Examine individual changes

'{{about||the geographical region|San Francisco Bay Area|the California wine region|San Francisco Bay AVA}} {{refimprove|date=November 2011}} {{Infobox body of water | name = San Francisco Bay | image = BayareaUSGS.jpg | coords = {{coord|37.6546543|-122.2374676|region:US-CA_type:waterbody_scale:750000_source:GNIS|format=dms|notes=<ref name="gnis">{{cite gnis|id=1654951|name=San Francisco Bay|accessdate=2 January 2017|entrydate=19 January 1981}}</ref>|display=it}} | type = Bay | rivers = [[Sacramento River]]<br>[[San Joaquin River]]<br>[[Petaluma River]]<br>[[Napa River]]<br>[[Guadalupe River (California)|Guadalupe River]] | oceans = [[Pacific Ocean]] | countries = [[United States]] | length = {{convert|97|km|abbr=on}} | width = {{convert|19|km|abbr=on}} | area = {{convert|400|-|1600|mi2|abbr=on}} | cities = [[San Francisco]]<br>[[Oakland, California|Oakland]]<br>[[San Jose, California|San Jose]] | references = }} [[File:SF-Marin-Pt Reyes aerial panorama.jpg|thumb|350px|Aerial panorama of the northern Bay, the Bay Bridge, [[Golden Gate]], and [[Marin Headlands]] on a clear morning. November 2014 photo by [[Doc Searls]].]] '''San Francisco Bay''' is a shallow [[estuary]] in the [[United States|U.S.]] state of [[California]]. It is surrounded by a contiguous region known as the [[San Francisco Bay Area]] (often simply "the Bay Area"), dominated by the large cities [[San Francisco]], [[Oakland, California|Oakland]], and [[San Jose, California|San Jose]]. San Francisco Bay drains water from approximately 40 percent of California. Water from the [[Sacramento River|Sacramento]] and [[San Joaquin River|San Joaquin]] [[river]]s, and from the [[Sierra Nevada (U.S.)|Sierra Nevada]] [[mountain]]s, flow into [[Suisun Bay]], which then travels through the [[Carquinez Strait]] to meet with the [[Napa River]] at the entrance to [[San Pablo Bay]], which connects at its south end to San Francisco Bay. It then connects to the [[Pacific Ocean]] via the [[Golden Gate]] strait. However, this entire group of interconnected bays is often called the ''San Francisco Bay''. The bay was designated a [[Ramsar Convention|Ramsar Wetland of International Importance]] on February 2, 2013. ==Size== The bay covers somewhere between {{convert|400|and(-)|1600|sqmi|sigfig=1}}, depending on which sub-bays (such as San Pablo Bay), estuaries, [[wetland]]s, and so on are included in the measurement.<ref>[http://www.sfmuseum.org/hist9/mcgloin.html Symphonies in Steel: San Francisco – Oakland Bay Bridge and the Golden Gate<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref><ref>[http://response.restoration.noaa.gov/cpr/watershed/sanfrancisco/sfb_html/sfbenv.html San Francisco Bay Watershed Database and Mapping Project<!-- Bot generated title -->] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041030120227/http://response.restoration.noaa.gov/cpr/watershed/sanfrancisco/sfb_html/sfbenv.html |date=October 30, 2004 }}</ref> The main part of the bay measures {{convert|3|to(-)|12|mi|km|0}} wide east-to-west and somewhere between {{convert|48|mi|km|0}}^{[[#References|1]]} and {{convert|60|mi|km|0}}^{[[#References|2]]} north-to-south. It is the largest Pacific estuary in the [[Americas]]. The bay was navigable as far south as [[San Jose, California|San Jose]] until the 1850s, when [[hydraulic mining]] released massive amounts of sediment from the rivers that settled in those parts of the bay that had little or no current. Later, wetlands and inlets were deliberately filled in, reducing the Bay's size since the mid-19th century by as much as one third. Recently, large areas of wetlands have been restored, further confusing the issue of the Bay's size. Despite its value as a waterway and [[harbor]], many thousands of [[acre]]s of marshy [[wetlands]] at the edges of the bay were, for many years, considered wasted space. As a result, soil excavated for building projects or [[dredging|dredged]] from channels was often dumped onto the wetlands and other parts of the bay as landfill. From the mid-19th century through the late 20th century, more than a third of the original bay was filled and often built on. The deep, damp soil in these areas is subject to [[soil liquefaction]] during [[earthquake]]s, and most of the major damage close to the Bay in the [[Loma