Walking the Bay Trail … in San Francisco, Hayward

Walking the Bay Trail... in San Francisco, Hayward The ambitious plan to ring San Francisco Bay with a 450-mile shoreline trail system is well under way. About a third (160 miles) of the nine-county Bay Trail is already in place, and the remaining 290 miles are being planned or built now under the coordination of the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG).

A new guided tour shows off one of the trail's most dramatic San Francisco stretches. You can also hike or bike a newly connected East Bay link in Hayward. For maps of other completed links or to volunteer to help build more of the trail, see last paragraph.

San Francisco Bay Trail tour. Every Sunday at 11:30, guided walks start at the St. Francis Yacht Club parking lot (off Marina Boulevard). The 2 1/2-mile one-way trek skirts the bay edge of Golden Gate National Recreation Area, then heads onto the beach past Crissy Field (a popular windsurfing spot), along Golden Gate Promenade, and out to Fort Point National Historic Site.

At Fort Point, you join a free 1/2-hour ranger tour, then take the winding hillside trail up to the Golden Gate Bridge.

Here you may backtrack to return on your own or return with the guide by Muni bus (85 cents> exact change only). The 3-hour walk ($5 donation) includes brochure, water, and a snack. For reservations and meeting place, call Lynn Kahn at (415) 776-8821 by 5 P.M. the previous Friday> rain cancels.

In Hayward. You can hike or bike a 7-mile (one way) segment of the Bay Trail between Hayward Shoreline Interpretive Center and San Leandro Marina. The center (open 10 to 5 daily> free) is a good place to park and pick up trail maps before you start. From here, you can trek past marshland, a golf course, and a lively marina. New bridges complete the link. From the San Mateo Bridge, take Clawiter Road and follow signs to the center on Breakwater Avenue.

For maps, to volunteer. Write for Bay Trail map (free) or detailed trail sections in each county ($3 each) from the San Francisco Bay Trail Project, c/o ABAG, Box 2050, Oakland 94604. To volunteer to lead walks or help with trail building or fund-raising, call 464-7900.