Does anybody know any cool and legal places to fly in or around the bay area? (I live in Palo Alto)

hiflyer201 · Sep 4, 2021

weekday morning and evenings are you're best bet to stay away from people but I would think a ride along Niles Canyon should reveal lots of interesting flying sites.

Dronebiker25 · Sep 4, 2021

Dronebiker25 said:
Awesome! Thanks. I ride my motorcycle on 25 on most weekends and want to find a peaceful place to fly without a hundred passerbys etc

Corsair415 · Sep 26, 2021

Ranger#1 said:
Hey Julius, awesome video on Point Bonita Lighthouse! You must of launched from where the old Artillery Battery Silos located! I was checking out the Sectional Charts on Restrictions! I could Not see any National Marine Life sanctuary restrictions. in that location awesome.

Most of that area is National Park land, so make sure you’re following their rules as well.

Dangerly · Nov 10, 2021

noahyuen said:
Does anybody know any cool and legal places to fly in or around the bay area? (I live in Palo Alto). Thanks for the help!

There's always Fort Funston in San Francisco:
Point Emery in Emeryville is pretty cool:
The Albany Bulb is unique:

Corsair415 · Nov 10, 2021

Fo

Dangerly said:
There's always Fort Funston in San Francisco:

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Point Emery in Emeryville is pretty cool:

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The Albany Bulb is unique:

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Fort Funston isn’t allowed for drones anymore.

Dangerly · Nov 11, 2021

Corsair415 said:
Fo

Fort Funston isn’t allowed for drones anymore.

Dang, when did they change that? It was one of my favorite places. Do hang gliders still take off from there?

Corsair415 · Nov 12, 2021

Dangerly said:
Dang, when did they change that? It was one of my favorite places. Do hang gliders still take off from there?

Within the last year sometime, I was told the model aircraft exception doesn’t apply to drones.

rsuncloud · Oct 3, 2022

pelagic_one said:
The previous threads in this section contains very specific legal spots to fly in the Bay Area, and makes for some good reading. In the last several months I have flown from over 50 different locations, all legal from both a FAA and local/regional/state code standpoint.

Use an app like Kittyhawk to get authorization to fly in places you normally wouldn’t think you can fly. It will show how most of the Stanford campus is a NFZ.

I‘m planning to get some fireworks footage of Gilroy’s display this weekend. The airspace is unrestricted and I’ll be flying over a rural area with a clear vantage point to the Gilroy High School fireworks launch site. I’ll be at a safe distance of a half mile away, since the larger fireworks exceed our 400-foot max altitude.

Is it legal to fly over USCG TRACEN Petaluma? I can't find anything that say it is not legal??Thanks

pelagic_one · Oct 14, 2022

Dangerly said:
Dang, when did they change that? It was one of my favorite places. Do hang gliders still take off from there?

“The public may not launch, land, or operate unmanned aircraft at Golden Gate National Recreation Area.

Beyond the nuisance they may pose to other visitors, our primary concern is for public safety and protection of park resources. Drone users are subject to a citation of $125 plus fees.”

GGNRA is a No Drone Zone - Golden Gate National Recreation Area (U.S. National Park Service)

drone

www.nps.gov

upandbeyond · May 14, 2024

Julius Danziger said:
I had a good view of the bridge by lifting off in Sausalito and flying over the water

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which part of Saulsalito did you take this? awesome video!