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Author Topic:   Pier 52 launch ramp in San Francisco

andygere posted 10-25-2014 02:12 PM ET (US)
Has anyone used this ramp? What is the parking situation? There seems to be very little detail on the Port of San Francisco website.
I am planning to tow my Outrage 22 Cuddy up to the city next weekend to take some out of town friends on a tour of the city waterfront, Angel Island, etc. Typically I go across the Golden Gate and launch at Clipper Yacht Harbor in Sausalito, but this could save time, money and be more convenient for meeting our friends. Any intel would be appreciated.
boatdryver posted 10-25-2014 03:03 PM ET (US)
Andy, I used it once 5 years ago, coming from Marin. Boat Trailer parking is limited. I don't remember how many spaces. Maybe 6-7.They are new and appropriately designed. I was there on a weekday and there were 3-4 open spaces. I don't know where I would have parked if all spaces were taken. The ramp is pretty new and well constructed, two boats a time capacity.
The World Series will be gone by then.
JimL
andygere posted 10-25-2014 03:29 PM ET (US)
Thanks Jim, good information. Parking is what I was concerned with, doesn't look like there are many trailer spaces, and it will be a Sunday, albeit one in early November.
andygere posted 11-03-2014 02:00 PM ET (US)
Here's an update on the grim state of publicly available boat launches on San Francisco Bay: Clipper Yacht Harbor in Sausalito is no longer one of them.
Worried that the opening weekend of dungeness crab season would have quickly filled the limited parking at the Pier 52 lot in San Francisco, I opted to go across the Golden Gate Bridge and launch at Clipper, a facility I had used in the past, with a good ramp, plenty of secure parking, etc. Well, we got there and found chains across both ramps and the harbor office closed. A local Fish and Game warden saw us looking a bit confused, and told us that Clipper had closed it's ramps to the general public sometime last year, and that they were only available for slip holders or dry storage renters or members, whatever that means. The only public ramp remaining in all of Sausalito is the town ramp at Turney Street, which has no parking whatsoever, so it's virtually useless unless you have private parking in town. It's also known to be silted in and in poor condition.
We ended up driving another 12 miles north to Loch Lomond Marina in San Rafael, which is undergoing major renovations, but had an open and available ramp for a $20 launch fee. After launching, we boated those same 12 miles south under blue skies and toured the Golden Gate, the San Francisco Waterfront (including a lunch stop at McCovey Cove) and then took a short but scenic hike on Angel Island. It was a great day of boating, and our east coast friends (and fellow Whaler owners) enjoyed the day. Perhaps next time I'll roll the dice on parking and try the public ramp at Pier 52 in the city.
littleblue posted 11-03-2014 02:03 PM ET (US)
Darn,
IF I had seen this post earlier I could have warned you about Clipper.
andygere posted 11-03-2014 06:58 PM ET (US)
Jasper,
Where are you launching these days? I heard that there was a project to rehab the ramp at Ft. Baker, but don't have any info on it. Have you been down there recently? Loch Lomond is fine, but it adds time and distance to my trailer trip, and the same for boating if the city or Golden Gate is the destination.
placerville posted 11-04-2014 01:06 AM ET (US)
Andy,
Steve(loolee3) and I were cruising Bodega Harbor when we passed a 22 cuddy at Doran Park. We thought it was your boat, but we couldn't recognize you.
Matt
littleblue posted 11-04-2014 02:31 AM ET (US)
I launch out of Clipper. I've been a member...tenant (park in the dry storage yard) for over 10 years. Really a shame that it's closed down to the public. I suppose it's nice not having competition for the wash downs, but if I had a home to park my boat I'd be pretty ticked off.
The Coast Guard ramp was re-done, but it's still best suited for smaller boats. You need a good tide to get in and out, otherwise you trailer will fall off the end of the ramp.
I thought about moving to Loch Lomand but it just adds way too much time / fuel. Most of my trips are out the Gate and the convenience of Sausalito is too hard to beat. It's also 5 min from my apartment.
They are building a bunch of condo's there in Loch Lomand. Time will tell what they do to the place. The marina and wet slips will likely stay, not sure how much dry boat storage they will have...the best local tackle shop closed down a year or two ago and the bait shop that used to be at Clipper is gone too. Sad times.
andygere posted 11-04-2014 02:35 PM ET (US)
Thanks for the update on the Marin launching scene. I only get my boat up there once or twice a year, but since buying a new trailer it's a much easier trip and I hope to get on the bay more often. I was shocked to see the major construction at Loch Lomond, and it was immediately clear that it was more than a repaving project at the marina. It's hard to imagine that a big, expensive residential development project will not have a negative impact on the way the marina operates. Waterfront condo owners aren't going to want to hear salmon fisherman starting up their outboards at five in the morning. I also wonder how they manage to maintain the channel--it seems a lot shallower than the last time I came through there a few years ago.
andygere posted 11-04-2014 03:26 PM ET (US)
Matt, it wasn't us, were were on SF Bay all day Sunday.
boatdryver posted 11-04-2014 07:46 PM ET (US)
Andy, I'm back home with access to a computer. Here's a link to a satellite view of the ramp. The new ramp is the one farthest North, with a single ramp on each side of a dock.
