Welcome to 3rd Ave!
3rd Avenue has been a kiteboarding and sailboarding destination in the San Francisco bay area for since the 1980s.
During that time it has undergone profound changes in parking, facilities, community, growth, equipment, etc.
In 2014, Foster City expended nearly $900K to improve the site and name it Bay Winds Park.
The images on this site have also undergone hosting changes. In 2015, Gilead Sciences began hosting our camera and weather instrument. In 2018 we purchased a new, higher-definition, camera. In 2023 we had to get a new web hosting service that was only made operational in the spring of 2024.
3rd Avenue is a kiteboarding/sailboarding site on the San Francisco bay. You should be able to tell from the various "signs" whether or not to get yourself over to 3rd, one of the best kiteboarding sites anywhere. Visit the home of our permanent webcam and weather instrument host, Gilead Sciences, by selecting the image at the top of this page. Gilead Sciences is headquartered in Foster City. Special thanks to John Kennedy,Andrew Smith, Cary McConlogue, and others at Gilead for direct assistance in helping us manage the webcam and weather instruments and associated hardware.
General Information
Location
- The 3rd Ave site is located on the San Francisco by north-west of the intersection of Highway 101 and Highway 92 at the San Mateo Bridge.
- Lat: 37 34 22.68 N, Lon: 122 16 45.99 W
- We have a Virtual Earth map to show you exactly what 3rd Ave looks like from a birds-eye point of view (not sure when this was taken).
Directions
- From SFO on 101 South: Exit 101 Eastbound at East 3rd Ave. Head East over the bridge and follow East 3rd Ave along the bay, past the dog park, over a small bridge, until you see the Mariners Point Golf Course and driving range on the left. The next traffic light should be Lakeside. Turn left. Drive to the end and you should be facing the driving range nets. Turn right and go to the end and you should be in the 3rd Ave main parking lot.
- North on 101 from San Jose: Exit 101 Eastbound onto Eastbound Highway 92. Stay in the right lane. Take the Foster City Blvd exit and stay in the left lane. Turn left onto Metro Center Blvd and get into the second lane from the left. At Foster City Blvd turn left and go over the bridge above 92. Follow it until you get to the bay. This will be East 3rd Ave. Turn left. The second traffic light will be Lakeside. Turn right. Go to the end and you should be facing the driving range nets. Turn right and drive to the end and you should be in the 3rd Ave main parking lot.
- Westbound on Highway 92 from the East Bay: Take the Chess exit from 92. Get into the left lane and turn left onto Foster City Blvd. Drive to the end and turn left onto East 3rd Ave. Turn right at Lakeside (it should be the second traffic light). Drive to the end. You should be facing the driving range nets. Turn right and drive to the end and you should be in the 3rd Ave main parking lot.
- Eastbound on Highway 92 from the the peninsula: Take the Foster City blvd exit from 92. Get into the left lane and turn left onto Foster City Blvd. and stay in the left lane. Turn left onto Metro Center Blvd and get into the second lane from the left. At Foster City Blvd turn left and go over the bridge above 92. Follow it until you get to the bay. This will be East 3rd Ave. Turn left. The second traffic light will be Lakeside. Turn right. Go to the end and you should be facing the driving range nets. Turn right and drive to the end and you should be in the 3rd Ave main parking lot.
Parking
- The are several places to park at 3rd Ave. The main lot is described in the directions section above.
- If you arrive later in the afternoon the main lot may be full, but there are many parking slots along the driving range fence. Please park perpendicular to the fence and leave room for others to get into/out of their cars.
- There are 30 parking slots at the Mariners Point Golf Course, along the fence facing the bay. There is an entrance through the fence at the east end of this set of parking spaces. Please do not park anywhere else in the lot as those spots are reseved for golfers. Also, make sure to keep the golf course area clean as we are guests and not paying customers. You will find bathrooms at the golf course, but you might patronize them by buying some food in their concession. THESE SPOTS ARE NO LONGER AVAILABLE.
External Links
3rd Ave Site Improvements Project
Foster City, with our help, acquired grant funds and expended approximately $900,000 to improve the 3rd Avenue kiteboarding site.
Construction was completed in December, 2014, and included the following improvements
- Replacement of carpets in both areas with synthetic turf (along with grating, drainage, and undersurface)
- Two permanent bathrooms with water and sewage
- Two permanent showers with 4 shower heads (2 shoulder level and 2 waist level, each)
- Drinking fountain with dog-watering faucet
- New fencing along the path
- A concrete wall along the driving range side of the parking lot that we can sit on
- A concrete picnic table and grill
- Informative signs
- New parking lot striping
- Dog bag dispensers
- Landscaping between the concrete barrier and the driving range fence
Foster City, with resident and Bay Trail help, performed levy raising to protect from sea-level rise.
Construction was completed in December, 2023, and included the following improvements
- Repaired the sailboarding ramp
- Extended turf at the lower beach
- New path all the way to the San Mateo Bridge
- New 'protected' path all the way to the San Mateo Bridge
- Bicycle pumping and repair stations on the path
