Muir Woods

Welcome to one of the last old-growth coast redwood forests in the San Francisco Bay Area. Most of the trees around you are 500 to 800 years old, and the oldest have stood for at least 1,200 years. This canyon was part of the homeland of the Huimen, a Coast Miwok people, long before William and Elizabeth Kent bought it to save it from the saw.

This tour is a loop of about two miles that takes around 90 minutes. It starts at the visitor center, follows the Main Trail up Redwood Creek past Founders Grove and Cathedral Grove to Fern Creek, then returns on the Hillside Trail and the Bohemian Grove side of the creek. Most of it is flat boardwalk; the Hillside Trail is a narrow dirt path with a drop-off, so skip it with strollers or wheelchairs.

Parking and shuttle reservations are required, and rules and schedules change, so check nps.gov before you go. Stay on the trails, give wildlife space, and bring a warm layer: it's cool and shady down here.

8 stops on this tour:

Muir Woods Entrance - A Forest Saved by a Gift

Founders Grove - How a Redwood Lives

Pinchot Tree - A Friendship Tested

Cathedral Grove - Silence for a President

Fern Creek - Where Two Streams Meet

Hillside Trail - Looking Into the Canopy

Bohemian Grove - Where a Club Once Camped

Redwood Creek - Home Stream of the Salmon

Plan your visit

Route: 8 stops · about 1.6 miles · walking loop
Time: about 1.5 hours at an easy pace, with stops
Start: Muir Woods Entrance (directions)
Cost: free tour; the site itself charges an entrance fee

Stops on this tour

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