Family Bike Route in SF?

December 17, 2007 10:34 PM

Looking for ood bike rides for kids AND grownups in San Francisco? Bay Area?

I got my kids bikes for xmas, and my wife got me the coolest bike ever (EVER!) and now I wonder: I ponder even (and then I turn to the hive): besides Golden Gate Park on Sundays, do any SF mefites have any other favorite bike rides for families here in the Bay area?

posted by asavage to sports, hobbies, & recreation (12 comments total)

Make that looking for GOOD bike rides. My bad.
posted by asavage at 10:38 PM on December 17, 2007

I can't find my copy right now, so I can't guarantee that it caters specifically to kid-friendly rides. But I like Henry Kingman's Short Bike Rides Around San Francisco. He definitely rates the ease of each ride, and talks about points of interest along the routes. You can get it on Amazon, or head over to American Cyclery and browse through a copy in person (bonus to being able to ask the employees for advice as well)

On of my favorite rides in the city is out by Lake Merced. The Sunset's nice and flat, and the ride around the lake is pretty. It's also close to the beach, and the ride along the Great Highway is pretty fun too. Have fun riding!
posted by nerdcore at 11:09 PM on December 17, 2007

Also, when I googled for Lake Merced I found a link to a website called goCityKids. They have a section on bike paths which might be worth a look.
posted by nerdcore at 11:14 PM on December 17, 2007

heh. you can rent bikes and ride across the golden gate. It's about 30 minutes each way, and there's a cool little cafe on the other side of the bridge. Yum.
posted by wuzandfuzz at 11:21 PM on December 17, 2007

I'm assuming you've also tired of Crissy Field?

Use the ferries! If the ride across the golden gate is too long and/or challenging, you can always catch a ferry (ferry building or pier 39) across to Sausalito or Tiburon. There's a path for a long way between those two towns that's quite pretty and relatively flat. Plus you can stop at the ridiculously cool bay model visitor center, which kept five of us kid-like adults engrossed for an hour last summer. There are ferries back to SF from either town (although I believe the Tiburon one is less frequent.)

We also enjoyed Angel Island (again, ferries!) and the deserted military barracks and fantastic views are a bonus. There *is* one steep hill in the beginning, but we saw lots of families walking their bikes up that part.

If you're willing to pile the bikes in a car, the Sawyer Camp Trail at the Crystal Springs reservoir is a popular peninsula favorite.
posted by synapse at 11:58 PM on December 17, 2007

I like biking across GG bridge, and when I'm in shape, up hawk hill and around the back. It's quite a climb! But very gratifying.
posted by aubilenon at 1:07 AM on December 18, 2007

How old are the kids? Are they biking themselves?

Riding from SF Giants Park to Crissy Field is a good city ride and just follows the waterfront on Embarcadero until Fisherman's Wharf, cut over to Van Ness and go toward the water (or just follow Fisherman's Wharf), stop at the wave organ if you like, go left (west) up the hill and over to Fort Mason, Marina Green and Crissy Field as far as you like..
posted by rhizome at 1:34 AM on December 18, 2007

Angel Island was a great spot for biking when I was a kid. We had a lot of fun there. There's lots to see, and it's pretty big.
posted by Malor at 5:15 AM on December 18, 2007

Park in the Outer Sunset where Golden Gate Park meets the ocean. Take the path along the Great Highway to the SF Zoo - it is just over 2 miles (route map). It is an easy path that does not intersect with any roads along the way.

On the way back, get off the path at Judah to have some coffee/hot chocolate at Java Beach.

Depending on the age/ability of your kids, you can extend this by riding through the park first, etc.
posted by mikepop at 5:54 AM on December 18, 2007

When there's no football, the ride around Candlestick Point can be nice (I've walked it, not biked it). It's not terribly long, though.

It's certainly gorgeous (and steep!), but I beg to differ with loquacious about the ride up and around Hawk Hill in the Headlands - the road is populated by far too many tourists who have eyes only for the bridge and a parking space, and by killer hardcore cycling folks who will tuck into the downhill portion and zip by at an unsettling zillion miles per hour.
posted by rtha at 6:17 AM on December 18, 2007

The Shoreline Parks in San Mateo are a great place to spend the day. Nice flat bike trail going in either direction along the bay, dog park to go wave at the puppies, seriously cool playground, water feature in the summertime.
posted by padraigin at 7:48 AM on December 18, 2007

2nding Shoreline Parks. (One of my teachers was part of the design team.) It's a great place to spend an afternoon. Sometimes quite windy, though.
posted by oneirodynia at 10:52 AM on December 18, 2007