Sailing Destinations: Richardson Bay

Beautiful Richardson Bay was named after a man named William Richardson whom came to the area as a second mate aboard a Brittish Whaling ship named Orion in 1822. After staying out all night at a party in the Presidio in San Francisco against the orders of his captain, it was a mutual decision for him to leave the ship. He eventually won a petition for a rancho called “Rancho Sauselito”. Sausalito is the spanish word for “small willow grove”and these headlands across the Golden Gate from the Presidio were full of freshwater springs and the section Richardson requested had a creek. Likely the place we today call, Coyote Creek.

Richardson then brilliantly established a watering station for incoming vessels with his natural supply but did later abandon this endeavor for something more in his wheel house. Surveying land and water, something he did multiple times throughout his life. He was the first to chart San Francisco Bay, he was a translator, helped layout towns such as Sonoma and San Diego and he used his personal boat to transport people and supplies up to Sacramento during the gold rush. He also built the first 2 story wood framed house in the Presidio that looked out at incoming vessels so he could greet them and offer them any goods they may be needing. Richardson was named Port Captain due to his seafaring abilities, overseeing maritime commerce in the bay and often times personally piloting arriving ships. Making him the first of what we now call Bay Pilots. You can now see why his name was given to one of the most beautiful parts of our bay, what we call Richardson Bay.

Before I go any further I want to say, this post includes a cove within the bay that is not technically in Richardson Bay. I tried to break this series of posts up into general areas, sometimes needing to squeeze an area into a box it didn’t quite fit into. I have laid this post out by starting on the most western area and moving up and around the bay ending in the most eastern corner.

This series is meant to serve as a guide to help day and weekend sailors find new and interesting things they can do on board Tradewinds Sailing School and Club boats. If I include a place or a thing that isn’t allowed in our club, I will mention it explicitly so our members know but this post can still be used by independent boat owners and visitors from out of town.

Welcome to Richardson Bay!!

 A shallow, ecologically rich arm of San Francisco Bay

Below is a map of the area we are talking about. You will find pins dropped for each place mentioned so you can orient yourself with where each place is as I go along. You can interact with this map better by clicking on the link below it.

https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=1l_wTtrWX-u6-ptEHzVOQP0KllvVBxvs&usp=sharing

Horseshoe Cove (or Bay)

The marina with the most controversial name (everyone swears it’s Cove but the charts all say Bay) but the most beautiful views in the Bay! This marina is the closest marina to the Gate with the best views of Golden Gate Bridge right from your anchorage or guest dock and full views of San Francisco, assuming you are there on a clear day or night which is advised. If you do happen to have the fog roll in before you get into the cove you may want to reconsider. It will be difficult to navigate in and most of the beauty and wonder will be hiding behind our favorite Bay Area friend, Karl the fog. If you are going on a clear day however, you are in LUCK. Make sure to enter the cove down the middle of the entrance and keep an eye out, you have a fishing area to your port and to your starboard you have a shallow area near the breakwater. Check your tides and currents as well before you plan to visit this location. It is best to enter at slack tide or on a gentle ebb or flood as the currents are strongest near this part of the bridge and you can find yourself drifting out of the gate.

Anchorage:

This Harbor has an average depth of 8′ so watch those negative tides! The area closer towards the bridge side of the cove should be kept clear as the coast guard may enter at any time and can take up that whole side. There is a small no wake zone marker in the middle but 2 boats can fit in here comfortably or more if rafted up. TRADEWINDS DISCLAIMER: It is against club rules to raft up at any time. The sea floor in this harbor is mostly silt. Be sure to test your anchor well before resting to be sure you are holding. Be advised, some local sailors have said they would not anchor here as there is debris on the seafloor that your anchor could get tangled up in. If you are anchoring here you could tie a trip line to your anchor to help you if this becomes a problem.

Guest Dock:
Travis Marina: (415)332-2319
No reservations.
$1/foot for overnight stays
40′ boat is max
End of dock is 8′ at low tide, progressively getting more shallow towards land
Restaurant and Bar at marina – Best burger on the bay!
On Friday’s and Saturday’s be sure to call before trying to visit the bar as they sometimes have private events.

