest to go from Marin County to San Francisco, since that way you’re descending and are most likely to have a tailwind. You can arrange a bike tour or rent a bicycle at one of the many bike rentals.