We’re visiting San Francisco this week, on our wanderings through my archives for ABC Wednesday. You see, we’ve arrived at the letter ‘W‘, and we saw some great ‘W‘s there in 2008!
That picture up there? I wonder if you’ll be able to work out what that is by the time you get to the bottom of this post? If not, there is an explanation at the bottom. Pretty, though, isn’t it?
Anyway.  So we went to San Francisco in 2008. We’d already been to LA, and we drove up the coast to San Francisco .. unfortunately, we couldn’t do all of Highway One because part of it was closed due to the fires that year. What we did see was pretty wonderful, though, and I did get to snap this restaurant sign on the way there.
We were kind of expecting wildlife, but not Wild Ginger!
Of course we did see real wildlife. This deer, for instance, foraging along the roadside in Carmel. I’m by no means an expert on American mammals, but could this be a Whitetail?
If it is, I’m told they sometimes graze on willow.
This wild turkey was wandering about at the side of the road, too.
They’re not pretty birds, are they? But I had to take a picture because we just don’t see them in England. Well, only the one up the road that someone liberated a couple of Christmases ago and now keeps as a pet. It keeps getting out into the road, but it isn’t really wild, just a little wayward.
When we got to the city of San Francisco, the weather was a little dull, so forgive the quality of these next pictures, if you will.  We didn’t really know the city, but we made sure we saw the famous sights, like Fisherman’s Wharf -
What a lot of people! I think they’re on a walking tour.
Alcatraz Island sits out in the bay surrounded by an awful lot of water. It’s salty water though, and unfit to drink.
I expect that’s why the island has its own water tower.  Alcatraz was built to house dangerous prisoners so it was a self-contained fortress with no apparent weaknesses at all.
But there were much more interesting things to see in San Francisco – more cheerful things, too! Like this gentleman who I found sitting on the pavement near the waterfront. Do you see what he’s doing?
He’s making whimsical little wire sculptures to sell. They were really quite wonderful, but would never have survived the flight back home. I do love the expression on the little boy’s face though – he’s utterly entranced!
Then there are the cable cars. Of course, all the cable cars have wheels, but we did vehicles last week, didn’t we? And the cable cars are really just trams, after all. But the Cable Car Museum is amazing. The winding wheels are so big and noisy!
It seemed amazing to me that these wheels, constantly in motion and effortlessly moving that cable at alarming speeds, provide the power to move the cable cars along the streets. You can see how big these wheels are, though, by the size of those steps in the foreground, and I imagine the cars are very easily pulled when they grip the cable to move along.
So, what was it up there? Well, these winding wheels provide the driving force, but in the basement there is another set of specialised wheels, or sheaves*, which bring the cables in from different directions and turn it to align it with the winding wheels, and also somehow work to keep the cables tight. I didn’t have a decent flash with me, and the wheels were spinning incredibly fast, but I quite like the way that shot turned out.
* A sheave is a wheel with a groove in the middle and raised edges. It is also known as a sheave pulley and is part of a system used to raise or lower heavy loads.
Great trip for you and certainly one for us on W Day! Terrific shots and lots of interesting information! Always fun to read!
Hope you have a great week and wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas!
Sylvia
Sylvia Kirkwood´s last blog ..ABC Wednesday — W!
That was an intensive post! So very well done! Merry Christmas to you!
carolynUSA´s last blog ..ABC Wednesday / "W"
You certainly post some interesting collection of W words, I enjoyed coming here weekly just to see your vast collection of words and photos. Simply awesome.
Jama´s last blog ..ABC Wednesday: W
I’m glad you enjoyed your visit to San Francisco. I used to live just a few miles from there. Always thought it was a fascinating City too. Perfect choice for the letter W.
photowannabe´s last blog ..ABC WEDNESDAY LETTER " W "
A great variaton of pics there. So the first isn’t a UFO, then?
Anthony North´s last blog ..WARFARE
I’m still not convinced. It looks to me like a big flying saucer!
I hope that at this time of the year the turkey stays where he’s supposed to stay or he might end up (accidentily of course) on someones dinnerplate!
Happy Christmas from the Netherlands
Mara´s last blog ..W is for…
lots of w’s all right
Sid and loved ones- a hearty memory making holiday !!sandy
sandy´s last blog ..The bunny who could spell!!
O what a wonderful journey and good mix of the whimsical and the expected.
Gerald´s last blog ..ABC Wednesday – W is for White Winter Weather
Wow. Very beautiful w’s! Hope your trip to San Fransisco is sunny and warm! Merry Christmas Jay!
Thanks for the tour! Very beautiful W words too, Jay! Is the first one a UFO?
Reader Wil´s last blog ..that’s My World, ABC Wednesday W for Winter in Holland
Wow, a wealth of Ws.we had a lot of wild turkeys around here in the fall, not to be confused with Wild Turkey.
Roger Green´s last blog ..My Solstice Tradition: ASK ROGER ANYTHING!
Just wanted to stop by and wish you a very Merry Christmas! Hope to be catching up on blogging and commenting in the next few weeks.
What an interesting and informative post. The museum looks fascinating!
jabblog uk´s last blog ..ABC Wednesday W is for Warrior
Those wire sculptures are so delicate aren’t they? I really like them…. I have two – they were made specially by a street artist and depict mine and my daughter’s names!
Merry Christmas Jay – thank you for my card – that made me laugh!!!!
kate´s last blog ..Frosting with a difference!