The trailer parking is South (note the absence of paint stripes separating spaces for cars head to head) and at the time of this photo was full of cars, not a boat trailer in sight. it is much larger than the 6-7 capacity I stated earlier.
https://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&output=classic&dg=brw
JimL
boatdryver posted 11-04-2014 07:49 PM ET (US)
That link is lousy, it only brings up a map of the whole California Coast.
Try googling "Pier 52 Boat Launch ramp, San Francisco, CA.
JimL
andygere posted 11-05-2014 11:33 AM ET (US)
JimL, thanks for that info. It does look like there is a decent amount of parking, but I wonder how they keep the spaces open for tow vehicles and trailers? Looks like a lot of single cars there. It does look like a decent facility, and the location is very central to the city waterfront, and close to the Gate.
WT posted 11-06-2014 02:26 PM ET (US)
JimL, I can't believe it's been 5 years already. http://continuouswave.com/ubb/Forum1/HTML/018610.html
Andy, lots of great stuff to see if you launch at Pier 52. I rode into town via the Sacramento River. :-)
Warren
FISHNFF posted 11-12-2014 12:57 AM ET (US)
I've used that ramp since I was a kid fishing with my brother in the mid 70's.

Over the years I would annually launch my 13/15/17/18 a dozen or so times a year, but I've used it more lately now that I don't berth my Whaler in Gashouse anymore.
There are 15 designated trailer spots. I think the launch price just went up to $10 this year. No wash down.
The new metal ramp where the Duck Tours launch is nice, but beware if you have 2WD at low tide. Friends with Ford and Chevy 2wd trucks, me included with my 2WD Z66 Avalanche with traction controlled posi, slip and slide our trucks right into the ramp. We have the dents to prove it! 4wd, no problem.
We use the original ramp right next to the Mariposa Yacht Club. It gets slippery at low tide, but we always get out.
20 minutes to the Gate isn't too bad!

FISHNFF

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Author	Topic: Pier 52 launch ramp in San Francisco
andygere	posted 10-25-2014 02:12 PM ET (US) Has anyone used this ramp? What is the parking situation? There seems to be very little detail on the Port of San Francisco website. I am planning to tow my Outrage 22 Cuddy up to the city next weekend to take some out of town friends on a tour of the city waterfront, Angel Island, etc. Typically I go across the Golden Gate and launch at Clipper Yacht Harbor in Sausalito, but this could save time, money and be more convenient for meeting our friends. Any intel would be appreciated.
boatdryver	posted 10-25-2014 03:03 PM ET (US) Andy, I used it once 5 years ago, coming from Marin. Boat Trailer parking is limited. I don't remember how many spaces. Maybe 6-7.They are new and appropriately designed. I was there on a weekday and there were 3-4 open spaces. I don't know where I would have parked if all spaces were taken. The ramp is pretty new and well constructed, two boats a time capacity. The World Series will be gone by then. JimL
andygere	posted 10-25-2014 03:29 PM ET (US) Thanks Jim, good information. Parking is what I was concerned with, doesn't look like there are many trailer spaces, and it will be a Sunday, albeit one in early November.
andygere	posted 11-03-2014 02:00 PM ET (US) Here's an update on the grim state of publicly available boat launches on San Francisco Bay: Clipper Yacht Harbor in Sausalito is no longer one of them. Worried that the opening weekend of dungeness crab season would have quickly filled the limited parking at the Pier 52 lot in San Francisco, I opted to go across the Golden Gate Bridge and launch at Clipper, a facility I had used in the past, with a good ramp, plenty of secure parking, etc. Well, we got there and found chains across both ramps and the harbor office closed. A local Fish and Game warden saw us looking a bit confused, and told us that Clipper had closed it's ramps to the general public sometime last year, and that they were only available for slip holders or dry storage renters or members, whatever that means. The only public ramp remaining in all of Sausalito is the town ramp at Turney Street, which has no parking whatsoever, so it's virtually useless unless you have private parking in town. It's also known to be silted in and in poor condition. We ended up driving another 12 miles north to Loch Lomond Marina in San Rafael, which is undergoing major renovations, but had an open and available ramp for a $20 launch fee. After launching, we boated those same 12 miles south under blue skies and toured the Golden Gate, the San Francisco Waterfront (including a lunch stop at McCovey Cove) and then took a short but scenic hike on Angel Island. It was a great day of boating, and our east coast friends (and fellow Whaler owners) enjoyed the day. Perhaps next time I'll roll the dice on parking and try the public ramp at Pier 52 in the city.
