This trip on two of the three lines can be done in a day and will take you to three very different neighborhoods: posh Nob Hill, peaceful Pacific Heights and popular water front.
The Experience
Listen. The bells clang, the cars groan as they go up and down the hills, the cables sing all the time, and over it all you hear tourists chattering and people discussing their lives. Watch. Don't miss the gripmen. Like San Franciscans in general, they are a diverse lot. In one day, I saw a long beard (halfway down his chest), a pierced nose, a Little Richard wanna-be, and a long gray ponytail under a green beret.If you're brave, ride on the outside. Jump onto the running board and hang on to one of the poles on the outside of the car. It's a vulnerable, thrilling feeling, but be careful and watch out for other cable cars approaching; they pass quite close and you could get hurt.
Practicalities
To learn how to ride the cable cars and how to save money on your rides, read our guide to San Francisco cable cars.Powell-Hyde Line: Cable Car Museum and Russian Hill
From the Powell Street turnaround at Market Street, take the Powell-Hyde Line. Two lines leave from this same spot, so be sure to check the name on the end of the car to be sure it says Powell-Hyde (the ones with brown signs).The cable car ascends, passing Union Square and Nob Hill, then turns left onto Jackson Street. A block after the turn, at Mason Street, is the Cable Car Museum. Watch the sheaves that control the three continuous loops of cable, and peer down at the machines that turn them. For 25 cents, see antique stereo photos of the 1906 earthquake and fire. Aside from people going to the museum, the neighborhood is very quiet.
Reboard the cable car going up Jackson. Get off at Pacific Avenue on Russian Hill to explore the neighborhood. The cable car passes like an intruder, crashing through with its load of tourists.
There are many choices for an evening meal here, and the easiest way to identify a good spot is to see how crowded it is. If you have room after dinner, stop at the original Swensen's ice cream parlor between Union Street and Warner Place for desert. For lunch, try the Russian Hill Noshery Cafe, or stop at a grocery store and take a picnic to the park up the street.
Continue up Hyde, walking if you can. Take a side trip on Filbert to a view of Telegraph Hill and the San Francisco Bay. Hyde Street crests between Filbert and Greenwich then goes down gently toward Lombard Street.
At Lombard Street, peace is broken. The one-block section called the "crookedest" street, draws flocks of tourists. They're everywhere - walking up and down, taking photos, creating a traffic hazard - some even take a taxi just to go down the street!
The park across Hyde at Greenwich is the opposite of the busy Lombard Street scene. Benches invite you to linger in the shade. On the west side of the hill are fine views of the Golden Gate Bridge, Palace of Fine Arts and the Presidio.
Reboard the cable car at Lombard, where the roller coaster ride begins as it plunges sharply downhill toward the end of the line near Ghirardelli Square, the Maritime Museum and Fisherman's Wharf. Hold on tight!
California Line: Nob Hill
When you're done at Fisherman's Wharf, walk to Taylor and Bay (where lines are shorter) and take the cable car back toward Union Square.Get off at California (where the cable car lines cross) and walk west toward the big hotels. People, even children, seem to always be in a hush here on Nob Hill. Around 1900, the hill was adorned with the finest homes in San Francisco, built with money earned from the Gold Rush and railroads. Only the big, brown Huntington Mansion survived the 1906 fire. Nearby, you'll find the Mark Hopkins Hotel, whose Top of the Mark restaurant and bar affords some of the city's best views.
In Huntington Park, even the trees are formal. There are artists sketching, classical fountains, and everyone is very civilized. The playground is quiet. Next to the park is Grace Cathedral, a gothic cathedral with Florentine bronze doors. Inside are frescoes of California history, from the Spanish explorers to the twentieth century, secular and religious.
Continue on California and get off at Polk Street for a look at a San Francisco neighborhood. Here you'll find The Swan Oyster Depot, opened in 1912 and still going strong. On California, the Lumiere Theatre shows art and foreign films. Just up California, near Leavenworth, is Zeki's Bar.
