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Have a full day's fun around, on and if you're brave enough, in San Francisco Bay!
Travel books and internet sites are full of lists of things to do. This website helps you plan out your day with specific ideas and even an itinerary. Think of it as a guided tour of the city without an annoying tour guide, a big bus and a bunch of tourists.
Our day involves boat rides, crab fishing, and a chilly wade in the water.
Tickets to Alcatraz are for specific departure times during day. Therefore, it's best to schedule your trip for the first thing in the morning. That way you don't have to spend the day worrying about whether you will catch your specific ferry, and once you're there, you can spend as much time on the island as you wish.
If you've purchased travel books, they may indicate Blue and Gold Ferry
takes passengers to Alcatraz; this is no longer true. The
only service is provided by Hornblower, operating as "Alcatraz Cruises".
No matter how or where you buy your tickets, this is the only
service that provides transportation to Alcatraz. Some
websites will claim to sell tickets of their own, but all they're doing is
re-selling the official ticket and adding a service charge. Find the
official reservation site
here.
It is important to book your reservations ahead of time, particularly in the summer months. Book weeks ahead if possible.
Ferries run about every half hour, starting with the "earlybird" which departs Pier 33 at 9:30am. Adults are $21.75 ages 12-17 are $20.75 and children under 12 are $13.75. The tour includes a pre-taped audio presentation called "Doing Time" which uses narrators and former prisoners to guide you through the cell block. The audio is available in English, Spanish, German, French, Italian and Japanese
There are two ways to buy tickets.
Most visitors are surprised by how small "The Rock" actually is. At its peak, the prison only held a few hundred prisoners. During the 29 years it was in use, the jail held such notable criminals as Al Capone, Robert Franklin Stroud (the Birdman of Alcatraz), James "Whitey" Bulger and Alvin Karpis, who served more time at Alcatraz than any other inmate.
Alcatraz was sometimes called the "prison within the prison system", since the only inmates sent there were transferred from other federal prisons. Courts could not sentence anyone to Alcatraz. Instead, the Rock was where the Bureau of Prisons sent its most troublesome prisoners until it was decided they could be safely returned to a lower-security institution. Their average stay was five years.
Kids will love the visit - it's hopefully both their first and last visit to a prison. Docents and park rangers are happy to answer questions, and if you're particularly friendly and respectful, you may wangle special treatment just like the prisoners did. After all, the guides are there to help. Too often tourists follow the flow of the crowd. Hang back a little and ask an intelligent question of a ranger. You might be surprised what you learn.
Truth be told, once you've seen the informational film, toured the cellblocks and stopped by the gift shop, there's not much else to see on "The Rock". Stop and enjoy the view of the city and catch the next ferry back.
The families that have tried crab fishing say it is by far - of all the things we suggest on this website - their favorite and most memorable activity of their entire vacation. We get a certain satisfaction out of thinking of our readers returning to their hotels after crab fishing and turning up their noses - just ever so slightly - in superiority at the other travellers who spent the afternoon at some tourist trap.
We're assuming you're continuing your day's Bay Adventure (click here for our other adventures) after a trip to Alcatraz described above. The next thing we're going to do near the water is catch crabs. We suggest you read ahead -- there are a couple of decisions to make, including whether you wish to grab a cab (though you can do the entire adventure easily without one) and whether you're going to purchase a net or use one from the Park Service - see sidebar.
From where the ferry dropped you off, turn right (so that the San Francisco Bay is on your right shoulder) and walk through Fisherman's Wharf along Jefferson Street. Go left at Hyde Street up one block past the cable car turnaround (it will be on your left) and go two blocks to North Point Street. At the corner of North Point and Polk Street you will find the S.F. Liquor and Muni Market. Go inside (children are allowed in liquor stores in California - plus it's more of a convenience store) and purchase:
Chat with the owner - he's a very nice old man from Eastern Europe and knows crab fishing well. You can buy bait here at the store, usually squid. Truth is, crabs will eat just about anything - it just needs to be able to hold up underwater. So a donut definitely won't work, but a fried chicken leg or a thick stack of bologna would for sure. We often use a small bit of inexpensive raw chicken that has bones in it, such as drumsticks or wings. Bottom line: if you read this before leaving the hotel and brought your doggy bag with you, use that for bait. If you didn't, buy some squid or other bait the owner recommends.
You may or may not wish to purchase a small bait box - a tiny metal cage that contains your bait. We've never used one -- there's a section at the bottom of the crab net that holds chicken just fine. Whether or not to use a bait box seems to be a matter of whether or not you think your bait is going to slip out. If you're using squid, you should probably use a bait box.
Take your purchase and head downhill towards the water into Aquatic Park. There is a small section of beach here where kids can build sandcastles - in fact, one of the only sandy beach spots you'll find anywhere in the city. Stop, put your feet up and enjoy a few moments. Don't throw the crab net in the water -- it's not time for that yet.
