15 May 2016

A bicycle ride on the Richmond portion of the San Francisco Bay Trail: 15 May 2016

I rode my bicycle from Berkeley to Point Richmond on the beautiful San Francisco Bay Trail. Photographs are displayed in the sequential order of the trip.
The distance traveled was approximately 26.1 miles (42 kilometers). The cumulative elevation gain was about 566 feet (172 meters).

The United States Department of Agriculture's Western Regional Research CenterClick on the image to see the full-size photo.
The mouth of Marin Creek during low tide. Marin Creek is a tributary of Codornices Creek. Click on the image to see the full-size photograph.
The remnant of a ship dock built in Richmond sometime in the 1850s. The dock was constructed in a marshy area along the bay shore. It was erected during the Gold Rush to provide a jetty for small boats to travel to San Francisco. The boats helped to provide the rapidly growing San Francisco population with fresh produce. Click on the image to see the full-size photo.
A yacht harbor located on the former site of Kaiser Permanente Richmond Shipyard No. 2. This view is looking west. Click on the image to see the full-size photograph.
Outside of the Craneway Pavilion area of the Ford Motor Company's Richmond Assembly Plant. The massive cargo vessel visible in the distance is the Felicity Ace, a vehicle carrier ship built in Japan and launched in 2005. The view is looking west. Click on the image to see the full-size photo.
The main entryway to Sims Metal Management's scrap metal recycling yard located in Richmond. This view is looking east. Click on the image to see the full-size photograph.
The recycling yard is busy on a Sunday. Trucks are taking scrap metal from the yard to a ship docked fairly close to this location. Click on the image to see the full-size photo.
A truck loaded with scrap metal is slowly leaving the yard and is traveling a short distance to load the scrap metal on the ship. The destination of the scrap metal is Asia. Click on the image to see the full-size photograph.
The site of Kaiser Permanente Shipyard No. 3. This shipyard produced a total of 35 Type C4-class cargo ships. Of the four Kaiser Permanente Shipyards in Richmond, Shipyard No. 3 was the only shipyard which had dry docks. Shipyard No. 3 was also designed to be a permanent shipyard. It remained active until 1970 when it closed down. Shipyards 1, 2 and 4 were designed for use only during the war and had long since been removed from the landscape. The Kaiser Permanente Richmond Shipyards combined production was 747 ships, the greatest number of ships constructed by a shipyard in the US during WWII. This view is looking south. Click on the image to see the full-size photo.
A view of Shipyard No. 3's five dry-dock shipways. The SS Red Oak Victory is partially visible; she was constructed at Kaiser Richmond Shipyard No. 1 and was launched on 9 November 1944. The Whirly Crane in view was used at the Kaiser Permanente Richmond Shipyards during WWII. This view is looking east. Click on the image to see the full-size photograph.
The Red Oak Victory and the Whirly Crane. This view is looking south. Click on the image to see the full-size photo.
A WWII era Whirly Crane and the stern of the SS Red Oak Victory, as seen in Kaiser Richmond Shipyard No. 3. Whirly Cranes could hold up to 50 tons from their 100-foot booms. Click on the image to see the full-size photograph.
The Felicity Ace is a Japanese 'car-carrier' cargo ship. On this trip, she traveled from Japan to Richmond California to unload Subaru vehicles. Subaru has a large secure outdoor car storage area on the site of Shipyard No. 3, where its cars are parked before being sent to their destination areas via railroad freight cars designed specifically to transport cars, vans, and small trucks. Click on the image to see the full-size photo.
This immense concrete structure was the 'General Warehouse' of Kaiser Richmond Shipyard No. 3. It was the storage location of small and necessary items needed by the Merchant Marines assigned to each ship. For example: dishes, mirrors, cabinets, toilets, stoves, etc. A commonly asked question is why was this building constructed of concrete rather than wood and steel? During WWII, the primary use of metal was for the war effort. Using metal in the construction of a building was not acceptable during the war. Civilian cars were not constructed during the war. Jeeps, tanks, ships, and bombs were fabricated. This view is looking southeast.
"This structure was constructed in an unprecedented 120 days beginning in February of 1942. At four-stories and measuring 140 feet by 260 feet, it is the tallest building in the yard; its concrete construction and lack of windows also make it the most massive. Interior surfaces are concrete, including the floors, walls end ceilings. The main level of the structure is open, with a grid of square concrete columns".
From the History of Kaiser Shipyard No. 3Click on the image to see the full-size photo.
Two old brick kilns are still standing at Brickyard Cove. The Richmond Pressed Brick Company had a large brick factory located in this area. This view is looking south. Click on the image to see the full-size photograph.
Brickyard Cove is now an upscale waterfront neighborhood. The buildings in this picture are condominiums and the condo owners started this community garden last season. This view is looking northwest. Click on the image to see the full-size photo.
Ferry Point Pier was constructed In 1899; it was the final destination on the Transcontinental Railroad. This structure enabled railroad freight cars to be removed from trains, put on barges, and then taken across San Francisco Bay to San Francisco for unloading. 
During WWII, the Ferry Point Pier was also the site to which Kaiser Richmond Shipyard workers who lived in San Francisco traveled to via ferries from San Francisco. From here it was a short bus ride to the shipyards. During WWII, more than 95,000 people at any one time, worked at all four of the Kaiser Richmond Shipyards. The construction of ships at the Kaiser Shipyards took place 24 hours a day, seven days a week and 365 days a year until the conclusion of the war. This view is looking south. Click on the image to see the full-size photograph.
This photo, taken from the Miller/Knox Regional Shoreline, provides a view of southern Marin County. To the left of Mount Tamalpais is a view of the northeastern portion of the Tiburon Peninsula. On the right side of the photo is the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge. The bridge is 5.5 miles in length. Click on the image to see the full-size photo.
A view of the southern entry to the Dornan Drive Tunnel, located in Richmond. The tunnel became operational in 1912; it is commonly referred to as the Richmond TunnelClick on the image to see the full-size photograph.
I came upon these Canadian Geese and their goslings adjacent to the Bayside Court Trail. They were very calm as I approached on foot; I made sure to move slowly and not get too close to the birds. Click on the image to see the full-size photo.

“A camera is a tool for learning how to see without a camera.”-Dorothea Lange

You are welcome to visit my primary website  www.mishalov.com