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auntieyams@reddit

Find a local yacht club they often have get togethers. Meet a local captain and you should be all set.

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sailonswells@reddit

Great charter guy will take you on a super cool historic sailboat: https://sailtaihoa.com/

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I took classes at a place in Sausalito, but before that I did a sorta beginner group cruise one afternoon - conditions depending, you could certainly do that and get under the bridge and then decide if you wanna take more classes.

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hudsoncress@reddit

Most effective means would be to start hanging around yacht clubs offering to crew in exchange for hooking them up with coke.

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M4hkn0@reddit

I guess a six pack of beer doesn’t cut it anymore.

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hudsoncress@reddit

a six pack would likely get you on a boat if you have some experience. Coke gets you on the crew, if you know what I mean.

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SVAuspicious@reddit

Kudos and an upvote to u/Active_Arachnid1088.

Crossing oceans is simply a matter of going for a day sail and forgetting to go home...until something goes wrong. Dealing with breakage and/or injury and/or illness and often a failure cascade is where skill and experience integrate with calm and order to get home safely.

Acquire sailboat
Sail under bridge
2a. Check weather and sail under the bridge; continue for ten or fifteen minutes; turn around and go back
2b. Check weather and sail under the bridge and sail somewhere not too far such as Half Moon Bay having planned somewhere to stay before sailing back
2c. Plan and execute further sails, overnights, longer trips
2d. Sail to HI and back
2e. Cross the Pacific

For those on the East Coast, Annapolis to Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel is similar. Annapolis to NYC or Newport RI is a good next step although many do DelMarVa.

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HotMountain9383@reddit

Go get a Catalina 30 for cheap. Someone in boatyard will bring you out and teach you for beers, better to go for an ASA101 basic keelboat course. Look it up and go for it.

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wosmo@reddit

If you're in a boatyard, you've already solved 90% of the problem. Open wallet, state problem, wait for answers.

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somedude510@reddit

Depending on the boat yard, yes. No cash, no splash

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pumukl@reddit

Way to go!

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Tobeorknotobe@reddit

Adventurecat.com is a catamaran that offers daily sailing charters from Pier 39. That will be your easiest option.

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diggida@reddit

I did this and loved it and started taking sailing lessons soon after.

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The_Didlyest@reddit

They used to have an Americas cup boat that did rides from pier 39. It was a blast when I went.

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BoatMan01@reddit

Outstanding outfit. I've worked with their deckhands and they're freaking rockstars!

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Sybrandus@reddit

Did this with them years ago. Had a great time.

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sean_ocean@reddit

Also the boat in the picture is literally Adventurecat.

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sean_ocean@reddit

Also recommend this.

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No_Squirrel_italy@reddit

Cut the mast

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Active_Arachnid1088@reddit

You must follow the two step program below:

Step 1: Aquire sailboat Step 2: Sail under bridge

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montigoo@reddit

You can skip both those bothersome steps if you are an attractive female

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TheAmicableSnowman@reddit

Even the most attractive female will need to sail under the bridge to sail under the bridge.

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pttrsmrt@reddit

Hey that’s sexist!

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BaggyLarjjj@reddit

but then you have to worry about the implication

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Hipcat5@reddit

Skip step #1 if you go with a tour from pier 39 and have $80?

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Ace-of-Spades88@reddit

Ah, yes. That most fundamental of all rules.

Step 1: be attractive.

Step 2: don't be unattractive.

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bedpimp@reddit

Can confirm.

Source: Acquired sailboat and sailed under bridge

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Just-Smart-Enough@reddit

Likewise.

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BaggyLarjjj@reddit

END OF LIST

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J4pes@reddit

Worked for me

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overthehillhat@reddit

No huge work project step?

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katrk824@reddit

only if you want to sail back under said bridge.

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Starfield00@reddit

That is a very detailed and good advice 👍 I see you are speaking from experience.

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No-Lingonberry9376@reddit

My son is going to the Coast Guard Academy and sailed under it last summer on the tall ship Barque Eagle. Not sure if you want to serve 9 years for the privilege, lol

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GangsterNapper@reddit

You should look into joining modern sailing school. They have boats in Berkeley and Sausalito. You are able to pay to join a crew sail with them to test them out. Typically, the crew sails out of Sausalito will sail under the bridge.

