As we mentioned last weekend, this Sunday, June 14th marks the 38th annual Haight Ashbury Street Fair. Below is a non-comprehensive list of Street Fair survival tips we've amassed over the years, along with some service bulletins and transit advisories and a brief guide for those of you making it to the fair for the first time this year.

Pre-Fair Prep and Parking

Go grocery shopping. Don't forget booze, because you won't want to go near Gus's or Liquid Experience before 7pm. We recommend homemade margaritas, weather permitting (and it looks like it will). If you're fully equipped, there will be room to join the impromptu group cookout that transforms the Panhandle every year.

Do you have a car? Then you have two options for parking it. If you live on a street without "No Parking" signs, you'll definitely want to snag a spot on your street ahead of time (like, right now). Then, for the entire Fair, you can sit and watch from your window or stoop (and, in the latter case, chase away anyone who seems like they might urinate on or near it).

The other option, if your street is a "No Parking" zone, is to move your car far, far away, out of danger of break-ins, stray bodily fluids, or drunk people with messages they want to key into your paint. We recommend straying towards Lone Mountain or Fulton Street.

Whatever you do with your car during the fair, we recommend that you don't drive, and once you're parked, don't plan on finding another spot in the area until well after 7pm. Traffic in the neighborhood will not be pretty.

Crowd levels at 11am, AKA the time to get out if you're the getting out sort.

Transit Advisories

The SFMTA has announced planned reroutings and street changes in the area for the day of the fair. The full details are here, but these are the highlights, with the MTA caveat that "the following info is our best at the time of posting. Things can change."

• Haight Street will be closed to traffic from Masonic to Stanyan, 5:30am to 9pm.
• Cross streets (Ashbury, Clayton, Cole, Belvedere, Shrader) will be closed between Page and Waller, 5:30am to 9 pm.
• The 7-Haight/Noriega inbound and outbound will skip stops between Lincoln/3rd Avenue ("which may be missed for safety reasons") and Haight/Masonic. Don't plan to get out anywhere in between.
• The 33-Ashbury will traverse Oak Street towards the Mission and Waller towards the Richmond, skipping Cole, Clayton, and Ashbury/Waller, and making no stops between Frederick/Waller and Stanyan.
• The 43-Masonic will run along Waller towards the Marina and Frederick towards City College, rather than Haight, and will stop at Cole and Haight/Masonic.
• The 37-Corbett, likewise, will stop at Cole only along Frederick and Waller.

Day of the Fair

Get up early. Yes, it's Sunday. But, trust us, leave the house at about 8am, grab a coffee, and casually stroll down the center of Haight Street. It's weirdly surreal and beautiful to see the street in panorama, from the middle, with no cars. Bring your dog—(s)he'll appreciate it, too. 

If you're on your game, you'll even have time for a breakfast out: Magnolia (opens at 10am), Sparrow (opens at 10am), and Parada 22 (opens at 10am) are all good options, although Pork Store (opens at 8am) might be your best bet for an early start.

Watch the tents get set up, and the wares come out. It's the perfect way to experience the fair's (currently) 96 booths without the crush of the crowd.  Usually, even if it's before opening, vendors will take your cash if there's something you want.

During the Fair

Visit the booths set up by local merchants. The Haight Street Market usually has one, and they often have delicious goodies you can't get regularly, and maybe even some you can. Many of the restaurants and coffee shops on the street will be out offering coffees, small bites or beverages, and this year, local non-teriyaki offerings will include provisions from Eatwell Farms Icebox, Sparrow, the Haight Street Market and more.

Check out the DJs that usually set up shop on the roof over Doc Martens, starting mid-day. They're there almost every year, and they're actually pretty good.

Visit a non-commercial tent. There's always at least one nonprofit you haven't heard of, and sometimes there are community-oriented booths, such as the Free Clinic or the Haight Ashbury Food Program.

We at Hoodline do not endorse flashing for prizes.

And don't forget the live music: the fair will be bracketed on Stanyan and Masonic by twin stages for a live music lineup scheduled to play from 11am to 5pm.

There's also the possibility of a Children's Alley with activities for kids; the Children's Alley is a longtime mainstay at the fair, although there are currently no specifics on the Alley's location for 2015.

After the Fair

At 5:30, the cleanup effort is masterful. You can watch as SFPD and Public Works remove scores of booths, about 30,000 people and their accompanying detritus, and clear it all away in about 30 minutes. It's a sight to behold.

At 6pm, walk to your car, if you chose to park it elsewhere. You should be able to find a spot handily during the mass exodus of the crowds, although expect Haight Street itself to remain closed to traffic until as late as 9pm. 

By 6:30, everything is back to business-as-usual. Except the bars, which are, of course, overflowing. Do you have any margarita mix leftover? Good. 

Regular transit patters for Muni are expected to resume late in the afternoon, although an exact time isn't scheduled, so keep your eye out for shifting bus stops some time around 6pm.

How do you plan to participate (or not participate) in the Haight Street Fair this year? Tell us in the comments.