Fly near San Francisco

[didawin]

Hi all,

I have a Mavic 2 Pro and will be in San Francisco for a week, next week.
I will only have 2,5 days and I was wondering where to go for good footage near SF? (only legal places please).
I know Pier 39 seems to be famous and legal, but is there any other good places? ( I won't have a car so anything near or reachable with a taxi)

Edit: I already registered my drone on FAA and got an insurance cover

Thanks !

 

[Flycaster]

Treasure Island is good, but can have it's "windy days"...

 

[petes]

If renting a car is in your budget you may want to go over the Golden Gate in to the hills of Marin County towards Stinson Beach the views are out of this world of both San Fran and the Pacific coastline

 

[The Editor]

Hi all,

I have a Mavic 2 Pro and will be in San Francisco for a week, next week.
I will only have 2,5 days and I was wondering where to go for good footage near SF? (only legal places please).
I know Pier 39 seems to be famous and legal, but is there any other good places? ( I won't have a car so anything near or reachable with a taxi)

Edit: I already registered my drone on FAA and got an insurance cover

Thanks !

Here’s a jolly helpful link of other threads on the subject found by using the search function.

Search results for query: Places to fly in San Francisco

mavicpilots.com

I do hope that was of assistance to you.

 

[didawin]

Treasure Island is good, but can have it's "windy days"...

Thanks ! I will look at that one depending on the forecast

If renting a car is in your budget you may want to go over the Golden Gate in to the hills of Marin County towards Stinson Beach the views are out of this world of both San Fran and the Pacific coastline

Hmm, I remember seeing that one but I thought it was illegal to fly there, am I right?

Here’s a jolly helpful link of other threads on the subject found by using the search function.

Search results for query: Places to fly in San Francisco

mavicpilots.com

I do hope that was of assistance to you.

Thanks! I'll have a look at it right now

 

[Flycaster]

Yes, the Golden Gate N.P. is off limits to fly "in"...
But you can take off outside of the boundarys and still be legal...
But there are locations you can take off from to get "The Shot" of the bridge...

 

[didawin]

Yes, the Golden Gate N.P. is off limits to fly "in"...
But you can take off outside of the boundarys and still be legal...
But there are locations you can take off from to get "The Shot" of the bridge...

Awesome! so where is it legal to take off and still be able to get nice footage of the bridge and city ? would it be legal and not too far if I take off from The Palace of fine Arts and go straight on the right, over the sea ?

 

[Flycaster]

I have not actually done it, I stay out of S.F. these days.
But you can start your research here, hope this helps with your planning!!

https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-d&q=golden+gate+bridge+where+to+fly+drone%3F

Just have to be aware that being on the bay, the winds may/can be an issue.

 

[caryg]

Check your airmaps (e.g., Skyvector), because a lot of SF is controlled airspace and you'll need permission. I recommend taking Highway 1 north from the city, then cutting over to the coast (toward Stinson Beach), and taking the roads through the hills between Mt. Tamalpais and the sea. They film a lot of car commercials on that road because it's BEAUTIFUL, esp at sunset. I've seen people flying drones there, so I assume it's OK...and if it's not, it doesn't seem like anyone interferes with you...

 

[pelagic_one]

The local San Francisco subforum has this pretty well-covered: San Francisco Area

The southern part of San Francisco, along the Bay, has some pretty nice flying spots. India Basin Park is one of those parks where you can fly from Sunrise for an hour, and provides a unique city perspective: 37°44'03.8"N 122°22'31.3"W

Fort Funston along the city’s southern Pacific facing border is well known for hang gliders. But when they’re not flying, when the air is still and great for drones, you’re allowed to fly there: 37°42'55.0"N 122°30'11.8"W

And if you’re around this Sunday morning, it would be worth it to BART/Uber over to Cesar Chavez Park at the Berkeley Marina. Some of us MavicPilots are meeting there at 9am to watch some FPV races, and to enjoy flying around a very large grassy area. Views include SF, Oakland, Treasure Island, Alcatraz, Mount Tamalpais and Golden Gate Fields (horse racing).