Prieta earthquake]] of 1989 occurred to structures on these areas. The [[Marina District, San Francisco|Marina District]] of San Francisco, hard hit by the 1989 earthquake, was built on fill that had been placed there for the [[Panama-Pacific International Exposition (1915)|Panama-Pacific International Exposition]], although liquefaction did not occur on a large scale. In the 1990s, [[San Francisco International Airport]] proposed filling in hundreds more acres to extend its overcrowded international [[runway]]s in exchange for purchasing other parts of the bay and converting them back to wetlands. The idea was, and remains, controversial. (For further details, see the "Bay Fill and Depth Profile" section.) [[File:SF, Bay Bridge and Oakland 2014.jpg|thumb|left|400px|San Francisco, Oakland, and the [[San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge|Bay Bridge]], 2014]] There are five large islands in San Francisco Bay. [[Alameda Island|Alameda]], the largest island, was created when a shipping lane was cut in 1901. It is now predominantly a [[Commuter town|bedroom community]]. [[Angel Island, California|Angel Island]] was known as "[[Ellis Island]] West" because it served as the entry point for immigrants from [[East Asia]]. It is now a state park accessible by ferry. Mountainous [[Yerba Buena Island]] is pierced by a tunnel linking the east and west spans of the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge. Attached to the north is the artificial and flat [[Treasure Island, California|Treasure Island]], site of the 1939 [[Golden Gate International Exposition]]. From the Second World War until the 1990s, both islands served as military bases and are now being redeveloped. Isolated in the center of the Bay is [[Alcatraz]], the site of the famous federal penitentiary. The federal prison on [[Alcatraz Island]] no longer functions, but the complex is a popular tourist site. Despite its name, [[Mare Island]] in the northern part of the bay is a peninsula rather than an island. {{wide image|GGNRA-SF-panorama.jpg|1200px|San Francisco Bay, and the city skyline seen from Marin County in the [[Golden Gate National Recreation Area]].}} ==Geology== San Francisco Bay is thought to represent a down-warping of the Earth's crust between the [[San Andreas Fault]] to the west and the [[Hayward Fault]] to the east, though the precise nature of this remains under study. During the [[Quaternary glaciation|last ice age]], the basin now filled by the bay was a large linear valley with small hills, similar to most of the valleys of the [[Coast Ranges]]. The rivers of the Central Valley ran out to sea through a canyon that is now the Golden Gate. As the great ice sheets melted, sea level rose {{convert|300|ft|m|-1}} over 4,000 years, and the valley filled with water from the Pacific, becoming a bay. The small hills became islands. ==History== [[File:1781 Cañizares Map of San Francisco Bay.pdf|thumb|Cañizares Map of San Francisco Bay]] {{Main|San Francisco Bay Discovery Site}} The first European to see San Francisco Bay is likely [[N. de Morena]] who was left at [[New Albion]] at [[Drakes Bay]] in [[Marin County, California]] by [[Sir Francis Drake]] in 1579 and then walked to Mexico.<ref>{{cite book | title=REPORT OF FINDINGS RELATING TO THE IDENTIFICATION OF SIR FRANCIS DRAKE'S ENCAMPMENT AT POINT REYES NATIONAL SEASHORE | last=Aker | first=Raymond | year=1970 | URL=http://www.winepi.com/Drake%20Book/Drake-Book-05.pdf | pages=338–340}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| journal=The Land of Sunshine, The Magazine of California and the West | title=Narrative of the Pilot Morera, who passed through the North Sea to the South Sea through the Strait | pages=184–186 | URL=http://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=hvd.32044099873853;view=1up;seq=204 | issue=February | year=1900 | editor=Charles F. Lumis}}</ref> The first recorded [[Europe]]an discovery of San Francisco Bay was on November 4, 1769 when [[Spain|Spanish]] explorer [[Gaspar de Portolà]], unable to find the port of [[Monterey, California]], continued north close to what is now [[Pacifica, California|Pacifica]] and reached the summit of the {{convert|1200|ft|m|-1|adj=mid|-high}} [[Sweeney Ridge]], now marked as the place where he first sighted San Francisco Bay. Portolá and his party did not realize what they had discovered, thinking they had arrived at a large arm of what is now called [[Drakes Bay]].