First to be ticked off the list… capturing the breathtaking views of the Golden Gate bridge from Slacker Hill at sunrise. Or so we thought. We left our hotel at 5am and aimed for the Coastal Trail car park to embark on the short, steep hike to the highest viewpoint. With dry conditions and low fog, I was sure we had hit the jackpot. We arrived at the top, hopeful of the epic vistas I had seen numerous times on Instagram and the like, but instead we were met with fog, fog, and… zero visibility. With the tripod setup, we hunkered down in the cool mist for just over an hour, but as breakfast time was fast approaching and the fog was showing no signs of lifting, we decided to pack up, and try again another day.

All was not lost though, we experienced a sunrise like never before, a big orange ball burning through the morning mist, and met some friendly, fellow photographers from Sacramento who were happy enough to stand and chat and have a laugh while we waited for what amounted to nothing.

After stopping at almost every opportunity to grab photos of the gorgeous coastal scenery in the morning mist and the orange/red glow from the Golden Gate bridge, we made it back with just enough time to grab breakfast before our boat trip to Alcatraz.

Having seen the brutal conditions faced by prisoners at Alcatraz and understanding why so many of them risked their lives to escape from The Rock, we followed suit and made our way back to the mainland, albeit on the tourist ferry.

We arrived back in the city with enough time to wander, grab some dinner and catch a nice spot for sunset.