Fisherman's Wharf

SC Maintenance said:
How is China town and how are the cable cars.

I stayed at the top of the hill for a week in the mid 90's for a convention. Every night we took the cable car down, then back up - getting on and off along the way in various places. China town and the cable cars were my favorite parts - although the cable car drivers were grumpy as all get out. We were young engineers and just wanted to know how it worked, and they had no interest in talking (even when we were sober).
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I haven't been on a cable car in maybe a decade. However, I went at a time when my kid was still free. It's clearly a tourist-only thing now. I remember when the cable car surcharge was maybe 25 cents over regular adult fares. It used to be OK to ride on a regular MUNI monthly pass and locals would take it to get around.

How it works is pretty simple. I think they have pictures at the Cable Car museum.

As far as Chinatown goes. It's kind of weird. Everything is more expensive, but it's still somewhat easy to eat relatively cheap. What's really disappointing is that there are no more big room dim sum houses in San Francisco's Chinatown. This was the last one that was open. Supposedly the building is being taken down for housing, but the current owners have been promised a new space in that building where the housing will be on top of the restaurant. So they closed the restaurant and put in a store until it's supposed to be dismantled. But that hasn't happened.

https://hoodline.com/2017/04/new-asia-restaurant-in-chinatown-to-become-affordable-housing/

New_Asia_restaurant_on_Google_Maps.jpg


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You can still find places like that. But they won't be in Chinatown. Maybe the Richmond or Sunset, and there's supposedly a nice place at the Embarcadero Center. Also south of San Francisco in non-touristy places like Millbrae or Daly City.
 
y_p_w said:
I'd just point out that's not my photo. I was in my mid-30s when I did it. The warnings I got were to do it early in the morning since it was going to be really hot (I think about 98ºF at the Zion Canyon floor) by about noon. I also had an advantage that I'd been on a trip where I'd been at higher altitudes for a couple of weeks, including Yellowstone, Moab, and the Grand Canyon and I had acclimated to higher altitudes. Someone just coming in from Vegas with only a day there might be sucking wind.

This is my photo. I have some better ones near the top, but I don't feel comfortable posting anything where people are identifiable. However, you can make little dots where people are going to the top, and it was not crowded at all.

View attachment 228450

Honestly the fitness level needed to do it isn't that high, although there is the difficulty of temperatures and altitude. But the really hard thing is the exposure. If were to try again, I might not be able to handle it. I understand that some people make it up OK, but going down they see how exposed they are and have a hard time going down. I had about the same issue with Half Dome cables.
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Wait a minute @y_p_w, you've hiked to the summit of Half Dome too?!

Half Dome requires a special mental toughness and the hydration ability of a camel. You must have a remarkable mind and body. You doing both Angel's Landing and Half Dome makes you a 1%er.

I bow to you!

Scott
 
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slo town said:
Wait a minute @y_p_w, you've hiked to the summit of Half Dome too?!

Half Dome requires a special mental toughness. You must have a remarkable mind and body.

I bow to you!

Scott
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I don't know about that. I was much younger (have a dad bod now). A lot of the people i saw there weren't in terribly good shape but managed anyways.

I did it as a backpacking trip where my first day was maybe 9-10 miles. And I had this nasty welt on my back where I wore shorts with a thick drawstring, but my 35 lb backpack's pad was pressing against my back. That made my hike to the top of Half Dome a more manageable 2 miles from where I camped. I also wasn't very crowded. The people I met up there who did it as a day trip said they left maybe 4-5 AM in the morning on a Thursday. Again - I'd rather not post any of my own photos with identifiable people, but this was one I took while hiking back to my tent. Physically I don't think it's that bad, but a lot of people freeze when looking down. This day wasn't bad for crowding, but I remember looking the next day with binoculars and it was packed on a Friday.

hd5.webp


During that trip I also visited Sequoia and Kings Canyons where I didn't do quite as much with my then girlfriend (who joined up with me). My avatar photo was taken on that trip. I remember going to one place that issued backpacking permits. The guy there seemed kind of bored and didn't mind just talking about random stuff. But I do remember seeing a photo there of the Half Dome cables absolutely slammed with a caption of "Be happy you're not at Half Dome".
 
y_p_w said:
I don't know about that. I was much younger (have a dad bod now). A lot of the people i saw there weren't in terribly good shape but managed anyways.

I did it as a backpacking trip where my first day was maybe 9-10 miles. And I had this nasty welt on my back where I wore shorts with a thick drawstring, but my 35 lb backpack's pad was pressing against my back. That made my hike to the top of Half Dome a more manageable 2 miles from where I camped. I also wasn't very crowded. The people I met up there who did it as a day trip said they left maybe 4-5 AM in the morning on a Thursday. Again - I'd rather not post any of my own photos with identifiable people, but this was one I took while hiking back to my tent. Physically I don't think it's that bad, but a lot of people freeze when looking down. This day wasn't bad for crowding, but I remember looking the next day with binoculars and it was packed on a Friday.