<ref>[http://www.uel.br/revistas/uel/index.php/antiteses/article/view/10706 The representations of San Francisco (California): a portable harbor in the fragile geography of the North Pacific.]</ref> At the time, Drakes Bay went by the name ''Bahia de San Francisco'' and thus both bodies of water became associated with the name. Eventually, the larger, more important body of water fully appropriated the name ''San Francisco Bay''. The first European to enter the bay is believed to have been the Spanish explorer [[Juan de Ayala]], who passed through the [[Golden Gate]] on August 5, 1775 in his ship the ''San Carlos'', and moored in a bay of [[Angel Island, California|Angel Island]] now known as Ayala Cove. Ayala continued to explore the Bay area and the expedition's cartographer, José de Cañizares, gathered the information necessary to produce the first map of the San Francisco Bay area. A number of place names survive (anglicized) from that first map, including Point Reyes, Angel Island, Farallon Islands and Alcatraz Island. The United States seized the region from [[Mexico]] during the [[Mexican–American War]] (1846–48). On February 2, 1848 California was annexed to the U.S. with the signing of the [[Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo]]. A year and a half later, California requested to join the United States on December 3, 1849 and was accepted as the 31st State of the union on September 9, 1850. The bay became the center of American settlement and commerce in the Far West through most of the remainder of the 19th century. During the [[California Gold Rush]] (1848–55), San Francisco Bay suddenly became one of the world's great seaports, dominating shipping in the American West until the last years of the 19th century. The bay's regional importance increased further when the [[First Transcontinental Railroad]] was connected to its western terminus at [[Alameda, California|Alameda]] on September 6, 1869.<ref>Alta California, September 7, 1869</ref> The terminus was switched to the [[Oakland Long Wharf]] two months later on November 8, 1869.<ref>[http://cprr.org/Museum/Southern_Pacific_Bulletin/From_Trail_to_Rail_17.html Cprr.org]</ref> [[File:Duck Hunt Marshy Shoreline San Francisco Bay Alameda County california.jpg|thumb|Duck hunting on the Bay, 1915]] During the 20th century, the bay was subject to the [[Reber Plan]], which would have filled in parts of the bay in order to increase industrial activity along the waterfront. In 1959, the [[United States Army Corps of Engineers]] released a report stating that if current infill trends continued, the bay would be as big as a shipping channel by 2020. This news created the Save the Bay movement in 1960, which mobilized to stop the infill of wetlands and the bay in general, which had shrunk to two-thirds of its size in the century before 1961.<ref name=StB>{{cite web|title=History|url=http://www.savesfbay.org/dont-pave-my-bay/history|publisher=Save the Bay|accessdate=14 July 2015}}</ref> San Francisco Bay continues to support some of the densest industrial production and urban settlement in the United States. The San Francisco Bay Area is the American West's second-largest urban area with approximately 8 million residents. ==Ecology== {{Main|Ecology of the San Francisco Estuary}} Despite its urban and industrial character, San Francisco Bay and the [[Sacramento River Delta|Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta]] remain perhaps California's most important [[habitat (ecology)|ecological habitats]]. California's [[Dungeness crab]], [[California halibut]], and [[Oncorhynchus|Pacific salmon]] [[fisheries]] rely on the bay as a nursery. The few remaining [[salt marsh]]es now represent most of California's remaining salt marsh, supporting a number of endangered [[species]] and providing key ecosystem services such as filtering pollutants and [[sediment]]s from the rivers. San Francisco Bay is recognized for protection by the [[California Bays and Estuaries Policy]], with oversight provided by the [[San Francisco Estuary Partnership]].