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SailTango@reddit

There are at least two outfits offering sailboat rides to the GG bridge. Adventure Cats are the ones we see most often, but there is also a ketch. Dress warmly.

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alex1033@reddit

There's a club in Sausalito that could potentially give you a sailboat, but I failed to get through all bureaucracy they had when I tried to charter some years ago. But perhaps you could rent a skippered boat - that'll be easier (but more expensive). If you charter and go on your own, mind the tidal currents under the bridge.

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rrjpinter@reddit

First thing is to check the tide tables and the marine forecast. You want to go out close to a slack low tide. That way you have the current pushing you back into the bay, when you return. The outgoing current after a high tide can easily be 6 kts under the Golden Gate. You don’t want to be on a slow boat, and get sucked out, unable to get back. Most larger sailboats (35’+) will have a large enough motor to exceed that current, but a little boat with a little outboard would not be prudent. Stay out of the shipping lanes, especially in the fog. The potato patch is a shallow area, where 6’ swells can turn into 10’ swells. It is clearly marked on the chart. Most big sailboats need extra crew. Be sane, reasonably fit, and able to follow directions, and you should be able to find a ride. I used to crew on a 50’ sailboat, and we would go out around the Farallon Islands and back. It was easy for me, because I was a Maritime Academy grad, and my day job was a Tug Boat Captain. You might have to work a little harder.

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MissingGravitas@reddit

The potato patch is a shallow area, where 6’ swells can turn into 10’ swells.

Oh, it can be so much more exciting than that: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZ9kru3KLDE

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Objective-Case-391@reddit

Volunteer with BAADS and they’ll teach you to sail.

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Sterling_____Archer@reddit

Hey OP, because no one here seems to have mentioned it, that stretch or water can be really dangerous/difficult to sail in if you don’t know EXACTLY what you’re doing.

Please don’t take make your day zero sailing adventure into a statistic.

Have someone experienced take you out there under the bridge; it’ll be much more enjoyable.

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vulkoriscoming@reddit

It is called the potato patch for a reason. It is unpleasant water.

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Leweyb@reddit

that would be on the other side of the bridge, and out a ways.

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eldankus@reddit

I’m not a sailor but grew up in and around the water, my dad used to run a charter fishing business so spent a lot of time on boats and I was an avid surfer and spear fisherman.

I used to look at the channel from Fort Point when I lived in SF and the amount of water moving and the amount of texture was humbling.

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Lycent243@reddit

"oh, it is called the potato patch! That must mean that potato laden ships sank there in the 1800s"

I'm not sure that it logically follows from the name to the unpleasant water part lol

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MissingGravitas@reddit

Indeed it doesn't, until one inquires as to why those ships sank there.

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vulkoriscoming@reddit

I have no clue at all why it is called the potato patch. That is just what my father and some other captains called it.

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Lycent243@reddit

Now you know!

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overthehillhat@reddit

Might be this:: ''Potato Navigation''

For navigating in the fog -- --

http://www.workingwaterfrontarchives.org/2004/10/01/potato-navigation/

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Brandgeek@reddit

I was gonna say “potato patch”does feel implicitly dangerous to me 😂 and I’ve sailed around a few times now

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justdick@reddit

The view in the photo is not the potato patch; it’s just outside the Gate. You can see Mile Rock in the upper right and the catamaran is just off Point Diablo.

The Potato Patch is indeed a very dicey place to sail but it’s father out and to the north a bit.

But, as others have said, conditions outside the Gate are very different from the bay. Don’t go out there unless you know what you’re doing.

Source: I sail outside the Gate when conditions are decent.

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tealnotturquoise@reddit

Marin - https://www.modernsailing.com/instruction-modern-sailing?gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=21624688555&gclid=Cj0KCQjws83OBhD4ARIsACblj1-JmobIVoFkU13w_jRg7jxRIFCXLZkwEFz4QmvtDYLc8zg1x1ewEpQaAuZaEALw_wcB SF - https://www.spinnaker-sailing.com/sailing-lessons East Bay - https://www.cal-sailing.org/

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isogoniccloverleaf@reddit

Look on latitude 38 website - crew needs to be replaced on a regular basis

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rrjpinter@reddit

I remember how Latitude 38 used to have ads for crew to do the Trans Pac race. After all the serious questions (do you know Celestial Navigation ?, Can you swim ?, etc, etc), the last question was: Do you look great in a Bikini ?