Access to:
Restrooms and showers
Presideo Yacht Club – a public yacht club
Hikes to beautiful sights
Fishing off of pier
1/2 mile walk to Cavallo Point Restaurant
1/4 mile walk to Bay Area Discovery Museum and Bean Sprouts Cafe (Coffee and food geared towards children)

Sausalito Yacht Club (Club members only)

This club is members only, however, if you are a member of a yacht club you can use your reciprocal priveledges to visit this area. I recommend visiting during one of their live music events. You can view their events page here. If you decide to visit on a day they are not having an event you can take advantage of the two hours on the guest dock, or if you have a dinghy, stand up paddle board, kayak, etc… you can use it to get to shore from here. Once on land you have 3 of the top 10 water front restaurants that are just south of the yacht club. The Trident, Scoma’s of Sausalito and Barrel House. Of course you could also have a good meal right here at Sausalito Yacht Club Restaurant.

Information below is directly from the Sausalito Yacht Club website.

Dock Rules
Boat Captain is responsible for securing his/her yacht – Please utilize the most upwind available space maximizing room for other vessels.

1. All visiting Yacht Club vessels should fly their respective yacht club burgee.
2. Visitors from reciprocal Yacht Clubs must check in with the Officer on Deck or Club Steward upon arriving.
3. Maximum stay 2 hours. (During special events, less time may be allowed)
4. No overnight tie-up at the dock. Members are requested to use the mooring balls when tying-up overnight.
   NOTE: Our dock experiences significant surge and current. Boaters should be aware of this and plan their visit and dock lines accordingly.

Use of the SYC Mooring Field
The SYC mooring field is for members and guests who have registered with our Port Captain, Officer of the Day or General Manager. No boat shall be moored for more than 72 hours. Call 415-332-7400.

Notice: There are a few boats anchored between two locations and other random spots along the side of Richardson Bay – keep in mind this areas are very shallow and not recommended for overnight anchoring. You will likely find yourself stuck for possibly a few days.

Sausalito Yacht Harbor

Sausalito Yacht Harbor is a small marina with monthly slips that rarely become available. The reviews online all state this is a beautiful spot if you can get one. There are no guest docks available for use.

Restaurants between here and the next marina are:
Seafood Peddler (415)332-1492
Salito Crab House (415)331-3226

These are easily walked to from neighboring marinas with guest docks.

Pelican Harbour

Pelican Harbor is another small marina. Although no guest dock or transient slips available, it seems like a very nice marina to stay in by month. Below is a few more of the great restaurants you can visit while staying in a nearby marina that does have a guest dock.

Restaurants between here and the next marina are:
Bar Bocce (415)331-0555
Joinery Bearhall (415)766-8999

Another sight to see between this marina and the next is the Floating Taj Mahal. It is a sight you can’t miss! Snag a picture as you are passing by but if you happen to get onto the docks please do not try to approach or look in as someone does live in this beautiful floating home.

Sausalito Cruising Club

The Sausalito Cruising Club is such an interesting place that I have been researching to try and get accurate information about and I think I finally figured it out. Although not actually called a yacht club this club is very similar to what we know of as yacht clubs. The Cruising Club is a member of the Pacific Inter-Yacht Club Association. They even have reciprocal rights with many yacht clubs on the West Coast, Hawaii, and throughout the world. 

This club started during World War II by service men who were looking for a place to decompress. The clubhouse is a surplus World War Two munitions barge which is a detail that makes me want to jump on a boat and use my own reciprocal yacht club privileges to go check it out. To the side of the building are a bunch of stand up paddle boards and kayaks which look like they are available for club use. Before you visit the Sausalito Cruising Club I recommend shooting them an email at info@sausalitocruisingclub.org to make sure the facilities are available during the time you plan to visit.

Galilee Harbor

Galilee Harbor is once again a marina we wont have access to but it’s home to 38 floating households that is full of creative residents. Keep an eye out for events in this marina you could find your new favorite piece of livingroom art, pottery, t-shirt, etc! It looks like they haven’t updated their website with events for 2023 but you can find the page by clicking HERE!

Schoonmaker Point Marina
Guest Dock

Phone: 415.331.5550   

A relatively new, full-service marina. Side-ties can handle yachts up to 220 feet long. Guest slips often available by prior arrangement(varify guest dock space they want you to pull up to). Café at marina. Sandy beach that can be used to land or launch a dinghy, stand up paddle board or kayak. You can also swim in this calm area and rent a kayak if you don’t have your own. If you are visiting by car, there are free carts you can borrow to transport your stuff from the car to the beach.

