I wasn't able to run my last half-marathon to this awful flu/cough that's been going around nor was I able to get past the feeling of failure. Having trained for and run multiple half-marathons, I decided to create my own. I began my journey a block from the IKEA parking lot(lots of side street parking) and then made my way onto the trail which is literally across the street. It's a fast flat route but felt awfully lonely around 7am Saturday. Several cyclists passed me but I was the lone runner. There was a man sitting on one of the benches along the trail and I definitely got anxious. I carried on and saw many more walkers and runners at the Oakland parking lot. From there you can take the trail to a fishing pier or go onto the bridge. This was the highlight of the route as you get amazing views of Oakland and San Francisco and appreciate the structure of the "new" bridge. For those of you wanting to increase miles, add on Yerba Buena Island and Treasure Island. There are steep inclines so they were fun challenges. I also checked out the fishing pier when I came back. read more

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This trail starts at the IKEA parking lot in Emeryville and goes all the way to Treasure Island. It goes under the freeway maze and along the Bay Bridge. Round trip from the start at the parking lot to the Treasure Island entrance and back is about 6 miles. It's a great place to run or bike, there are some bathrooms halfway along the trail. I've run here a few times, and running under the freeways and along the Bay Bridge is a good change of pace!! read more

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The stretch of the Bay trail between Emeryville and Richmond Marina is fantastic for a bike ride. It would be a little bit flat and boring for a hike, but I see plenty of people out there walking dogs and pushing babies. read more

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The Bay Bridge Trail is a trek that any lover of walking, running, biking or surveying the things that make San Francisco Bay so amazing, should partake in at least once in their lifetime. It's an easy hike really with just the length and the wind out on the bay, not to mention the traffic on the Bay Bridge whizzing by being the only intimidating factors. This roughly six mile trek total has only a minor steep incline as one comes closer to the Bay Bridge's new tower, which seemed like a lot of hard work for those who were on bicycle heading towards Yerba Buena Island and then a slightly scary free for all when they headed back down the slope towards the Oakland side of the Bridge. The day I went with friends, we decided to meet up at the Ikea parking lot as that's where the trail's technical starting point is, but from there I told my friends that there was a parking lot located at an event space called The Bridge Yard where the trail continues and is closer to the actual Bay Bridge. What's nice is that parking is free at the the Bay Bridge Trail Parking Lot and you get a little bit of the history and background of the building of the bridge that connects the city of San Francisco and the East Bay. Once we got out on the trail they have a lot of nice markers on how far you have to go to get to Yerba Buena Island. You'll notice all of the nice landscaping that they done around the Oakland side of the bridge and how well maintained things are. They also have a really nice observation deck jutting out of the Oakland side of the bridge with tables and chairs for people to look out over the water and see the bridge in all its glory, but I wouldn't know as that area was closed off with a fence and doesn't look like it has ever been opened for the public to see. Whether you are hiking or biking you will really get an appreciation of how long your trip is either by foot or pedal and the beautiful views of the bay that are underfoot or "underbridge" as the case may be. After our five and half mile walk west towards Yerba Buena Island we finally arrived at our destination and first made a pit stop at an area with a map and cement benches and we found at there were a lot of area cordoned off by fences and a long roadways on the island that were so slopped uphill that even by bicycle it looked like a challenge. As we sat there enjoying our lunch looking out over the bay, we noticed that the skies above were changing on a dime, and as the grayer the weather got, we decided to high-tail back to the parking lot located by the Bay Bridge toll plaza. As it started raining, it luckily didn't get too cold out there, but it was wet, which only made me sympathize with the bicyclists even more as riding downhill with pathway wet with a mere shoulder length bridge that separates you from the water below can be quite scary! But ironically, the only accident we saw was a pile up on the actual Bay Bridge freeway which was interesting to see firsthand how traffic bottles up as you walk by it with nothing but you and a gate separating you from the speeding traffic next to you. The Bay Bridge Trail - Shellmound is something that I would totally walk through again as the hike is an easy straight slightly uproad climb in which bicyclists and walkers share a small pathway evenly, which is a nice change of pace versus that of the Golden Gate Bridge, which is overwrought with tourists and sharing the path can get really complicated. Here's to hoping that more observation decks and pathway open up so one can enjoy their adventure walking or biking on the bridge even further. The new Bay Bridge is here to stay and ready to be explored by more people, locals and tourists alike! read more

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This particular trails starts at the ikea Way. It's the street right off ikea. It's a clear path to follow. Best parking tip would be the Emery Bay Parking lot which is the parking garage for the mall and the AMC theater. The only clear designated area here is for cyclist. If you're walking you mainly share the trail with them. I would design this trail differently as: Each designated space for both. It's big enough. There's one last porta potty before you start the actual two miles or so of the trail. Before that from the ikea way entrance it's another close to two miles give or take. Also thats your first chance to use the bathroom. It's breath taking. Always is when you can enjoy a bridge on foot. It's a different experience. More profound. I'm very appreciative of the design with this consideration in mind. The tower that holds the cables together is mighty looking. It stands tall and is a very photogenic subject for all. I must've taken an infinite amount of photos today! Lastly this path is lined with wild flowers and greens. As well as mostly buildings that was there way before this path ever existed. So the old and new to me merged quiet well here. Easy walk overall. It's a total of about close to ten miles from start to finish. Layer up as the gust of wind from the bay can swiftly change the temperature. Enjoy the view of the old bridge next to the new one. It's pretty historic losing that old behemoth. I do welcome the new span and eagerly await the completion of the trail to the Yerba Buena Island. I know to me the end came so quickly. I was still so eager to walk some more but alas! Every good path must come to an abrupt end at least here. read more