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bbauer1973@reddit

I also recommend Modern Sailing. I took American Sailing Association (ASA) 101 & 103 classes there. With those two classes they allow you to charter their smaller boats (30’). Although not necessary for chartering (at least when I was a member), I would also recommend 118 Docking Endorsement as leaving the dock and getting safely back to the dock is pretty important (nerve racking and you’ll most likely always have an “audience”).

I will say I had some sailing experience (under 20 hours), went to a Maritime Academy and was in the Navy so am very comfortable being on the water and well familiar with the Rules of the Road, but I got outside the gate multiple times and it was amazing. I also got rejected a couple times and it was also amazing so don’t force it!

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bbauer1973@reddit

I’ll also add that in addition to classes, at Modern Sailing you can get on a crew list and people are always putting together crews just to share the cost of a charter.

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Blackbird981@reddit

Sailing under the bridge is harder than it looks. Getting back in, can be equally hard. I've taken my 1929 San Francisco Bird out to Mile rock, Pt Diablo, and just out into the channel a few times, but only when conditions are right. Its wild how the bay can have tons of wind, and the Golden Gate has none. Its also possible for it to be calm inside the Bay, and ripping in the Golden Gate. This was the first time we went out the gate, last year.
https://youtu.be/D91zBwpg0t8 I don't have the videos of the two times we've gone out there this year posted to youtube yet. (Neither one was all that exciting, however the last time out took a lot of effort to get back in. There just wasn't enough wind to really get us moving through the ebbing current.

Do you have any sailing experience? Do you have any interest in sailing on old boats (that can still be quite fast.)

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Just-Smart-Enough@reddit

Gorgeous boat. I had an Alberg 35, which is essentially a floating tank. I used to venture out in all sorts of conditions. I can verify that it gets quite spicy out there.

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Blackbird981@reddit

Thank you. Here is a pic of my boat as we were feeling our way through the fog a couple years ago. A Bird is not a lightweight boat. Hummingbird is about 9500 lbs, with 3600 lbs of that in the form of the lead keel hanging off the bottom. I've had her out when it was blowing 40ish a couple times, with no reef points. You point high, flatten the sails as much as possible, and hang on. Its not a dry boat, but when she's powered up, she'll move right along.

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vulkoriscoming@reddit

That is a really nice day for the potato patch. Not too choppy at all and what looks like consistent wind.

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Blackbird981@reddit

We didn't get out to the potato patch. I've actually never gone that far out. Mile rock, almost to Pt Bonita, but never out to the patch. Coming back in, we had the boat heeled, and had a speed over the bottom of zero for quite a while as we sat off Kirby Cove.

The two trips out we have done this year was like lake sailing. The sea state the day we went to Mile Rock was totally flat. When we went out to Pt Diablo, and ultimately almost to Pt Bonita a couple weeks ago, there were some good sized rollers, but not enough wind to make headway back in. We zigzagged back and forth across the channel for almost 2 hrs looking for a counter current, or some wind to ride back in. We eventually found it on the north side. It was one of those days where you wish you had a big kite to fly. (Birds have spinnakers, but haven't used them in years. I have one, but I don't have a clue how to rig it. I've never seen a Bird fly one in person.)

I'm not sure I want to go play out there when its really blowing. With no reef points, going downwind with a giant main gets hairy, quickly. (A crash gybe with a 20 foot long boom that is 100 years old is all kinds of bad.)

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OldChairmanMiao@reddit

If you want to learn to sail, I'd recommend Tradewinds Sailing School in Richmond. They have the cheapest bareboat course and a cheap membership that lets you rent sailboats.

If you just want to try it for vibes, you can charter a captain and a boat for less. Many options out of South Beach.

South Beach yacht club is also a chill club where you can join Friday night races, even if you don't have any experience.

