This is not to be confused with the giant sequoia, the Sequoiadendron giganteum. If you are traveling with an oversize vehicle like a campervan or RV, there are limited spots available for these types of cars. There are medium spots for cars feet and large spots feet. Cars longer than 35 feet are not able to park here. A quick note about parking: your Muir Woods parking reservation does not actually mean that you have a dedicated spot waiting for you at your specific time.
It means that if there is a spot open, you can park there with a reservation. So you may still have to wait for a spot to open up! The good thing about going by car is that it allows exploration of the greater Mill Valley area. This is the most common way for tourists to visit Muir Woods National Monument, because most visitors to San Francisco rightly!
There are a number of tour companies offering all sorts of combo tours of Muir Woods and other must-see sightseeing locations around the Bay Area. It allows for an hour of hiking and exploring in Muir Woods before your next destination! Both Napa and Sonoma offer incredible wines, and the crazy thing about it is how different the wines are in both regions, despite being so close.
Napa is hotter and drier than Sonoma, so bold, fruity wines do really well here. Meanwhile, Sonoma is more coastal, with more fog and cooler overall temperatures. Light, acidic, and structured wines excel here, like Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc. This tour includes stops at three wineries tasting fees included — not all tours do this, and the fees add up , transit between all destinations, and hotel pick-up and drop-off. The tour allows for 1.
Afterwards, you have the option to get off the bus in Sausalito to explore the town at your own pace, before taking the ferry back from Sausalito to San Francisco ferry ticket not included.
Note: Transportation, tolls, and entry to Muir Woods are all included on the tour; food and a return ferry ticket from Sausalito are not included. Book this Sausalito and Muir Woods tour online here! If you want to see Alcatraz Island AND Muir Woods, but you waited a little too long for each, this is a great tour for you… this is one rare instance in which two wrongs does make a right! The reason for this is that Alcatraz does allow tickets to be sold by authorized resellers, but only when packaged with another activity….
This tour includes a hotel pick up and drop-off, as well as roundtrip transportation to Alcatraz Island with an excellent audioguide!
However, be sure to be there early so that you can board your exact shuttle. Some of the redwoods are nearly 1, years old and reach heights of more than feet. Named for conservationist John Muir, it was the 10th national monument to be designated under the Antiquities Act of , the first to be in proximity to a major city, and the first to consist of formerly privately-owned lands.
Today, Muir Woods National Monument is home to more than different plants and animals, including 27 species of mammals, 50 species of birds, 12 species of reptiles, and 5 species of amphibians.
Redwood Creek, the principal stream in the monument, runs clean and clear beneath the towering trees. Its waters are home to Coho salmon and steelhead trout—keystone species in many Pacific ecosystems.
At maturity, the Sequoia Sempervirens can reach a height of feet meters. Not all California redwoods are created equal. In scientific speak, the redwood trees in Muir Woods are members of the Sequoioideae family that includes coastal redwood trees and their cousins, the Giant Sequoias. While the anatomy of these two redwoods have a lot in common, like cinnamon-red bark, they are actually different species.
Giant redwood forests are picky about where they live and can only be thrive in a narrow slice of geography along the coasts of California, Oregon and Washington.
With Muir Woods national park so near to San Francisco, it is one of the best places to visit old-growth California coastal redwoods. Over eons, California redwoods have acquired superpowers enabling them to live long lives in places like Muir Woods. For example, their bark—up to 12 inches 30 centimeters thick and full of rusty-red tannic acid—protects them from destructive insects, fungus and most forest fires.
Also, growing taller than other trees allows these California redwoods to monopolize the sunlight. Another special ability of coast redwood trees is using their massive green branches to suck water, up to gallons a day, from coastal fog.
When coming across a downed redwood, most people are shocked to see that the roots of giant redwoods go just 6 feet 2 meters deep. Redwood trees have evolved to withstand the violent storms from Pacific Ocean by gathering in groups with their roots intertwined. Bohemian Grove has some of the tallest trees in the park, including a foot monster coast sequoia.
The grove was the original meeting place of the Bohemian Club , an organization of wealthy and powerful Americans. This area can be crowded so try to arrive early. Cathedral Grove is one of the most enchanting places in the park. The tall and straight redwoods give the place a church-like vibe. Kent Memorial is located in the middle of a stand of very tall trees between Bridge 3 and 4. The memorial to benefactor William Kent is next to a huge fallen tree. Look for this peaceful place just feet off the main trail, right where the Fern Trail starts.
While the giant redwoods are the star of the show in Muir Woods National Monument, the park is home to more than different plant and animal species. Redwood Creek, which runs through the middle of Muir Woods is an important spawning habitat for coho salmon and steelhead trout.
The annual migration begins when winter rains breach the Muir Beach sandbar. If you have timed your Muir Woods hike right, you can watch the spawning from any of the four footbridges that cross the creek. Muir Woods has relatively few bird species since the tannin in the trees repels insects and the canopy of shade limits the volume of flowers and fruits available to birds.
The park, however, is home to the endangered Northern Spotted Owl. Where light does penetrate beneath the redwood trees you can find other plants like red alders, Douglas fir, California maples, redwood sorrel, and a variety of ferns.
Within the boundaries of Muir Woods National Monument there are six miles of hiking trails, unlike any others in the world. If you are up for a more aggressive hike, there are also longer trails that cross the parks in route to Mt.
Tamalpais or Stinson Beach. The Muir Woods hiking options in the park under the old-growth redwood forest are pretty simple to follow and contained in a loop with several Redwood Creek crossovers and trail spurs into the less-traveled hillside areas.
Maps are also available at the entry gate to the park. The main Muir Woods trails are flat and easy walking. From the visitor center, walk north on the Redwood Creek Trail up the east side of the creek.
After Founders Grove, look for Bridge 2. Cross over and return to the start on the Bohemian Grove Trail on the west side of the creek. Enjoy views of old growth redwood forest. Stroller and wheelchair accessible. Begin the hike at the Visitor Center. When reaching Bridge 3, cross over the creek and reverse your direction on the Bohemian Grove trail.
On your way back, enjoy some of the tallest trees in the park including a foot tall Coast Redwood in the Bohemian Grove interspersed with younger redwoods. On your way, you will pass the trailhead for the Fern Creek Trail.
There are some large trees here and it is a short stroll to the Kent Memorial. The return section of the Muir Woods hike is on Hillside Trail, which passes through an upland environment and eventually returns you to the Bohemian Grove trail.
Thousands of years ago, giant redwoods covered much of Northern California. They have stood up to and endured hundreds if not thousands of storms, droughts, winters, and fires. Some of the redwood trees living today were around before the European settlers arrived on the eastern shores of America. How was Muir Woods spared the ax? In the aftermath of the earthquake and fire, San Francisco desperately needed building material and the land where Muir Woods stands today was near to be condemned for logging.
Kent wanted to save the last remaining old growth redwood forest in the area, so he donated it to the Federal government so that it would be protected under the Antiquities Act.
President Franklin D.
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