Travel Tips: Aiding Terp Fans on their Trek to Berkeley

Greetings Terp Fans!  I’m a Cal fan but I come in peace, wishing only to be courteous to football fans making the trip out west for this Saturday’s Cal-Maryland.  A couple of things to note:

1) I hope you’re flying into Oakland International Airport (OAK) and not San Francisco International (SFO).  I say this because the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge will be closed from 8 PM Thursday to 5 AM Tuesday to install a key portion of the new eastern span so that the bridge can withstand a major earthquake.  As a side note, experts predict a 66% chance of a major quake (6.0 or greater) hitting within one year and Cal’s Memorial Stadium happens to have both end zones on a major fault.  Hug those loved ones tight.

If you fly into Oakland, I recommend NOT using this weekend as an opportunity to explore San Francisco, Alcatraz, or the San Francisco peninsula.  Try wine tasting in the Napa and Sonoma Valleys, having lunch at Sam’s Café in Tiburon, hiking at Mt. Tamalpais or Mt. Diablo State Parks (heh…while they’re open!), heading down to Monterey/Carmel, or going up to Lake Tahoe.  Pretty much anywhere but the city.  I say this because BART can be tricky for new users and the Richmond-San Rafael, Golden Gate, and San Mateo Bridges will likely be swamped with traffic trying to get into SF.

If you’re flying into SFO, ask someone to help you take BART from SFOàBerkeley (for other options, see this piece).  I strongly recommend not renting a car (once arriving to the airport) and then trying to find your way to Berkeley via long, crowded, alternate routes.  BART can be taken from the Oakland Airport as well, but it requires a shuttle ride from the airport to the Oakland Coliseum station and could require an additional transfer before arriving in Berkeley.  Might be best to rent a car or take an airport shuttle.

On your return flight from Oakland, security lines could be a little longer due to the travel weekend and the locals likely avoiding SFO.

2) Weather: Should be nice but initial reports from weather.com said there was a 60% chance of rain.  Now it’s 0%.  I think you'll be in the clear but bringing a poncho might be a good idea as it's small and lightweight.

3) If someone yells to you, "TAKE OFF THAT RED SHIRT!"  I’d reply with, "No thanks but F**k Stanfurd!"  It’s a Cal-Stanfurd rivalry thing, and it's not personal.  It may get you a free beer and hot dog off the grill.  If you don't like wearing red to away games, by all means wear blue since we're having a "blue out" for this game.

4) Spend some money.  Our state needs it.  Seriously.

Safe travels…and of course, Go Bears!