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pugsington01@reddit

Look into a dinghy like a sunfish or laser, they’re a ton of fun to sail and excellent for learning. Also much cheaper to buy, easy to work on, and easy to move around. You and a buddy can haul it out yourselves just by picking it up

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vulkoriscoming@reddit

I would not go into the potato patch in a dinghy. The water there often (most of the time) has significant current and very choppy water in the 6-8 foot range. It is unpleasant in a 26 footer. It would be significantly hazardous in a dinghy.

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pugsington01@reddit

Okay yeah that makes sense, im used to sailing dinghys on freshwater lakes and forgot the ocean is a whole different beast

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Just-Smart-Enough@reddit

Yes, the sea is trying to kill you at every turn. Definitely not the same.

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Just-Smart-Enough@reddit

I'd do it in a sunfish, but I have a taste for utterly stupid ideas.

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gg562ggud485@reddit

Karma farming

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Just-Smart-Enough@reddit

Karma farming won't get you under tve bridge.

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rhadenosbelisarius@reddit

To get on a sailboat? Go to a yacht club and ask if they have a board of captains looking for crew. Someone is always looking for crew. Buy the beers after the race.

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Just-Smart-Enough@reddit

before

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dwkfym@reddit

Things that are within your control that increases the chances that you will be invited to go sailing on a boat
1. Be reliable
2. Be pleasant to be around
3. Be good at sailing (this is hard to do from 0, but reading all about sailing and studying up all there is to learn will demonstrate willingness)
4. Be good at actively looking for boats to jump on

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Just-Smart-Enough@reddit

But mostly #2

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overthehillhat@reddit

Well Said

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Guygan@reddit

Google "sailing classes near me".

Pay for lessons.

OR

Google "sailboat day charter near me"

Pay someone to take you out on the Bay and go under the bridge.

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shadowofsunderedstar@reddit

Facebook marketplace+"free boat"

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MissingGravitas@reddit

Lower odds of success; too likely to end up on the rocks before reaching the bridge.

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BoatMan01@reddit

No such thing, my man 😔

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overthehillhat@reddit

r/sailing has it's most favorite response to ''free boat''::

'' There is nothing quite so expensive as a FreeBoat''

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Hardlink@reddit

I'm not going to scroll to the bottom but look for a sailing club or sailing classes or training.

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BoatMan01@reddit

Don't go out today. It is GNARLY

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fourtwentyone69@reddit

I’d use wind. But if no wind maybe outboard

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justdick@reddit

Either take sailing lessons (Modern Sailing, Tradewinds) or join in on races by hanging around the docks (bring a good attitude and beer).

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roosterarcher@reddit

Most boats with inland water insurance can go past the bridge but not past the line between point lobos and Bonita point light house to go into the Pacific Ocean. I sail in the bay, feel free to Dm for more details.

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Fickle-Ad-4417@reddit

I picked up a boat in January for cheap and have gone sailing about 10-15days of each month since. Finally circumnavigated angel island but still haven’t gone out past the bridge til I have someone on board who has!

I recommend just buying a sailboat and figuring it out as you go. I didn’t know how to sail but now I’m pretty confident to single hand with just my furling jib

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pnicby@reddit

Contact a sailing school near you (modern, sailing sf, google ‘em they’re out there). They’ll let you know up front what the prerequisite courses are for serving as crew on sailing outings throughout the year. Some of those go outside the GGB. There are many other paths, but this is a good one.

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Last_Cod_998@reddit

Pier 39 has sailboat charters, just check the weather.

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STB265@reddit

If your mast is over 220 feet tall measured from the waterline it won't fit under the bridge. Make sure you buy a boat less than 250 feet long in order to go under the bridge. /s

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whistleridge@reddit

Man, I’m envious. That’s like my favorite spot. I could live on Hawk Hill and the Marin Headlands in total contentment for the rest of my days.

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Pattern_Is_Movement@reddit

Join a local yacht club and crew for someone. There are always people looking for crew.

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Calm_Apartment1968@reddit

Tide charts, and speak to any one of the Harbor Masters nearby. Sailors pass through every day, in either or both directions.

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SpiffyNrfHrdr@reddit

Head on over to Tradewinds sailing school in Richmond, take their basic keelboat course, and thell the instructor and the office that your goal is to go out under the bridge. They will be able to put you in touch with someone who's making that trip (so you could tag along as crew), or you can work up to that in a later class.

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