SAN FRANCISCO -- Just hours before the Olympic Torch Relay was scheduled to weave its way through San Francisco's waterfront, a group of protesters who staged a dramatic demonstration high above the Golden Gate Bridge were released from jail early Wednesday.

Laurel Sutherlin, 30, of Sausalito; Hannah Strange, 29, of Oakland; Duane Martinez, 27, of Sausalito; Alexandra Taub, 22, of Vancouver; Thomas Parkin, 38, of San Francisco; Tashi Sharzur, 47, of San Mateo; and Leslie Kaup, 31, of St. Paul, Minn., walked out of jail shortly after mdnight as friends, family members and supporters cheered.

All had been booked on suspicion of felony conspiracy and misdemeanor causing a public nuisance and had court dates for later Wednesday.

"It's not very nice," Sutherlin told KTVU of his nearly two days in jail. "It's pretty dehumanizing… It’s the dark side of society…But it's a small price to pay to bring this kind of attention to this issue."

For Martinez it was his second arrest at the protest over China's policies. He was also arrested by Chinese authorities at the protest staged at the Great Wall.

"As far as detention, it's pretty similar as far as being detained in Beijing and here," he said. "We have a court date in the morning and hopefully we can get out as quick as possible to join the protesters in the streets."

Sutherlin, meanwhile, was previously arrested at a protest in Tibet.

"I never feared for my life here," he said. "The experience was much different in Tibet.

Sutherlin told KTVU the protest had been carefully planned and eluded the bridge's security measures.

"We didn't look suspicious at all walking onto the bridge, we had a baby stroller and some other things," he said. "From the moment we reached out our hands toward the cable to moment we were out of reach was 90 seconds…I don't know how they could have stopped us."

On Monday, Sutherlin, Martinez and Strange climbed up the Golden Gate Bridge and tied the Tibetan flag and two banners to its cables. The others acted as support and lookouts on the bridge.

The banners read "One World One Dream. Free Tibet" and "Free Tibet 08."

The protesters wore helmets and harnesses as they made their way up the cables running next to the south tower of the famed span. The climb had the group suspended about 150 feet above traffic.

Sutherlin, Strange and Martinez were also booked on suspicion of misdemeanor trespassing, the CHP said.