<ref name="swrcb">State Water Resources Control Board ''Water Quality Control Policy for the Enclosed Bays and Estuaries of California'' (1974) State of California</ref> [[File:Sfestuaryhistorical.gif|thumb|300px|right|San Francisco Bay {{circa}} 1770–1820]] Most famously, the bay is a key link in the [[Pacific Flyway]]. Millions of [[waterfowl]] annually use the bay shallows as a refuge. Two [[endangered species]] of birds are found here: the [[California least tern]] and the [[California clapper rail]]. Exposed [[bay mud]]s provide important feeding areas for [[shorebird]]s, but underlying layers of bay mud pose geological hazards for structures near many parts of the bay perimeter. San Francisco Bay provided the nation's first wildlife refuge, Oakland's artificial [[Lake Merritt]], constructed in the 1860s, and America's first urban National Wildlife Refuge, the [[Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge]] (SFBNWR) in 1972. The Bay is also plagued by non-native species. Salt produced from San Francisco Bay is produced in [[salt evaporation pond]]s and is shipped throughout the Western United States to bakeries, canneries, fisheries, cheese makers and other food industries and used to de-ice winter highways, clean kidney dialysis machines, for animal nutrition, and in many industries. Many companies have produced salt in the Bay, with the [[Leslie Salt Company]] the largest private land owner in the Bay Area in the 1940s.<ref>[http://www.stanford.edu/group/spatialhistory/cgi-bin/site/pub.php?id=49 Spatial History Project<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref><ref>[http://arch.ced.berkeley.edu/hiddenecologies/?p=82 Hidden Ecologies » Blog Archive » Arden Salt Works<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> Low-salinity salt ponds mirror the ecosystem of the bay, with fish and fish-eating birds in abundance. Mid-salinity ponds support dense populations of [[brine shrimp]], which provide a rich food source for millions of shorebirds. Only salt-tolerant micro-algae survive in the high salinity ponds, and impart a deep red color to these ponds from the pigment within the algae protoplasm. The seasonal range of water temperature in the Bay is from January's {{convert|53|°F|°C}} to September's {{convert|60|°F|°C}} when measured at [[Fort Point, San Francisco|Fort Point]], which is near the southern end of the [[Golden Gate Bridge]] and at the entrance to San Francisco Bay.<ref>{{cite web | last = Osborn| first = Liz | url = http://www.currentresults.com/Oceans/Temperature/san-francisco-average-water-temperature.php | title = Average Ocean Water Temperatures at San Francisco| work=Current Results Nexus | accessdate =October 19, 2013 }}</ref> Industrial, mining, and other uses of [[mercury (element)|mercury]] have resulted in a widespread distribution in the bay, with uptake in the bay's [[phytoplankton]] and contamination of its sportfish.<ref>{{cite journal |doi= 10.1007/978-0-387-74816-0_2 |journal= Rev Environ Contam Toxicol |year=2008 |volume=194 |pages=29–54 |title= Mercury in the San Francisco Estuary |author1=Conaway CH |author2=Black FJ |author3=Grieb TM |author4=Roy S |author5=Flegal AR |pmid=18069645}}</ref> In January 1971, two [[Standard Oil]] tankers collided in the bay, creating an {{convert|800000|USgal|l|abbr=off|sp=US|adj=on}} [[1971 San Francisco Bay oil spill|oil spill disaster]], which spurred environmental protection of the bay. In November 2007, a ship named ''[[MSC Venezia|COSCO Busan]]'' collided with the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge and spilled over {{convert|58000|USgal|l|abbr=off|sp=US}} of bunker fuel, creating the largest [[oil spill]] in the region since 1996.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-bay9nov09,1,1303799.story?coll=la-headlines-california | work=Los Angeles Times | first=Eric | last=Bailey | title=Oil oozes in S.F. Bay after ship hits bridge – Los Angeles Times | date=November 9, 2007}}</ref> For the first time in 65 years, [[Harbor porpoise|Pacific Harbor Porpoise]] (''Phocoena phocoena'') returned to the Bay in 2009.<ref>{{cite news |title=Porpoises return to SF Bay – scientists study why |author=David Perlman |newspaper=San Francisco Chronicle |date=2010-11-08 |url=http://articles.sfgate.com/2010-11-08/news/24820859_1_harbor-porpoises-biologists-boston-whaler |accessdate=2011-07-25 }}</ref> Golden Gate Cetacean Research, a non-profit organization focused on research on [[cetacean]]s, has developed a photo-identification database enabling the scientists to identify specific porpoise individuals and is trying to ascertain whether a healthier bay has brought their return.