San Francisco: Presidio, Fisherman's Wharf and Golden Gate Bridge

This was my first trip to San Francisco driving. Other times I have been there, I took the train and Uber to get around, but this time I had a companion who took some pictures of me.

I did some initial research on parking, and given that our primary destination was Golden Gate Bridge, I decided to park in Presidio for only $8.50 per day - a steal compared to parking garages outside the park. We walked to the Golden Gate Bridge - only half an hour away - and took some windy pictures.

We then headed back towards the city to have lunch, but on the way stopped by the Wave Organ. Unfortunately, we could not hear any sounds, but we also did not look at the tide schedule, so maybe you have a better luck.

The trail/path by the water is quite busy, but I guess this is a big city. We ended up having lunch at cultivar, a new trendy wine place. I was not too thrilled, but food was decent:

Read Christy W.'s review of cultivar on Yelp

Right after the restaurant we were ready for dinner. Yes, cultivar's tapa plates were ridiculously small, so we started thinking about the next place to eat while sitting at the restaurant. Weird, huh?

The next restaurant was Scoma's, certainly better than the first one, but super expensive

Read Christy W.'s review of Scoma's Restaurant on Yelp

This pasta dish was the cheapest I could find... $29

After dinner we planned to get some dessert, but just ended up walking back to Presidio.

On the way there, we stopped at the famous Lombard Street and kind of felt bad for the residents. There were so many people taking pictures and blocking the traffic, I am not sure how anyone can live there...

San Francisco's streets can't stop surprising me. The incline is so steep on some of them that you wonder how cars don't just start rolling over.

The sun was setting, so it got really pretty outside. And certainly can't say anything negative about 70 Degree temperature compared to over 100 in Fresno.

North Dome Trail in Yosemite National Park

I promise myself over and over again not to go on hikes over 6 miles round trip since I love leisure strolls in the woods. Well, the best views are mostly accessed by hiking high, and generally that entails either elevation gain or a decent number of miles.

The North Dome hike was 9.2 miles from the parking lot at Porcupine Creek. Don't get fooled by the small difference in elevation between the start of the hike and the end of it. The actual elevation gain is about 1750 ft (or so my MapMyRide app said). It is a difficult hike, at least it was for me. The worst part was when you get to the end, you have to hike down and then up, very steep! The views were totally worth the effort though.

We had to cross a couple a streams. And there was snow!

About a mile from the destination, there is a turnout where you can see the Indian Arch, the only natural arch in Yosemite. It reminded me of Arches National Park, but the granite seemed more sturdy than sand-like stone in the Arches.

2/3rd of the trail is shaded by the trees, but when you get closer to the North Dome, you are hiking on granite with very few trees in sight. A nice breeze can help out, and if there are some clouds in the sky, they protect you from the heat just a bit.

Almaden Quicksilver Mining Museum, San Crisobal Mine, New Almaden, CA

A trip down the history lane this weekend...

Almaden Quicksilver Mining Museum is a small museum/large mansion that used to belong to the manager of the mine back in the 1900's. The museum occupies only the first floor of the house, but it gives you a good idea of why the Almaden Quicksilver Mine was so important to the history of Almaden. In fact, I would recommend it to be your first stop before hiking anywhere in the Almaden Quicksilver County Park. Docents are really amazing there, and it is free ($2 donation is recommended).

Almaden Quicksilver Mining Museum

Well-manicured gardens by the museum

Imagine this implanted in your chest???

Model of the mining furnace

Stuff with mercury...

Some weird drilling equipment

Apparently, they thought mercury had anitibiotics properties. Yeah, killing everything, even human body...

You couldn't go up, but the house was impressive

Beautiful veranda

Landscaping in the back of the house

California...

The second part of the trip for me was the walking tour of the town. At the museum, they can provide you with a map of historic cottages right on the way to Almaden Quicksilver County Park (yes, you can leave your car by the museum and walk to the park, while enjoying some town history).

Lots of cottages remain original features since they now are historic attractions.

The roof is still tiled with what look to be original tiles

This house was just strange... Take a look at the cactus on the roof.

 And finally, the hike. I decided to see the San Cristobal Mine, the only mine that was still not sealed. Unfortunately, due to heavy rain in the past several months, the entry was closed and you could only see the mine from the outside.

The hike itself was pretty awesome. I took Mine Hill Trail all the way to the San Cristobal Mine.

Using MapMyRide app

View on to the parking lot, if you chose to drive and park at the Park..

Cool tree!

Powder House, they stored black powder to blow up mines there.

Entry to the San Cristobal Mine

San Cristobal Mine