View attachment 228460

During that trip I also visited Sequoia and Kings Canyons where I didn't do quite as much with my then girlfriend (who joined up with me). My avatar photo was taken on that trip. I remember going to one place that issued backpacking permits. The guy there seemed kind of bored and didn't mind just talking about random stuff. But I do remember seeing a photo there of the Half Dome cables absolutely slammed with a caption of "Be happy you're not at Half Dome".
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I was assuming a day trip, but even with you camping your way to the top doesn't change my lofty opinion of you. One thing that Half Dome offers that is much better than Angel's Landing is traction. The foot traction on Half Dome is superior.

Scott
 
I lived on the Peninsula for 40 years (1960-2000). When the SF County board of health banned the outdoor crab pots, that was the beginning of the end, IMO. The smell of brine drew you in; pick-up a few crabs on ice to bring home.

My favorite restaurant was Fisherman's Grotto (Pier 9). My favorite dish - Spaghetti and crab marinara. I have a souvenir recipe book someplace. Excellent salad dressing too.

My only regret was I never got to DiMaggio's. :(
 
slo town said:
I was assuming a day trip, but even with you camping your way to the top doesn't change my lofty opinion of you. One thing that Half Dome offers that is much better than Angel's Landing is traction. The foot traction on Half Dome is superior.

Scott
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No. Angels Landing easily had superior traction. It's sandstone and it grips like sandpaper, even in heavily worn areas.

I've heard some complaints that the cables of Half Dome have been worn somewhat smooth over years of people walking between the cables. It can be somewhat slick. Some recommendations are to wear something with climbing rubber, like approach shoes, although i did it with Vibram soles on a hiking boot. Some people go outside the cables, claiming that the traction is superior.

This photo came from this site. You can clearly see that it's been discolored a bit from all the wear.

https://hikingguy.com/hiking-trails/yosemite-hikes/half-dome-hike-complete-guide/

half-dome-cables-closeup-740x416.jpg
 
paulo57509 said:
I lived on the Peninsula for 40 years (1960-2000). When the SF County board of health banned the outdoor crab pots, that was the beginning of the end, IMO. The smell of brine drew you in; pick-up a few crabs on ice to bring home.

My favorite restaurant was Fisherman's Grotto (Pier 9). My favorite dish - Spaghetti and crab marinara. I have a souvenir recipe book someplace. Excellent salad dressing too.

My only regret was I never got to DiMaggio's. :(
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Granted some of those places have closed and it's kind of depressing, but i remember walking by that place a few years ago and they had that covered outdoor area with crabs boiling. Quite a few of those closed down and never reopened though.
 
CKN said:
That's another thing. I was in Seattle a couple of years ago-walked all over the city. Just don't know how some can see things SO DRAMATICALLY different. Anybody can be carjacked in any major city. Give me a break!!!
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I've lived in the Seattle/Tacoma area for 50 years. The past 20 years Seattle has become a drug infested haven. Many areas of the streets have human feces and the stench of urine. Crime is rampant. I don't need anybody telling me different than what I have experienced.
 
andrewg said:
I've lived in the Seattle/Tacoma area for 50 years. The past 20 years Seattle has become a drug infested haven. Many areas of the streets have human feces and the stench of urine. Crime is rampant. I don't need anybody telling me different than what I have experienced.
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Didn't see any of that.
 
paulo57509 said:
I lived on the Peninsula for 40 years (1960-2000). When the SF County board of health banned the outdoor crab pots, that was the beginning of the end, IMO. The smell of brine drew you in; pick-up a few crabs on ice to bring home.

My favorite restaurant was Fisherman's Grotto (Pier 9). My favorite dish - Spaghetti and crab marinara. I have a souvenir recipe book someplace. Excellent salad dressing too.

My only regret was I never got to DiMaggio's. :(
Click to expand...
I remember eating at a few restaurant's at fisherman's wharf over the years. I also remember the crab pots stacked up and the crabs screaming when they hit the boiling water. Toscana french bread and Riviera Minestrone soup were staple at my house growing up. Both brands gone now. Last time we stayed in SF it was at a Motor Inn down the hill from Chinatown and a couple blocks to FW. Great location and extremely reasonable by SF standards. It was a little worn around the edges but I wasn't buying the place so it was fine for the 4 days we stayed. The homeless, panhandlers, freaks didn't seem any more prevalent than any other large city I have been to.
https://columbusmotorinn.com/
 
We were down there about a year ago, stayed on fishermans wharf and walked down to China Town through Little Italy. Even at night we had no issues, couple homeless wandering but no tents anywhere we went. The wharf itself was pretty clean. We were told that downtown and Union Square as well as Ghiradelli Square can be problem areas. Hotel employees said a lot of cars get broken into at Ghiradelli and it's best to avoid it. Other than that it wasn't bad at all, never felt sketchy. China Town was pretty awesome
 
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