Golden Gate Bridge

The year 2007 marked the 70th birthday of possibly the most beautiful, and certainly the most photographed, bridge in the world. Often half-veiled by the city's trademark rolling fog, San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge, named for the strait leading from the Pacific Ocean to the San Francisco Bay, spans tidal currents, ocean waves, and battering winds to connect the City by the Bay with the Redwood Empire to the north.

With its gracefully suspended single span, spidery bracing cables, and zooming twin towers, the bridge looks more like a work of abstract art than one of the 20th century's greatest practical engineering feats. Construction was completed in May 1937 at the then-colossal cost of $35 million (plus another $39 million in interest being financed entirely by bridge tolls).

The 1 3/4-mile bridge (including the approach), which reaches a height of 746 feet above the water, is awesome to cross. Although kept to a maximum of 45 miles an hour, traffic usually moves quickly, so crossing by car won't give you too much time to see the sights. If you drive from the city, take the last San Francisco exit, right before the toll plaza, park in the southeast parking lot, and make the crossing by foot. Back in your car, continue to Marin's Vista Point, at the bridge's northern end. Look back, and you'll be rewarded with one of the finest views of San Francisco.

Millions of people visit the bridge each year, gazing up at the tall orange towers, out at the vistas of San Francisco and Marin County, and down into the stacks of oceangoing liners. You can walk out onto the span from either end, but be prepared -- it's usually windy and cold, and the traffic is noisy. Still, walking even a short distance is one of the best ways to experience the immense scale of the structure and the perfect place to sing "San Francisco . . . open your Golden Gate."

Golden Gate Bridge by the Numbers

Span: 6,450 feet

Total length: 8,981 feet

Completion date: May 28, 1937

Cost: $35 million

Date paid in full: July 1971

Engineer: Joseph B. Strauss

Road height: 260 feet

Tower height: 746 feet

Swing span: 27 feet

Deepest foundation: 110 feet under water

Cable thickness: 37 inches

Cable length: 7,650 feet

Steel used: 83,000 pounds

Concrete used: 389,000 cubic yards

Miles of wire cable: 80,000

Gallons of paint annually: 10,000

Color: international orange

Rise, in cold weather: 5 feet

Drop, in hot weather: 10 feet

Traffic: 3 million vehicles per month

Toll: $6 (southbound only)

Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before planning your trip.

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