Restaurants in this area are:
Le Garage (415)332-5625
New Saylor’s Restaurant and Bar (415)332-1512

Other things to do near this marina:

Bay Model Visitors Center (415) 289-3007

New Old School E-Bikes (415)324-7039
You can get 15% off bike rentals when you mention Tradewinds and this blog post.
Comes with bike lock and phone holder.

Bluewater Yacht Harbor

Nightly guest dock and monthly dry storage docking

Phone: (415)289-0135

Not sure if you are annoyed that this list is full of marinas that do not have public access but this is a marina I was sure was going to be that and then I found a singular line written on their website that set me straight. “There are also side ties up to 60’ available for daily or other short term use”. If looking for somewhere new to tie up and stay the night at, I recommend giving this marina a call. If looking for somewhere to store some smaller water toys, this also might be your spot. They advertise monthly stand up paddle board, canoe and kayak dry dock storage.

Liberty Ship Marina

The most difficult marina in Sausalito to find any information on at all. It is home to the beautiful Matthew Turner, a Liberty Ship that offers bay tours and is seen almost every weekend and in the evenings sailing with its big square sails on display. You can visit the marina to take a look a little closer at the ship but please do not climb aboard unless it is open for tour. More info coming soon about this marina.

Marina Plaza Harbor

Another marina that is website-less and has little information. However, this marina does offer daily guest docking. More information coming as I get the chance to visit or call this marina. If you happen to get ahold of anyone before I have updated this post, please email the office with the information!

Clipper Yacht Harbor
Guest Dock verified!

This is a family owned full service marina open to the public. You must call to reserve your guest dock in advance and they will require you to send them boat documentation and proof of insurance (Tradewinds is happy to provide anytime a marina asks for this just send us an email and we will send you so you can provide). You can find a lot to do is this part of sausalito including more restaurants and shopping. This is also a great place to stay while you go walk around the cool Waldo Point Marina talked about next.

Recommended restaurants in area:
Fish. (415)331-3474

Waldo Point Harbor

Waldo Point Harbor is an adorable community of floating homes that is happy to have people walking around soaking up the creative ways they have decorated their community. There is no guest dock and they do not appreciate people looking in their windows or taking pictures but have a walk around and imagine living in such a beautiful and interesting place!

Richardson Bay Marina

Last but not least is Richardson Bay Marina. Tucked in the very northern corner past Waldo Point Harbor, is this awesome marina open to the public but not offering any guest slips. They do have monthly slips and possibly liveaboard slips, although it is unlikely that any slips become available in our lifetimes!

Things to do in the area:
Sea Plane Adventures

Strawberry Lagoon and Araburo Island

As we make our way now around to the other side of the Bay you will see Strawberry Lagoon and Araburo Island. This area is very shallow and I do not recommend trying to visit it on a sailboat. However, if you happen to be visiting the area in anything with a much more shallow draft, it is quite an interesting place. The island and lagoon you see in the picture is home to a bird sanctuary and just outside of the island is an Eel Grass experiment that SF State University has been doing. Definitely something cool to check out.

Our very own Tony Johnson gave us a great secret entrance you can see in the next image.

Cone Rock Anchorage

If you are a Tradewinds Student and you have taken our ASA 104 Bareboat Cruising Class, there is a high chance you have spent the night near cone rock at anchor. It is most of our instructors favorite places to take their students to experience to beautiful views as well as this usually protected anchorage. Just be careful, the wind doesn’t always come from the same place and on an evening with a west wind, you are on a lee shore.

The depth at this anchoring is pretty steadily, 8-11′ at zero tide between the cone rock marker and land to the edge of raccoon strait. If you are on one of our deeper draft boats, like the First 40 Child’s Play we have in our fleet, on a negative tide you can find yourself sitting in the mud. Most of our boats though are about 6′ draft and you will be perfectly afloat for your evening on the hook.

In summary…

Richardson Bay and Horseshoe Cove are beautiful areas that are not to be missed if you are sailing in San Francisco Bay. We owe this priveledge to a man named David Steinhardt who fought against this area of water being filled in during the 1950’s. Apparently there was a plan to fill it in so they could build homes and install roads but Steinhardt stopped the process and convinced his neighbors to also take a stand against the idea which preserved the bay of water for all of us to enjoy over the past 70 years and counting.

Whether you are day sailing and looking for somewhere to cruise around/stop for lunch or staying the night and looking for something a little more special to do, like renting an ebike and exploring part of your day on land checking out the history of the marin headlands, put this area on your list immediately!!