San Francisco, California

He was wearing boxing gloves, took a dive one day,
off the Golden Gate Bridge into China Bay.


Timothy Herrick:
(Excuse my ignorance, but where is China Bay? 
I used to think it was shiny bay, but the lyric 
sheet says differently. I am not sure if they 
also call the San Francisco Bay China Bay, 
or it is some place in Vietnam or something)

from  David Gitin:
China Bay is the section between the city and 
South San Francisco by Candlestick Park 
(not far from the airport).

from  Jack Nestor, Dec 2005:
Regarding the "San Francisco" entry in the Dylan
Atlas and the reference to China Bay, there is no
China Bay that I know of in the area.  The area
described in the contribution of David Gitin is
actually on the San Francisco Bay and that would
make China Bay the only bay-within-a-bay I have
ever seen.  China Basin does in fact exist and is
a minor inlet and shipping channel not far at all
from the financial district of San Francisco (to
the south) and was a pretty seedy area until the
current park in which the Giants play their home
games was built on the banks of China Basin.

I worked in the area while I was in college for
the grand-daddy of the bicycle messengers whose
office and dispatch was near there. 

I might suggest a seperate entry in the Atlas for
China Bay.

from Ken Bullock, March 2010:
Just read the entry of my old friend David Gitin & 
the following, more detailed entry, concerning "China Bay" 
as China Basin, the bayshore area south of The Embarcadero 
in San Francisco, stretching down a bit towards Mission 
Rock & the dry docks--& India Basin.

Something else comes to mind, .Dylan crooning about 
taking a dive off the Golden Gate Bridge into China Bay. 
One of the beaches west of the Bridge--& just beyond 
the better-known Baker Beach in the Presidio, 
is China Beach. No Bay that I know of, but the Beach 
at least within sight of the Bridge, if not leap-able.