<ref>{{cite web |title=Harbor Porpoise Project |publisher=Golden Gate Cetacean Research |url=http://www.ggcetacean.org/Harbor_Porpoise.html |accessdate=2011-07-25 }}</ref> Pacific harbor porpoise range from [[Point Conception]], California to Alaska and across to the [[Kamchatka Peninsula]] and [[Japan]]. Recent genetic studies show that there is a local stock from San Francisco to the Russian River and that eastern Pacific coastal populations rarely migrate far, unlike western Atlantic Harbor porpoise.<ref>{{cite report |title=Harbor Porpoise (Phocoena phocoena): San Francisco-Russian River Stock |publisher=[[National Marine Fisheries Service]] |date=2009-10-15 |url=http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/pdfs/sars/po2009poha-rr.pdf |accessdate=2011-07-25 }}</ref> {{wide image|San_Francisco_with_two_bridges_and_the_low_fog.jpg|1200px|City skyline through the fog, from the [[Golden Gate National Recreation Area]].}} ==Bay fill and depth profile== [[File:Boats in San Francisco bay.jpg|thumb|200px|Cargo ships in San Francisco bay in 2012]] San Francisco Bay's profile changed dramatically in the late 19th century and again with the initiation of dredging by the [[US Army Corps of Engineers]] in the 20th century. Before about 1860, most bay shores (exception: rocky shores such as those in Carquinez Strait, along Marin shoreline, Point Richmond, Golden Gate area) contained extensive wetlands that graded nearly invisibly from freshwater wetlands to salt marsh and then tidal mudflat. A deep channel ran through the center of the bay, following the ancient drowned river valley. In the 1860s and continuing into the early 20th century, miners dumped staggering quantities of mud and gravel from [[hydraulic mining]] operations into the upper Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers. GK Gilbert's estimates of debris total more than eight times the amount of rock and dirt moved during construction of the Panama Canal. This material flowed down the rivers, progressively eroding into finer and finer sediment, until it reached the bay system. Here some of it settled, eventually filling in Suisun Bay, San Pablo Bay, and San Francisco Bay, in decreasing order of severity. By the end of the 19th century, these "[[Tailings|slickens]]" had filled in much of the shallow bay flats, raising the entire bay profile. New marshes were created in some areas. [[File:San Francisco Bay bridges.svg|thumb|'''(1)''' Richmond-San Rafael Bridge, '''(2)''' Golden Gate Bridge, '''(3)''' San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, '''(4)''' San Mateo-Hayward Bridge, '''(5)''' Dumbarton Bridge, '''(6)''' Carquinez Bridge, '''(7)''' Benicia-Martinez Bridge, '''(8)''' Antioch Bridge]] In the decades surrounding 1900, at the behest of local political officials and following Congressional orders, the US Army Corps began dredging the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers and the deep channels of San Francisco Bay. This work has continued without interruption ever since an enormous federal subsidy to San Francisco Bay shipping.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} Some of the dredge spoils were initially dumped in the bay shallows (including helping to create [[Treasure Island, California|Treasure Island]] on the former [[shoal]]s to the north of [[Yerba Buena Island]]) and used to raise an island in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. The net effect of dredging has been to maintain a narrow deep channel—deeper perhaps than the original bay channel—through a much shallower bay. At the same time, most of the marsh areas have been filled or blocked off from the bay by [[Levee|dikes]]. Large ships transiting the bay must follow deep underwater channels that are maintained by frequent dredging as the average depth of the bay is only as deep as a swimming pool—approximately {{convert|12|to(-)|15|ft|m|0|abbr=on}}. Between [[Hayward, California|Hayward]] and [[San Mateo, California|San Mateo]] to [[San Jose, California|San Jose]] it is {{convert|12|to(-)|36|in|cm|-1|abbr=on}}. The deepest part of the bay is under and out of the Golden Gate Bridge, at {{convert|372|ft|abbr=on}}.