Contemporary Photos of the Golden Gate Bridge
All photographs © Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District, San Francisco, CA. All rights reserved. Permission is required for use.
Beauty Shots of the Bridge | Southeast Visitor Area | Bridge Workers | Fun and Interesting Happenings | Art at the Bridge
Beauty Shots of the Bridge |
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Sunrise at the Golden Gate Bridge (from Southeast Visitor Area - Flag Pole Hill). |
From the Southeast Visitor Area - Flag Pole Hill, the Golden Gate Bridge, Marin County to the north, and Angel Island to the right. |
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Golden Gate Bridge - view from Vista Point parking lot located on the northeast side of the span. |
From its vantage point overlooking the Golden Gate Strait (the body of water that the Bridge spans), Fort Point protected the San Francisco harbor from Confederate and foreign attack during and after the U.S. Civil War. Fort Point is a National Historic Site (visit http://www.nps.gov/fopo/). |
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Golden Gate Bridge security patrols are coordinated with other agencies, including the U.S. Coast Guard. |
Southeast side of the Bridge, on the way to the Fort Point National Historic Site (take Lincoln Blvd, to Long Avenue, to Marine Drive). |
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The sun rises over the city by the San Francisco Bay as seen from Vista Point in Marin County. |
The view when standing on top of one of the Bridge's two massive main cables. This was taken by a Bridge Operating Engineer at "midspan." |
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This amazing photo was taken by Frank Fennema Photography, September 12, 2009, at 4:58am. |
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Golden Gate Bridge Southeast Visitor Area (click for directions) |
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The Strauss Plaza, located on the southeast side of the Bridge, is a great place to start your visit. Metered parking is available. |
The Roundhouse Gift Center is open daily and offers one-of-a-kind Bridge-themed gifts and apparel. |
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The Southeast Visitor Area is usually teeming with visitors! This shot was taken shortly after sunrise. |
The Bridge Café is open daily and offers sandwiches, salads, beverages, and more. |
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Visitors can relax and stroll through award-winning perennial gardens. |
The view of the Bridge and gardens from the Strauss Plaza. |
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The Strauss Plaza is a popular place to meet, take photos, and visit the nearby Roundhouse Gift Center and Bridge Café. |
A cross-section of one of the massive main cables is on display in the Southeast Visitor Area. Each main cable is 7,650 feet long, measures 36-3/18" in diameter, and is made up of 27,572 steel wires. Together, the total length of wire used to build the main cables is 80,000 miles! |
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Don't miss the view from Flag Pole Hill (left) or the main cable cross-section (right). |
A rare sunny day at the Golden Gate Bridge! |
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Golden Gate Bridge gardeners and grounds crews keep the gardens blooming and the visitor areas clean and inviting. |
From the Roundhouse Gift Center, a view of the southeast visitor area and downtown San Francisco in the background. |
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Ironworkers place safety first when working atop the Bridge's 746-foot tall main towers. |
Teams of two painters clean and paint the Bridge's 250 pairs of verticle suspender ropes from inside an enclosed "skybox" that moves up or down the ropes hydraulically. Suspender ropes attach the roadway to the massive main cables. |
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Bridge Painter working from the scaffold that is built to move on a track mounted to the roadway truss structure. |
Bridge Operating Engineers use heavy equipment to move loads in areas where crews are working. Not a bad view from the Fort Point overlook on the southeast side! |
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Bridge Painters inspecting the main cable. |
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Bridge patrols often perform their jobs on 2 wheels! Photo on right courtesy of M. Mazumdar |
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Fun and Interesting Happenings at the Bridge |
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In April 2010, the Harlem Globetrotters walked across the Bridge after a bit of showing off for the crowd at Vista Point. |
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On March 16, 2010, three massive cranes, bound for the Port of Oakland, aboard the Zhen Hua 15 passed under the Golden Gate Bridge just after 8:30 am. The ship originated its trip in China. |
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On February 17, 2010, Daytona 500 champion Jamie McMurray crossed the Golden Gate Bridge in a cable car during his victory tour of San Francisco. |
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On Feburary 16, 2009, while enduring a torrential downpour, Amgen Tour of California peloton headed south towards Santa Cruz via the GGB roadway at 8:40 am. Lance Armstrong was among the top world class racers cheered on by the very hearty and wet spectators on-hand to witness this first-ever milestone. |
On May 13, 2008, this Golden Gate Bridge paint crew was part of a Good Morning America segment that aired at 4 am California time. |
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On August 10, 2008, at 2:44 pm, a dazed pelican that was not able to fly was safely recovered from the Bridge roadway. She was transferred to the International Bird Rescue Research Center, Cordelia, CA where she was named “G.G.” by her caretakers. On September 12, 2008, the very same GGB workers who had recovered her released G.G back to the wild. |
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On November 27, 2007, John Beatty’s quick thinking prevented a potentially serious crash on the Bridge when he used his pickup truck to guide a SUV, in which the driver had gone unconscious, away from oncoming traffic. On Dec. 7, 2007, he was presented with a certificate of appreciation from CHP. |
Durham, NC elementary school custodian Joe Venable’s life-long dream came true on July 11, 2007, when he visited the Bridge. His 5th grade students raised $2000 to send him and his wife to San Francisco. The Mayor proclaimed July 13, 2007, as Joe Venable Day. |
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On February 4, 2007, the Queen Mary 2 made maritime history when she makes her maiden call to San Francisco. Thousands of maritime enthusiasts and well-wishers gathered on and all around the Bridge to view the ship as she sailed beneath the Golden Gate Bridge. |
On August 29, 2005, a female 6-foot-tall ostrich busted its way out of a cargo van at about 4:45 pm, stopping the evening commute traffic in both directions and sending dozens of tourists racing for their cameras. |
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On May 19, 2004, a young deer bounding onto the Golden Gate Bridge and loped across the entire span as Bridge officials and motorists watched in amazement. The deer zipped through a FasTrak lane, took the 19th Avenue exit and then disappeared into the Presidio. |
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Art Deco neon numbers adorn the clock atop the Toll Plaza. |
It's always hard to say goodbye - one final look at the Bridge, Toll Plaza, and clock! |
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