Berkeley Marina

Trail Review

• Cassie and I parked at the Berkeley Marina, and we cycled to Marina Park and back. Most of the riding was on the San Francisco Bay Trail with little bits on University Ave and Powell St. The entire ride was on paved trails and roads.

• The bike lane on the San Francisco Bay Trail was so nice, with great views, good protection from cars, and not-too-crowded conditions. There is zero shade, however, and it was a good thing we went a little before sunset.

• We parked at the Berkeley Marina, and there were a ton of parking spots in the dirt. There were no facilities where we parked, but if needed, there are public bathrooms available nearby.

What Happened?

8.3 miles, 48 mins, 42 ft of ascent

I attended UC Berkeley in the 2000s, and I used to bike down Bancroft Ave, get on the San Francisco Bay Trail, and bike to Emeryville to visit Ikea for various supplies. 20+ later, I wanted to ride my favorite part of the ride and show it off to Cassie. So, we arrived at the Berkeley Marina, parked our car, and started riding south.

I was surprised at how empty the trail was as I think it’s a gem with such wonderful views of the San Francisco Bay. We felt very lucky and just enjoyed the extra space we had. I rode ahead a couple of times so that I could get in position and get pictures of Cassie and generally just had a great time on this short, but beautiful ride. On the way over to Marina Park, we did stop by Point Emery Park, where we saw a person start to fly a long kite that looked like a dragon—it was pretty cool as I had never seen one so close.

The rest of the ride was short and sweet, and I happily found out that Powell St had a big bike lane (until the end when bikes are encouraged to use the whole lane). We made it to the end of the park and walked to the tip of the pier that surprisingly points inland instead of out like all the other piers that I have been on.