<ref>{{cite journal|author1=Barnard, P. L.|author2=Hanes, D. M.|author3=Rubin, D. M.|author4=Kvitek, R. G.|title=Giant Sand Waves at the Mouth of San Francisco Bay|journal=Eos|date=18 July 2006|volume=87|issue=29|pages=285, 289|url=http://seafloor.otterlabs.org/publications/Barnard_etal_EOSJuly2006.pdf|accessdate=2 January 2017}}</ref> In the late 1990s, a 12-year harbor-deepening project for the [[Port of Oakland]] began; it was largely completed by September 2009. Previously, the bay waters and harbor facilities only allowed for ships with a draft of {{convert|46|ft|m|abbr=on}}, but [[dredging]] activities undertaken by the United States Army Corps of Engineers in partnership with the Port of Oakland succeeded in providing access for vessels with a {{convert|50|ft|m|adj=on}} draft. Four dredging companies were employed in the [[US$]]432&nbsp;million project, with $244&nbsp;million paid for with federal funds and $188&nbsp;million supplied by the Port of Oakland. Some {{convert|6000000|yd3}} of mud from the dredging was deposited at the western edge of [[Middle Harbor Shoreline Park]] to become a {{convert|188|acre|adj=on}} shallow-water [[wetland]]s habitat for marine and shore life.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Sandifur|first1=Marilyn|title=50 Feet Delivered!|url=http://www.portofoakland.com/press-releases/press-release-183/|publisher=[[Port of Oakland]]|accessdate=3 January 2017|date=18 September 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=United States. Army. Corps of Engineers. San Francisco District, Port of Oakland |title=Oakland harbor navigation improvement (−50 foot) project: draft environmental impact statement/environmental impact report: executive summary |year=1998 |publisher=U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, San Francisco District}}</ref> Further dredging followed in 2011, to maintain the navigation channel.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.dredgingtoday.com/2011/06/01/usa-port-of-oakland-secures-usd-18-million-in-federal-funding-for-dredging-project/ |title=USA: Port of Oakland Secures USD 18 Million in Federal Funding for Dredging Project |date=June 1, 2011 |work=Dredging Today |accessdate=March 22, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.dredgingtoday.com/2011/10/19/usa-congresswoman-helps-oakland-port-reach-major-funding-milestone-for-deepening-project/ |title=USA: Congresswoman Helps Oakland Port Reach Major Funding Milestone for Deepening Project |date=March 21, 2012 |work=Dredging Today |accessdate=March 22, 2012}}</ref> This dredging enabled the arrival of the largest [[container ship]] ever to enter the San Francisco Bay, the ''[[MSC Fabiola]]''. Bay [[Maritime pilot|pilots]] trained for the visit on a simulator at the [[California Maritime Academy]] for over a year. The ship arrived drawing less than its full draft of {{convert|50|ft|10|in|1}} because it held only three-quarters of a load after its stop in Long Beach.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/local/east_bay&id=8590497 |title=Huge container ship cruises into Port of Oakland |last=Matthews |first=Mark |date=March 22, 2012 |work=ABC7 |publisher=KGO-TV/DT |accessdate=March 23, 2012 |location=San Francisco}}</ref> ==Transportation== [[File:San Francisco Bay aerial view.jpg|thumb|left|San Francisco Bay and the Golden Gate Bridge, looking southeast towards the City and East Bay]] {{Main|Transportation in the San Francisco Bay Area}} San Francisco Bay was traversed by watercraft since long before the coming of Europeans. Indigenous peoples used canoes to fish and clam along the shoreline. The era of sail brought ships that connected the area to the rest of the world—and served as early ferries and freighters within the Bay and between the Bay and inland ports, such as Sacramento and Stockton. These were gradually replaced by steam-powered vessels starting in the late 19th century. Several shipyards were early established around the Bay, augmented during wartime. (e.g., the [[Kaiser Shipyards]]) San Francisco Bay is spanned by eight bridges, all dedicated to vehicle traffic. * The [[Golden Gate Bridge]] on [[U.S. Route 101 in California|U.S. Route&nbsp;101]]/[[California State Route 1|State Route&nbsp;1]] (US&nbsp;101/SR&nbsp;1) was the largest single span [[suspension bridge]] ever built at the time of its construction. It spans the [[Golden Gate]], the strait between San Francisco and Marin County, and is the only bridge in the area not owned by the State of California. * The [[Richmond–San Rafael Bridge]] on [[Interstate 580 (California)|Interstate 580]] (I-580) connects Marin and Contra Costa counties. * The [[San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge]] on [[Interstate 80 in California|I-80]] connects Alameda and San Francisco counties. * The [[San Mateo–Hayward Bridge]] on [[California State Route 92|SR&nbsp;92]] connects Alameda and San Mateo counties. * The [[Dumbarton Bridge (California)|Dumbarton Bridge]] on [[California State Route 84|SR&nbsp;84]] connects Alameda and San Mateo counties. * The [[Carquinez Bridge]] (including the [[Al Zampa|Alfred Zampa]] Memorial Bridge) on I-80 connects Contra Costa and Solano counties. * The [[Benicia Bridge]] on [[Interstate 680 (California)|I-680]] also connects Contra Costa and Solano counties. * The [[Antioch Bridge]] on [[California State Route 160|SR&nbsp;160]] connects Contra Costa and Sacramento counties. The [[Transbay Tube]], an underwater tube that [[Bay Area Rapid Transit|BART]] runs through, runs from Oakland to San Francisco. Prior to the bridges and, later, the Transbay Tube, transbay transportation was dominated by fleets of [[Ferries of San Francisco Bay|ferryboats]] operated by the [[Southern Pacific Railroad]] and the [[Key System]] transit company. However, in recent decades, ferries have returned, primarily serving commuters from Marin County, relieving the traffic bottleneck of the Golden Gate Bridge. (See article [[Ferries of San Francisco Bay]]). * The [[Dumbarton Rail Bridge]] is an abandoned bridge that used to carry rail traffic. The Bay also continues to serve as a major international shipping port, served by a large container facility operated by the [[Port of Oakland]], and two smaller facilities in Richmond and San Francisco. [[File:Port Of Oakland California.png|thumb|Port of Oakland California]] ==Recreation== San Francisco Bay is a mecca for sailors (boats, as well as [[windsurfing]] and [[kitesurfing]]), due to consistent strong westerly/northwesterly thermally-generated winds – [[beaufort scale|Beaufort force]] 6 ({{convert|15|-|25|knot|m/s|0|disp=comma}}) is common on summer afternoons – and protection from large open ocean swells. [[Yachting]] and [[yacht racing]] are popular pastimes and the San Francisco Bay Area is home to many of the world's top sailors. A shoreline bicycle and pedestrian trail known as the [[San Francisco Bay Trail]] encircles the edge of the bay. The [[San Francisco Bay Area Water Trail]], a growing network of launching and landing sites around the Bay for non-motorized small boat users (such as kayakers) is being developed. Parks and protected areas around the bay include [[Eden Landing Ecological Reserve]], [[Hayward Regional Shoreline]], [[Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge]], [[Hayward Shoreline Interpretive Center]], [[Crown Memorial State Beach]], [[Eastshore State Park]], [[Point Isabel Regional Shoreline]], [[Brooks Island|Brooks Island Regional Shoreline]], and [[César Chávez Park]]. The San Francisco Bay Area Water Trail is a planned system of designated trailheads designed to improve non-motorized small boat access to the bay. The California Coastal Conservancy approved funding in March 2011 to begin implementation of the water trail. {{wide image|Sfbay.jpg|1000px|San Francisco Bay panorama with a view of sailboats, kite boarders, and the Crissy Field Beach.