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Very nice trail. Well kept. Bathrooms along the root and bathrooms on treasure island. Great views of the east bay, SF, and the bridge itself. The incline looks daunting, but it isn't that bad at all. On the way back, you don't have to pedal at all, so it is basically a one way ride if you are on bike. There were plenty of runners and it is a beautiful run as well. Even for beginner runners, the distance is managable. I think 2 1/2 miles one way, but you don't have to fun the full distance, you can run half way and run back for 2 1/2 mile run total. There were walkers, runners, manual scooters, electric scooters, bikes, electric bikes, and even hovercrafts! Just kidding about the hovercrafts, but that would be sweet. I don't know the drone rules, but I wish I had a drone. read more

Pretty cool trail. I would suggest doing this right before sunset. Gorgeous orange and red skies. Not sure how long the trail is. I would say round trip maybe four miles read more

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Every two weeks or so, my honey and I both have a Friday off together. I have coined these days our "FriDATEs." This past Friday was one of those days and we decided to do the Bay Bridge Trail in the morning. We started at the trail entrance across the street from IKEA. There isn't any designated parking, so instead of tempting fate and parking at IKEA, we opted to just pay for parking in the garage for the Emeryville shopping/restaurant area. It ended up costing us $4 for the 3 hours we were walking. Totally reasonable. Granted this was a Friday and I know a lot of people were are work but I was still pleasantly surprised that we had the trail almost entirely to ourselves. We passed a handful of other walkers as well as a few bicyclists but the majority of the people who we saw were working (CHP officers doing their rounds on bicycles and landscape workers). It is a bit strange to venture under and along the freeway but the trail is spaced nicely from the cars, and they have put in some nice landscaping, so I felt safely separated from the traffic. There are also separate pedestrian and cycling lanes on the bridge. I highly recommend checking out this trail while the old bridge is still intact. It was neat to walk right between old and new. It will also be neat when the old bridge is gone and the trail is extended to the island. This trail will remain on the list for future FriDATEs, as well as a possibility for sharing with friends visiting from out of town. read more

I've wanted to take this trek since it opened a few years ago. I was finally given the opportunity to do it as part of my run/walk group. It was a beautiful day. The wind was blowing but there was no rain. The run was amazing. I couldn't help but stop and admire the bay on a few occasions. I will certainly return and make this a regular part of my routine. read more

Bay Bridge Trail - Shellmound - Parks Near Me - Emeryville, California

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I try to vary my hikes. Urban, beach, forest, preserve. What could be more unusual than a Bay Bridge walk? So we went on the website and found that we could park at the lot at Maritime and Burma to access the trail. Sure enough, the large lot had ample parking and we found the trail entrance right away. Because is was wonderfully labelled something like "BAY BRIDGE TRAIL ENTRANCE HERE." So we started our journey. Here's the thing: you walk for about a mile before you even get to the bridge. Bummer. But once you get on the bridge, it's pretty good. Rough on the feet, though, oy. Both of us are experienced hikers in good shoes and after 2.5 hrs round trip, we were both hurting. It's also, as you might imagine, relatively loud once you get next to traffic, so convo can be a little curtailed. Currently, the trail stops just past the tower, before Treasure Island. read more

Note that from Ikea, it's 2.5 mile walk to just get to the bridge. Nothing to look at, noisy and no water. Once on the bridge, that's pretty awesome. When you finish the bridge walk...another depressing 2.5 mile walk back to the trail start near Ikea. If this is your first trip, be sure to bring water! At least one the size of a 32oz Nalgene water bottle per person. It's a long ass walk and smaller kids will get tired and there isn't many places to stop. Unless they do something about that ugly 2.5 mile stretch, I'll avoid walking it again. Next time I'll be on a bike. read more

First time here and started at Shellmound St/IKEA. First leg of the trip has a plethora of stink! But once we passed the first mile, it was an enjoyable ride. The ride is a steady climb the entire way but enjoyable since we stopped to take in the views and pictures. It was great to see the old bridge being taken apart, view of the City & steady flow of traffic. It's just as noisy as when you're in the car with the windows down. Planning to do this again. read more

Bay Bridge Trail - Shellmound - Birthday weekend with the family! - Parks Near Me - Emeryville, California

For the first time pedestrians and cyclists will have the chance to travel across the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge's East Span, on a 15.5- foot-wide bike/pedestrian path that will extend the 2.2 miles to Yerba Buena Island. read more