Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Crookedest Road Smackdown!

Where's Pipkin? Lombard St or Vermont St?
The crookedest street in San Francisco...you're thinking Lombard St, arn't you? With its 8 sharp turns and 27% grade, it is indeed quite crooked. But did you know there's another crooked street in San Francisco, and it might be even more crooked? It's called Vermont St and you may not have heard of it, because Lombard gets a lot of hype. Maybe it's the red bricks that pave the 1/4 mile stretch. Maybe it's because its greenery is so perfectly manicured. Quite possibly it's the great view from the top of the hill, looking down into San Francisco Bay. For whatever reason, Lombard St gets all the glory, but little Vermont St is definitely worth visiting, especially if you don't feel like battling the tourists for your time on the road and your share of holiday snaps.

After hopping down Lombard St, even Pipkin's mustache was crooked.
Pipkin visited both streets for comparison. The crooked stretch of Lombard runs east-west through the neighborhood of Russian Hill, between Hyde and Leavensworth streets. It's a one way section, and it's completely clogged up with both car and foot traffic. The posted speed limit is 5 mph, and everyone was crawling down the hill, brakes on, with a passenger or two hanging out the window taking video and photos. On the plus side, the view from the top is breathtaking, and the road is a well maintained red brick. Pipkin felt a little sorry for the people who live there, although if they chose to live on such a famous street, they must not mind the traffic and noise.

Labbits would probably prefer this dark, quiet, and cozy street.

3 miles to the south in the neighborhood of Potrero Hill, Vermont St runs north-south, and its curvy section is between 20th and 22nd streets. It's a steeper but shorter crooked stretch, with 7 turns, and is paved with concrete instead of red brick. Vermont St is nicely landscaped as well, but instead of flowers, tall trees and large shrubs have been planted, giving the street a more shaded and closed-in feeling. It's a much, much quieter and less trafficked road. Hopping down the hair pinned street is just as dizzying as Lombard St but Pipkin would swear Vermont St is more crooked! He does live in Vermont though, so he might be a bit biased. You'll have to visit both streets and determine for yourself which you think is more crooked!

Pipkin says Vermont St is more crooked than Lombard St. And that's final!

2 comments:

  1. These crooked street photos make Dr. Duck's head spin! But that could be because he's imagining how much fun it would be to ride his trike down them.

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  2. This blog makes me so happy. Especially on a Friday. Happy weekend!

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