}} ==Gallery== {| |<gallery heights="185" mode=packed> File:AlbertBierstadt-San Francisco Bay.jpg|"San Francisco Bay", painting by [[Albert Bierstadt]], 1871–73 File:berkeleyfromclaremont800x600.jpg|The City of [[Berkeley, California|Berkeley]], the Bay and [[Marin County, California|Marin County]] in the background as seen from the Claremont Canyon reserve File:TamFromPinole.jpg|[[Mount Tamalpais]] view across San Pablo Bay at [[Point Pinole Regional Shoreline]] in Richmond File:San Francisco Bay from the air in May 2010 01.jpg|Looking north into [[San Pablo Bay]] at the [[Richmond-San Rafael Bridge]], 2010 File:Alcatraz dawn 2005-01-07.jpg|[[Alcatraz]] at dawn on San Francisco Bay File:Airbayarea.JPG|Aerial view of Golden Gate and the northern Bay, looking east from the Pacific File:Kellerbeach1.jpg|People also swim recreationally, at Kellar Beach in [[Richmond, California|Richmond's]] [[Miller/Knox Regional Shoreline]]. File:Oil spill in san francisc bay 1.jpg|Oil Spill in the Bay File:RMS Queen Mary 2 in san francisco bay.jpg|[[RMS Queen Mary 2]] in San Francisco Bay File:Fort Baker on San Francisco Bay.jpg|[[Fort Baker]] on San Francisco Bay, just east of the Golden Gate File:San Francisco Bay NASA World Wind Globe.jpg|NASA satellite image, showing water flow File:View from Mission Peak 2.JPG | Salt ponds at the southern tip of the bay File:Golden Gate Bridge and San Francisco Bay.jpg|The bay seen in July 2010 </gallery> |} ==See also== {{Portal|San Francisco Bay Area}} * [[Golden Gate]] * [[Golden Gate Bridge]] * [[Hydrography of the San Francisco Bay Area]] * [[Islands of San Francisco Bay]] * [[J.C. Barthel]], who prepared "plans for the docks and other water-front improvements in the San Francisco Bay district" * [[McLaughlin Eastshore State Park]] * [[Mount Diablo]] * [[Mount Tamalpais| Mount Tamalpais State Park]] * [[Napa Sonoma Marsh]] * [[Point Pinole Regional Shoreline]], Richmond ==References== {{reflist|30em}} ==External links== {{Commons|San Francisco Bay}} {{AmCyc Poster|San Francisco Bay}} *[http://www.sanfranciscobaybook.com/ ''San Francisco Bay: Portrait of an Estuary'', David Sanger and John Hart, University of California Press] *[http://www.baycrossings.com/Archives/2001/07_August/barging_in.htm Barging In – A Short History of Liveaboards on the Bay] *[http://www.islandsofsfbay.com/ ''The Islands of San Francisco Bay'', James A. Martin | Michael T. Lee, Down Window Press] *[https://web.archive.org/web/20050813082232/http://www.spn.usace.army.mil/bmvc/ Army Corps of Engineers Bay Model: Working scale model of the Bay] *[https://web.archive.org/web/20110226043751/http://gotoes.org/put-ins/ SF Bay Kayak, Canoe, and Boat Launch Ramp guide. A collaboratively edited guide to the SF bay.] *[http://www.boatingsf.com/ BoatingSF.com: Photos of SF Bay and its boats, plus online cruising guide] *[http://savesfbay.org/ Save San Francisco Bay: Protect and Restore San Francisco Bay] *[http://www.sfbaywildlife.info/ sfbaywildlife.info] Guide to San Francisco Bay wildlife *[http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/travel/ca/ Early History of the California Coast, a National Park Service ''Discover Our Shared Heritage'' Travel Itinerary] *[http://www.uel.br/revistas/uel/index.php/antiteses/article/view/10706 Cartography & History ''The representations of San Francisco Bay: a portable harbor in the fragile geography of the North Pacific''] *''[[San Francisco Estuary and Watershed Science]]'': a peer-reviewed online science journal == Literature == * [https://archive.org/stream/bayofsanfrancisc00lewi#page/n7/mode/2up The Bay of San Francisco: the metropolis of the Pacific Coast and its suburban cities: a history.] Volume I. by Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago, Ill. Published 1892 [https://archive.org/stream/bayofsanfrancisc00lewi#page/n13/mode/2up Contains index to biographical sketches] * [https://archive.org/stream/bayofsanfrancisc002lewi#page/n7/mode/2up Volume II] – Biographies {{SF Bay Area}} {{San Francisco Bay watershed}} {{Ramsar sites in the United States}} {{Authority control}} [[Category:Bays of California]] [[Category:Bodies of water in Richmond, California]] [[Category:San Francisco Bay]] [[Category:San Francisco Bay watershed]] [[Category:Estuaries of California]] [[Category:Tourist attractions in the San Francisco Bay Area]] [[Category:Ramsar sites in the United States]] [[Category:Wetlands of California]] [[Category:Bodies of water of San Francisco]] [[Category:Bodies of water of Marin County, California]] [[Category:Bodies of water of Alameda County, California]] [[Category:Bodies of water of Santa Clara County, California]] [[Category:Bodies of water of Contra Costa County, California]] [[Category:Bodies of water of Solano County, California]] [[Category:Bodies of water of San Mateo County, California]]'