DC Business Trip - Day 5

Today was the day when I truly had to pay for the overall decision (by others) for me to fly from the West to East this week.  It didn't start well, either - by accident, I was awake at 0245 and thought it was time to get up already (it wasn't).  Somehow, I dozed until 0345 (or, more accurately, 0045 Pacific Time) and then got ready to leave my hotel, the Holiday Inn (Washington Capital) National Mall.  After checking out of the room, I spent some time waiting outside in the cold (low 30s).  I felt sorry for myself until I noticed a homeless man wandering around with a huge blanket...  My Uber arrived early (after I let driver know I was ready) and we departed DC at 0405.  We then drove to Dulles (via I-395, GW Parkway, I-66, VA-267), accompanied by snow flurries and dropping temps.  The ride seemed to go well but I'm not certain the driver was happy with me.  I gave him my the best rating and a generous tip but later got an email from Uber, warning me about improving my passenger rating.  Not the best way to start a long day...  Anyway, I was out of my Uber by 0440 and made my way to the security line.  Sadly, I immediately encountered lots of annoyed people who seemed determined to complain about nearly every part of the screening process.  Despite this, I was done with TSA by 0450 (only 10 minutes!).  The quick progression was (again) delayed while I waited for the mobile lounge.  Perhaps it was only my imagination that time was slowing, though, because I arrived at my gate by 0505.  Certain that I was good to go for an on-time departure, I bought some breakfast and lunch food from an airport store (0505) and spent a little time walking nearby.  The boarding for my United Airlines flight started at 0540 and I was able to get on the aircraft quickly because I'd paid to upgrade to Group 2.  Another wise choice I'd made earlier in the week was to switch from a middle to an aisle seat.  However, I was still sitting in the way back of the plane, a B757-200, and there was VERY little overhead bin space.  All my travel prep paid off, though, and I felt good about making a smooth transition at SFO.  Today would have been a really bad day to need to check a bag because of warnings I'd received about San Francisco baggage delays - several passengers ended up with that problem before we pushed back at 0630...  Before we could leave, the crew took us to the deicing area (by then, the snow was quite steady).  Somehow, I'd missed all the inclement weather in the forecast when I was planning this trip - thank goodness I was (again) on the first non-stop flight of the day.  We finally took off at 0710 and I spent the next several hours watching movies, reading and checking in with Kerith (we planned to meet up in the afternoon).  Along the way, I drank a rare cup of coffee (it definitely felt warranted!) and stayed hydrated (this made my aisle seat even more crucial by the end of the flight).  We flew very close to Carson City and Lake Tahoe and I was able to see both through some distant windows nearby.  We ended up landing (over the Bay) at SFO by 0940 local time.  After everyone in front of me deplaned, I followed them through the Terminal (a long walk) to the AirTrain (Blue Line), which I took to the Long Term Parking (1015).  It was a short ride and I arrived at my car by 1030.  What a great trip "home"!  I used my Pre-Paid (Apple Wallet) ticket to get out of the garage and made my way to US-101.  From there, I used I-380 and CA-1 (PCH) to reach the western end of San Francisco.  Along the way, I listened to audiobooks.  The weather was marvelous (50s with a bit of wind). During this phase of the drive, I passed many interesting (and familiar?) buildings, which were described by Google AI as "famous colorful Victorian row houses, often described as looking like gingerbread, but are officially called the Painted Ladies".  After entering the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, I made my way to the Presidio (arrived at 1115).  When I was last here (1980s), the grounds were part of an official military installation and not accessible to everyone.  Now, they are (like Fort Mason, which I visited the previous weekend) green zones for the public.  From a vista point inside the part, I got amazing photos of the Golden Gate Bridge.  While there, I met a USAA employee who struck up a conversation with me about the area - fortunately, I had some personal knowledge of things for him to visit...  After departing the Presidio (1130), I checked out nearby Fort Scott and then drove to Fort Point NHS (arrived at 1140).  This place, which I'd vaguely remembered from movies and a possible visit in the 1970s or 1980s, did not disappoint.  In addition to marveling at the massive walls of the fortress (built in the Ante-Bellum "Third System" style like Fort Sumter), I heard (but didn't see) Sea Lions, climbed up a tall tower and took more photos of the Golden Gate Bridge.  The weather was so nice and I got a good view of passing tour boats and some other prominent landmarks (e.g., Alcatraz).  I reluctantly departed for US-101 and the Golden Gate Bridge crossing and got a photo at 1205.  On the north side of the Bay, I stopped at Vista Point.  In a discrete part of the parking lot, I was able to change my clothing (hiking gear).  When I got out of the car, though, I was disappointed to only get hazy views of San Francisco (1220).  Next, I drove through a big tunnel on US-1 and deeper into Marin County.  Passing through Sausalito, I encountered flooded streets and wasn't able to follow Google Maps instructions.  Evenaully, I realized I was very close to the hotel I'd reserved for the night: the Travelodge Mill Valley.  Taking a chance, I asked the desk clerk if I could check in early - imagine my surprise when he let me (at 1245)!  I noticed that the "pond" behind the hotel was completely full of water and asked him about local flooding (he assured me "we are safe").  I had enough time to unpack my car and then drove to Mill Valley Public Library to meet up with Kerith, who I'd coordinated with for a 1300 hike.  Despite the ease of making plans with her, I probably haven't seen Kerith since the 1980s.  Needless to say, there was a lot of catching up to do!  After calling an audible (pop-up work commitment she got), we eventually tagged up at 1330.  While waiting, I checked out some Redwood trees behind the library (Old Mill Park, where the town began) - wow!  When she and her dogs (Enzo and Maverick) joined me, we settled comfortably into a familiar rhythm.  It was fun to find we had so much in common in our personal and active lives.  Kerith suggested that we walk on a circuit of trails that she frequently walks with her dogs (it included a portion of the Dipsea Trail).  Of course, I eagerly agreed, even though I had no idea how long or difficult this hike might be.  We initially started walking up Cascade Drive (following Old Mill Creek) until we reached the Cascade Trail.  There were actual waterfalls there.  Next, we walked on part of the Tenderfoot Trail, which connected with Edgewood Avenue and, later, the Pipeline Trail.  There were some great views of the valley and we passed several other people.  I learned later that we were walking pretty close to Muir Woods - we also saw Mount Tam (Tamalpais) in the distance.  The trail had a lot of switchbacks and wasn't too strenuous.  We eventually reached the top of the Dipsea Trail Steps near Sequoia Valley Road.  From there, it took three sections of the (over 600 stairs) to reach the bottom. We eventually found ourselves on Cascade Drive again - we'd done almost five miles of hiking!  After putting the dogs in the car (1550), we walked from the Library over to "the restaurant section" of Mill Valley.  With several choices available, we agreeably settled on dinner at Boo Koo (an Asian Fusion Restaurant) at 1600.  I ordered a Russian River "Pliny the Elder" beer (Kerith got one too).  We then had some delicious potstickers, Bánh Bao (Vietnamese Steamed Pork Buns that I'd seen, but not tasted, near Vung Tau), Pad Thai (me) and Pho (Kerith).  All the food was excellent and we also had a good (nice, intelligent, funny) server.  Our conversation flowed nicely and we made some preliminary plans for a meet up the following day.  Dinner was over by 1730 and we walked back to the cars.  After saying goodbye, I headed back to my hotel (arrived at 1800).  I spent the rest of the evening desperately trying to stay awake until some sort of "reasonable" bedtime... I passed the time organizing and reading - I also worked on the Christmas card.  Without much trouble, my eyes shut on their own by 2100.  Whew - let Nomad Life resume!