Rainbow Tunnel for kids
The Rainbow Tunnel. The true story of the Rainbow Tunnel, near Sausalito, CA, told for kids.
Read along
Look! Look up ahead! Do you see the giant rainbow painted around the tunnel? This is the Rainbow Tunnel! People painted that rainbow way back in 1970, and ever since, it has said welcome home to everyone driving back into Marin.
Now the tunnel has a new name too. It's called the Robin Williams Tunnel. Robin Williams was a super funny actor who lived here in Marin. Do you know the big blue Genie in Aladdin, who grants three wishes? That was his voice!
So here's a tunnel game. When we're inside, everybody make a secret wish, just like Aladdin. Don't say it out loud, or it might not come true!
3 fun facts
- Officially the Waldo Tunnel, opened in 1937.
- Renamed the Robin Williams Tunnel in 2016.
- The rainbow (painted 1970) faces drivers heading north, home to Marin.
For grown-ups
Every Tumbly story is checked claim by claim against the sources below before it's published; stories that don't pass stay off the app and this site. Narration is pre-recorded, and nothing you do on this page is tied to your kids.
Sources
- kqed.org/news/11629112/why-are-there-rainbows-on-the-tunnel-between-s-f-and-marin-plus-bonus-anniversary-questions
- underscoresf.com/on-driving-through-the-robin-williams-tunnel
- oursausalito.com/golden-gate-bridge/robin-williams-rainbow-tunnel-waldo-tunnel.html
- abc7news.com/post/comedian-robin-williams-dead-at-age-63/253217
- kcra.com/article/robin-williams-remembered-by-locals-in-marin-county/6416002
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genie_(Disney)
- blog.bayareametro.gov/posts/throwback-thursday-robin-williams-tunnels-long-history
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waldo_Grade
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Town and county names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0).