The most beloved bridges in California
It is Friday. Californians share their favorite bridges. In addition, Southern California's oldest bookstore is looking for a buyer.
I moved to San Francisco from Los Angeles a little over a year ago, and one thing that still marks me as a newcomer is how much fun I have crossing bridges in the Bay Area.
During my first trip across the Carquinez Bridge Recently on Interstate 80, I was struck by the industrial steel span and what it passed through: the vast expanse of water known as the Carquinez Strait, which divides Contra Costa and Solano counties.
The fact that I can leave one county via a bridge and enter another country by air seems truly magical, because anyone who has ridden in a car with me recently has heard me drive around.
Readers send me emails about their favorite bridges in California, including the most iconic ones, like the Bixby Bridge on Highway 1 in Big Sur, the Colorado Street Bridge in Pasadena and of course the golden gate.
Some have shared their love for lesser-known bridges, such as the Cold Spring Canyon Arch Bridge in the Santa Ynez Mountains, the Rainbow Bridge on Donner Pass Road and Fernbridge over the Eel River in Humboldt County.
All kinds of bridges can fascinate us, and often also personal connections. Here are some, lightly edited:
“My favorite is the western part of the Bay bridge. When I was a kid, my parents drove over the double-decker bridge, and we rode on the lower section and left San Francisco. On the way back, the top part looked like the Golden Gate to me. It took me a while to understand the concept of a double-decker bridge. I don't know why some memories still remain very clear after more than sixty years, but this is one of them.” — Marty McVeigh, Brentwood
“The Tower Bridge here in Sacramento is one of the most beautiful sights in the city, I think. The way the sunset reflects in the gold paint, or how the bridge reflects in the river. Especially the way that when you drive through, you can see right into the heart of Sacramento.” — Sydney Amestoy, Sacramento
“The Sundial Bridge in Redding does much more than connect two banks of the Sacramento River. As one of the few lucky enough to give guided tours of the bridge, I have seen how the bridge has developed into a new city center. Here locals and visitors mingle with their children and dogs to enjoy the ever-changing views of the surrounding mountains and wildlife, from salmon in the river, geese on the river, and ospreys, bald eagles and vultures flying flying over the river. – Kay Johnson, Redding
“I am very fortunate that my commute requires me to cross my favorite bridge: the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge. It feels the most picturesque. You can see the city of San Francisco in all its glory or mixed in with the fog. The bridge runs right along Red Rock Island, which at the same time gives it a wild, nature feeling. Crossing in either direction, you'll see looming Mount Tamalpais or the vast, illuminated hills of the East Bay with Oakland to the south. There are a lot fewer people on the bridge than on the Golden Gate Bridge, so it feels more personal.” — Helen Couture Rodriguez, El Cerrito
“I live in San Diego and regularly cross the Coronado Bridge to go to swim practice. The bridge itself, although an engineering marvel, is not a thing of beauty. But the view of Coronado Island always reminds me what a beautiful place I live!” — Barton Lynch, San Diego
“My young nephew was going through a bridge-obsessed phase a few years ago, so for his birthday we spent a very long but memorable day driving over every Bay Area bridge. As I logged all those miles with a wide-eyed 9-year-old, I gained a new appreciation for all the spans that grace our waterways. I will never have a favorite again!” — Brandi Katz, Aromas
“I lived in the Bay Area for almost ten years, and the San Mateo-Hayward Bridge is the best. It lasts so long that it feels like you are alone on a large surface of water. And at certain times of the year the commute often had beautiful sunsets.” — Jay Torres, Laguna Beach
“I am lucky that I can commute across the border by bicycle Golden Gate Bridge to work most days. About ten years ago, I was recruited for a job in New York City and discussed the pros and cons with my friend Tucker on the way home. Tucker saw something in the water and stopped us in the middle of the west deck. To our delight, two whales began breaching just west of the bridge, something I have not seen before or since. Tucker said to me, 'Philip, if you're looking for a sign…' I still enjoy commuting across my favorite bridge.” — Philip Norris, Mill Valley
Tell us
Now that Valentine's Day is just around the corner, we ask questions about love: not WHO you love, but What you love your corner of California.
Email us a love letter to your California city, neighborhood or region – or to the Golden State as a whole – and we might share it in an upcoming newsletter. You can reach the team at CAtoday@nytimes.com.
And before you go: good news
Robert Ashton Conner didn't know much about water polo until he fell in love with Margaret Ann Steffens.
Steffens, who grew up in Danville in a family of notable water polo players, joined the U.S. Women's Water Polo National Team at age 15 and went on to win Olympic team gold medals in 2012 and 2016. Conner, who is from Marin County, was immediately recognized attracted to her.
The two met at a birthday party in Palo Alto in 2016, while Steffens was completing her undergraduate degree at Stanford. The connection was instant, they said. Two weeks later, the couple shared their first date — and first kiss — and soon after, Conner regularly commuted to Palo Alto to see Steffens on her days off from training.
The rest of their story is told in water polo matches (first in Hungary and then in Spain, where Steffens played professionally) and in Olympic medals (Steffens won her third gold medal at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics). In 2022, Conner proposed, and the couple married last November in San Juan, PR