Wonderful W’s. Lots of variety, but San Francisco is that kind of place!
Sylvia and Carolyn – Thank you! Merry Christmas to you both, too!
Jama – How kind! Thank you!
Photowannabe – I loved San Francisco, but it wasn’t anything like what I expected!
Anthony North – No, I’m afraid not. I does look as if it might be though, doesn’t it?
Mara – Yes, it does, doesn’t it? LOL! May the turkey stay safe, I say!
Sandy – Merry Christmas to you and yours, too!
Gerald and Life With Kaishon – Thanks, glad you enjoyed it!
Reader Wil – No, it’s a picture of two of the sheaves in the basement. They spin sideways to turn the cables.
Roger Green – Hahaha! No indeed. I have a sudden mental picture of drunken turkeys … LOL!
T – Thank you! I look forward to seeing more blogs from you! Merry Christmas to you too!
Jabblog UK – Thanks!
Kate – How lovely! I might have asked him perhaps to do the dogs’ names in wire, but they wouldn’t have travelled well.
Tumblewords – Thanks – indeed it is!
Wow I feel like I have a great tour around SF, I like that picture, a man doing some work and the boy watching him “utterly entranced” he is just so cute. Thanks for sharing!
ABC Wednesday~WWII
Kim´s last blog ..Save water…
Wonderful photos! (Ha! I got a “w” in there too!)
I have been to Fisherman’s Wharf as well; what a smelly place!
Have a Wonderful Holiday Jay! Happy Christmas to you and yours!
Maureen´s last blog ..The Miracle of Christmas
SF, my fav US city. The locals stay clear of the overly touristy Fisherman’s Wharf but you JUST have to experience it once..and Pier 39 as well.
Did you go up Coit Tower and wend your way down Lombard Street ?
Silverback´s last blog ..It Was Only A Winter’s Tale……
My favorite city. Nice to get to see it again. Thanks!
I like the pictures of the sea, fishermen and wildlife here. Merry Christmas!
Autumn Belle@kdp´s last blog ..White Winter Wonderland Chrismas
wonderful post as usual!!
magiceye´s last blog ..Thursday Challenge – Light
A Wonderful place – Wharf and all.
Merry Christmas!
RuneE´s last blog ..Merry Christmas!
What a nice selection of W pictures !
Merry Christmas to you !
Gattina´s last blog ..WINDOW VIEWS & Doors
Many good W here! I like especially the shot of water tower:-)
Wish you a blessed Christmas!
Spiderdama´s last blog ..Julebloggkalender – luke nr. 24
Shades of Gerry Anderson in your first shot, its almost like being at SHADO HQ. The last, winding wheel movement is rather wonderful
Joy´s last blog ..Frosty Flowers and Chimes
If I knew you were going to SF, I would have asked you to buys a giant crab and DHL to me. The giant crab is the few things that cause me to leave my heart in SF in 1977. Thanks for memories and Merry Christmas.
ann chin´s last blog ..Friday Sjy watch: Auckland Sky Tower, telecoms
Oh Yes, did you go to LA and see Johnny Depp?
ann chin´s last blog ..Friday Sjy watch: Auckland Sky Tower, telecoms
Great “W”s! At first glance, I thought the top picture was two flying saucers, then I thought they were cymbals, maybe high hats, until I realized you wouldn’t have them in a “W” post. Interesting, as always!
And yes, I do believe that is a whitetail deer. And yes, again, turkeys are…not the most elegant of God’s creatures…but I’m sure they have a certain beauty among themselves. We have lots of wild turkeys around here; they can fly up in front of your car from nowhere!
ethelmaepotter´s last blog ..The Wonderful World of Blogging
I thought the first photo was a flying saucer:) That’s a great photo! You have certainly wandered through many interesting places, Jay. I would love to visit San Francisco myself someday. Too bad the Golden Gate Bridge doesn’t start with a W, too.
Wishing you happy Holidays!
Rose´s last blog ..Holiday Wishes for You
Kim – Thank you – yes, I love that little boy, too. No idea who he was, just a part of the crowd and a lucky shot.
Maureen – Thanks! Yes, some of that whole waterfront area was smelly. I didn’t go too near the fishy bits.
Silverback – No, we didn’t go up Coit Tower. Maybe next time. Lombard Street? Probably, I can’t remember now .. if it was on the cable car route, we probably rode it!
Judi, Autumn Belle, MagicEye,RuneE andGattina – Thank you all!
Spiderdama – Thanks! I quite like the water tower, too. The whole of Alcatraz was fascinating.
Joy – I didn’t think of Gerry Anderson, but you’re right!
Ann Chinn – I stayed well away from all the seafood places, because I have an allergy to fish! LOL!
Yes, I did go to LA, but didn’t see Johnny. I did have dinner with friends on the deck of the Saddle Ranch on Sunset Blvd though, and we waved at his house.
EthelMaePotter – Your wild turkeys sound like our pheasants (except our pheasants are much prettier! LOL!), which can also suddenly erupt into the air in front of a car. I’ve know people hit them and then stop and pick them to take home for dinner because they’re quite tasty if you like gamey meat. Not sure I could do that though.
Rose – Ha, yes! Although we didn’t get a great shot of the bridge because it wasn’t great weather that day. Very grey. San Fracisco is definitely a fun place to go though, whatever the weather!