The new pavement starts at the rest area on the north end of the Golden Gate Bridge. It loops down a knob of the Marin Headlands, passes under the span and comes out on Conzelman Road, which is closed to cars, at the edge of Fort Baker. The National Park Service's Golden Gate National Recreation Area held a ceremony on Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2026, to open it as the Vista Point Trail. "We're going to save lives today," U.S. Rep. Jared Huffman said at the end of his remarks.
The trail is 1,600 feet long, so it's easy to file away as a small safety upgrade for commuters. The bigger change is where it sends people. For 27 years, nearly everyone heading into Marin from the bridge skipped Fort Baker. Now the route runs through it.
A Road That Closed in 1999
The trail follows the old Vista Point Road. People used that road for more than a century until 1999, when it was closed to anyone not in a vehicle during the bridge's seismic upgrade. After that, Marin-bound cyclists mostly used Alexander Avenue, the steep stretch between Highway 101 and downtown Sausalito. The San Francisco Chronicle described it as full of potholes, with no bike lane, and carrying tourist families, fast road cyclists and drivers in one windy corridor.
The Marin County Bicycle Coalition calls that segment "the most dangerous mile in Marin." The coalition reviewed state collision data and found that at least 83 cyclists were injured there between 2011 and 2020. That works out to about one every six weeks, a rate the coalition says "dwarfs (that of) any other road in the county."
Talks about turning the old road into a bike trail began in 2012. The Golden Gate Bridge Highway and Transportation District, Caltrans, the City of Sausalito and the GGNRA were all involved, and the GGNRA managed the project. Construction started in January 2025. The coalition's project page lists the cost at $6.1 million. The Chronicle reported that the work was paid for by the Federal Lands Transportation Program and that the GGNRA didn't give a total cost. At the opening, cyclist Craig Roemer put the wait more bluntly: "It's been 40 years of waiting."
What the 1,600 Feet Actually Do
The pavement is 15 feet wide, with a marked bike lane and room for people on foot. Heading into Marin, the route goes like this:
- Leave the bridge at the north-end Vista Point rest area.
- Loop down the headland and pass under the bridge span.
- Join Conzelman Road, which is closed to cars, at Lower Conzelman Drive.
- Ride through Fort Baker toward Sausalito.
Warren Wells, the bicycle coalition's policy and planning director, told the Chronicle the route is a little longer than going down Alexander Avenue but much less stressful. "Even for experienced riders, this is great. It provides an alternative where there hasn't been one." Mario Perez, who manages Golden Gate Bridge Bike Rentals in the Marina, pointed to families: "This is going to make it much easier to get to Sausalito, and much safer, especially for families with kids riding bikes there."
Wells called it an alternative, and none of the coverage says Alexander Avenue is closed to bikes. Riders now have two ways down. Only one of them goes past the Fort Baker waterfront.
Fort Baker Moves From Detour to Main Route
Until this week, a stop at Fort Baker meant planning a separate trip or turning off the main route. Now its stops sit right along the way down to Sausalito. The Park Service describes the roads around Murray Circle and the waterfront as fairly flat. The one climb is short but steep, up to the access road toward Sausalito. Here's what's on that route:
- Cavallo Point. The lodge's dining pages list two restaurants, Sula and Farley. Farley is a bar that takes walk-ins daily. The official pages don't say whether people who aren't staying at the lodge can be seated, so call before planning a stop around it.
- Bay Area Discovery Museum. Regular hours are Wednesday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., with members admitted from 9 to 10 a.m. On the second Thursday of each month it closes at 3 p.m. Its 2026 annual closure ran September 14 through 25, so it's back on regular hours. In October the early close falls on Thursday, Oct. 8.
- The Horseshoe Cove pier. The Park Service lists it as a spot for fishing and crabbing.
- Battery Yates. It sits on Fort Baker's eastern bluffs. The Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy describes it as a short side trip off Satterlee Road, with views of the bridge, the bay and the city skyline.
- Travis Marina. Its September 2026 calendar listed live music on Fridays and Saturdays. Hours were Friday 4 to 11:30 p.m., Saturday noon to 11:30 p.m., and Sunday noon to 6 p.m. Check the October calendar before you go.
All of these were there before. What's changed is that a rider coming off the bridge no longer has to go out of the way to reach them.
The Bridge Deck Comes First
The new trail only starts once you're off the bridge, and the bridge's sidewalk rules decide when you can get there. Under the district's current Pacific Daylight Time schedule, pedestrians are allowed only on the east sidewalk, the one facing San Francisco. Cyclists can cross 24 hours a day without a toll, but which sidewalk they use depends on the day and time.
| Who | When | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Pedestrians | Daily, 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. | East sidewalk only |
| Cyclists | Weekdays, 5 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. | East sidewalk |
| Cyclists | Weekdays, 3:30 to 9 p.m. | West sidewalk |
| Cyclists | Weekends and holidays, 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. | Both sidewalks |
| Cyclists | Overnight, every day | East sidewalk, through remotely operated gates |
Construction affects both groups right now. Pedestrian hours end at 8 p.m. on some weeknights. The district's current alert says one sidewalk will always stay open to cyclists, but either one may close at 8 p.m. depending on how the lanes are set up for construction. These are the daylight-time hours. The district posts a separate schedule for standard time, which starts in November.
The Climb Back Up Is Less Clear
The opening coverage describes the trail heading north, from the bridge down to Fort Baker. None of the sources say how the trail works going the other way, uphill from Fort Baker to Vista Point. They don't say which lane uphill riders should use or whether cyclists are expected to climb it at all. Look at the posted signs on your first ride south before counting on it for a regular route into the city.
Into Sausalito, and Back by Water
Past Fort Baker, the ride into downtown Sausalito is the easy part. From the Sausalito Ferry Landing, Golden Gate Ferry takes regular bikes and e-bikes on a first-come, first-served basis. It warns that bike volume in Sausalito is high in the busy season and that you may have to carry your bike up or down stairs on the boat. The Sausalito route runs a Spaulding-class vessel that holds up to 750 passengers and carries bikes.
Riders who end a day in the city and want a ride home to Sausalito can use the schedule in effect since April 13, 2026. Weekday boats leave the San Francisco Ferry Building at 7:40, 10:15 and 12:10, and then at 2:45, 4:20, 5:45 and 7:15, arriving about 30 minutes later. On weekends and holidays, the first boat leaves at 10:15 a.m. and arrives at 11:15. The others leave at 12:35, 2:15, 4:00 and 5:50 p.m. and take about 30 minutes. On weekends, that 5:50 p.m. boat is the last one home.
If out-of-town guests are planning the classic ride over the bridge to Sausalito this fall, the new trail changes your directions. Send them down from Vista Point into Fort Baker, and tell them where to stop on the way.
We've spent decades getting around Marin by bike, on foot and by ferry. The Brody Team is glad to share our favorite Fort Baker stops, or to talk about what it's like to live close to routes like this one. Contact The Brody Team.