littleblue	posted 11-03-2014 02:03 PM ET (US) Darn, IF I had seen this post earlier I could have warned you about Clipper.
andygere	posted 11-03-2014 06:58 PM ET (US) Jasper, Where are you launching these days? I heard that there was a project to rehab the ramp at Ft. Baker, but don't have any info on it. Have you been down there recently? Loch Lomond is fine, but it adds time and distance to my trailer trip, and the same for boating if the city or Golden Gate is the destination.
placerville	posted 11-04-2014 01:06 AM ET (US) Andy, Steve(loolee3) and I were cruising Bodega Harbor when we passed a 22 cuddy at Doran Park. We thought it was your boat, but we couldn't recognize you. Matt
littleblue	posted 11-04-2014 02:31 AM ET (US) I launch out of Clipper. I've been a member...tenant (park in the dry storage yard) for over 10 years. Really a shame that it's closed down to the public. I suppose it's nice not having competition for the wash downs, but if I had a home to park my boat I'd be pretty ticked off. The Coast Guard ramp was re-done, but it's still best suited for smaller boats. You need a good tide to get in and out, otherwise you trailer will fall off the end of the ramp. I thought about moving to Loch Lomand but it just adds way too much time / fuel. Most of my trips are out the Gate and the convenience of Sausalito is too hard to beat. It's also 5 min from my apartment. They are building a bunch of condo's there in Loch Lomand. Time will tell what they do to the place. The marina and wet slips will likely stay, not sure how much dry boat storage they will have...the best local tackle shop closed down a year or two ago and the bait shop that used to be at Clipper is gone too. Sad times.
andygere	posted 11-04-2014 02:35 PM ET (US) Thanks for the update on the Marin launching scene. I only get my boat up there once or twice a year, but since buying a new trailer it's a much easier trip and I hope to get on the bay more often. I was shocked to see the major construction at Loch Lomond, and it was immediately clear that it was more than a repaving project at the marina. It's hard to imagine that a big, expensive residential development project will not have a negative impact on the way the marina operates. Waterfront condo owners aren't going to want to hear salmon fisherman starting up their outboards at five in the morning. I also wonder how they manage to maintain the channel--it seems a lot shallower than the last time I came through there a few years ago.
andygere	posted 11-04-2014 03:26 PM ET (US) Matt, it wasn't us, were were on SF Bay all day Sunday.
boatdryver	posted 11-04-2014 07:46 PM ET (US) Andy, I'm back home with access to a computer. Here's a link to a satellite view of the ramp. The new ramp is the one farthest North, with a single ramp on each side of a dock. The trailer parking is South (note the absence of paint stripes separating spaces for cars head to head) and at the time of this photo was full of cars, not a boat trailer in sight. it is much larger than the 6-7 capacity I stated earlier. https://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&output=classic&dg=brw JimL
boatdryver	posted 11-04-2014 07:49 PM ET (US) That link is lousy, it only brings up a map of the whole California Coast. Try googling "Pier 52 Boat Launch ramp, San Francisco, CA. JimL
andygere	posted 11-05-2014 11:33 AM ET (US) JimL, thanks for that info. It does look like there is a decent amount of parking, but I wonder how they keep the spaces open for tow vehicles and trailers? Looks like a lot of single cars there. It does look like a decent facility, and the location is very central to the city waterfront, and close to the Gate.
WT	posted 11-06-2014 02:26 PM ET (US) JimL, I can't believe it's been 5 years already. http://continuouswave.com/ubb/Forum1/HTML/018610.html Andy, lots of great stuff to see if you launch at Pier 52. I rode into town via the Sacramento River. :-) Warren
FISHNFF	posted 11-12-2014 12:57 AM ET (US) I've used that ramp since I was a kid fishing with my brother in the mid 70's. Over the years I would annually launch my 13/15/17/18 a dozen or so times a year, but I've used it more lately now that I don't berth my Whaler in Gashouse anymore. There are 15 designated trailer spots. I think the launch price just went up to $10 this year. No wash down. The new metal ramp where the Duck Tours launch is nice, but beware if you have 2WD at low tide. Friends with Ford and Chevy 2wd trucks, me included with my 2WD Z66 Avalanche with traction controlled posi, slip and slide our trucks right into the ramp. We have the dents to prove it! 4wd, no problem. We use the original ramp right next to the Mariposa Yacht Club. It gets slippery at low tide, but we always get out. 20 minutes to the Gate isn't too bad! FISHNFF