Golden Gate Bridge travel guide describes the Golden Gate Bridge as "possibly the most beautiful, certainly the most photographed, bridge in the world." At the time of its opening in 1937, it was both the longest and the tallest suspension bridge in the world, with a main span of and a total height of . Before the bridge was built, the only practical short route between San Francisco and what is now Marin County was by boat across a section of San Francisco Bay. A ferry service began as early as 1820, with a regularly scheduled service beginning in the 1840s for the
Golden Gate Ferry Company and renamed "Kehloken". It was in service until 1979 when it was burned in a fire that spread from the pier it was moored to. The "Golden Bear" was damaged off the coast of Oregon while being towed to Washington state in 1937 and subsequently salvaged for parts. The "Golden Dawn" was simply retired in 1937, presumably for scrap. Golden Gate Ferry Company Golden Gate Ferry Company was a private company which operated automobile ferries between San Francisco, Berkeley and Sausalito before the opening of the Bay Bridge and the Golden Gate Bridge. In early 1929, the Golden Gate Ferry