There's more information on the boats in front of you and the museum behind you in our "Bike Adventure" section. Click here for more. Think it would be fun to wade in the water? The water is reasonably safe here, but it's going to be very, very cold. Check our our "Top Five San Francisco Tourist Mistakes". For a $6.50 per person day use fee, you can use the showers and lockers at the Dolphin Aquatic Club located right on the beach.
After your respite, you have a decision to make: crab fish here, or closer to the Golden Gate Bridge. If you wish to crab fish right here, you simply walk out to the long dock right in front of you. Skip down to the fishing instructions.
If you decide to fish closer to the Golden Gate bridge, you either have a significant (but beautiful) walk ahead of you carrying a large crab net, or you can walk back towards Fisherman's Wharf and hail a cab. Tell him you want to go to the warming hut at Crissy Field near Fort Point. We highly recommend the experience near Fort Point. If you have a car, you should absolutely drive to Fort Point - there is always plenty of free parking, even on the weekend.
If you decide to walk to Fort Point - and again, this would be a significant walk - head west (put the Bay on your right shoulder) and walk up the hill path through Fort Funston, down through Marina Green and through Crissy Field towards the Golden Gate Bridge.
As you approach, you will pass by several small buildings near a pier. One of the buildings is the park district's little coffee shop (editors note: currently closed for repairs) which also has interesting books and sophisticated souvenirs. These are the sorts of things you would take home as gifts, not the tacky stuff you will find at Fisherman's Wharf. There are also restrooms in a nearby outbuilding. The pier itself will likely be full of fishermen - walk out and see what they're catching. Many of the fishermen are first generation Americans and are doing what they did in their home country - they're catc
hing their dinner.
You don't need to go all the way out to the end of the pier; there are crabs everywhere. Tie the rope to your the top of your crab net. Tie the other end of the rope to a stanchion, a bench leg, anything but yourself. Check the knots. At the bottom of the net, you will find a pocket - a space created by two sections of netting. You can either place your bait into the pocket, or put your bait in a small bait box and then place the entire box into the pocket. Usually bait boxes come with a small length of string to secure them. We've fished for years using chicken as bait with no bait box and have never lost the bait.
Toss
the net off the pier. It makes absolutely no difference whether you
toss it out or lower it straight down. The net must hit bottom - crabs
live on the sea floor. If the rope is still taut, it's not at the
bottom yet.
There is no magic waiting period. You could have a crab within seconds, or it may take a few minutes. When you absolutely can't stand to wait any longer, pull the net back up, taking care not to step in the coils of rope, as you would not want to have a foot tangled in something that might pull you over the edge. If there are no crabs, throw it back.
If you have a crab (and you may have several), pull the net onto the pier and take some pictures!
You can safely pick the crab up by approaching it from behind and scooping the crab up with your fingers underneath and your thumb on its top shell - think of the way you might carry a pizza box with one hand.
Throw the crab back in the water and repeat the process.
You will likely attract a crowd. It's good karma to let other families give it a try. It's unlikely you will want to take your crab net back home with you on the airplane (good luck with that!) so once you're done for the day, just give your net to someone, and encourage them to teach the next person!
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Can I keep/eat the crab?
Frankly, keeping or eating crabs is beyond the scope of this article. We just catch them for fun. You may not under any circumstance keep a Dungeness crab. Click here for a diagram of what a Dungeness looks like. Other crabs can be eaten, but it is only safe to do so at certain times of the year. Again, this is beyond the scope of this article.
Will the crab hurt me?
Crabs are surprisingly slow. Approached from behind, they will not pinch you. If you are particularly afraid or squeamish, simply don't lower the net to the ground. Shake the crabs back out into the water.
Is it legal to fish without a license?
Yes, you may fish for crabs off any city pier without any documentation whatsoever.
Is it safe?
As safe as standing on a pier in the ocean. If you're a local family, bringing a life jacket (called a PFD these days) is a good idea. Fortunately, you can easily catch crabs from anywhere on the pier, meaning you do not have to go out to where it's far above the waves - at least it will be a short fall, in other words. As stated earlier, its good practice to never step on the rope, as you don't want your feet to get tangled.
What makes good bait?
Crabs will eat anything, but are particularly fond of squid. However, chicken is just as good. Anything that will stay inside the net's pocket (eg, a chicken drumstick) will work.
How long will we have to wait? My children may not have the patience.
This not like fishing for fish - crabs are everywhere and will almost immediately jump in your net. A net left underwater for 5 minutes or so should catch at least one crab.
What if we don't catch any?
We have never ever failed to catch a crab within the first 10 minutes of fishing.
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Tom and Barbara from Kansas City say: Our favorite picture of the whole trip (and the one that causes the biggest "wows" at home) is of our crab fishing adventure. Thank you!Found a clean restroom? Good eating spot? A tip for future adventurers?
The Golden Gate National Recreation Area (the Park Service) has crabbing classes and will lend you a net for as long as you wish. However, the classes are rare and require a reservation. If you are visiting on a day when there is no class, you can purchase a crab net from the S.F. Liquor and Muni Market at 3098 Polk Street, an easy walk from Fisherman's Wharf.
Details on the Park Service Class.
A good article on family crab fishing is here.