Touring the Redwoods in Muir Woods, California

Seeing redwoods in Muir Woods is a popular things to do for visitors in the San Francisco Bay area. Read our tips for touring the Muir Woods.

After living in the Unites States and in San Francisco Bay Area over ten years already, we have visited Muir Woods numerous times. We have been hiking there on our own and we have taken many of our guests there too.

We really love visiting the redwood forests in California and by now, have seen most of them.

Muir Woods National Monument is part of the National Parks system and the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. It is located at Mount Tamalpais, about 12 miles (19 kilometers) north from San Francisco, in Marin County. The closest city to Muir Woods is Mill Valley.

What are Redwoods?

One of the most amazing attractions in California are its redwood forests. There are two types of redwoods in California; Coastal Redwoods (Sequoia sempervirens) and Giant Sequoias (Sequoiadendron giganteum).

Coastal redwoods are endemic to North America, and especially to California and Oregon. There is only a handful of other places in the world where you can see them, like in Australia. But the trees were intensionally planted there. China does have their own species of redwoods but they are shorter than Coastal Redwoods.

Coastal Redwoods live close to the coastline enjoying the moisture that the ocean fog brings over, while the Giant Sequoias live inland in California’s Sierra mountain range.

Other notable redwood forests with coastal redwoods are Big Basin Redwoods State Park, Redwood National and State Parks and Avenue of the Giants.

The biggest difference between the Coastal Redwoods and Giant Sequoias is their size. While the Giant Sequoia is noted as the biggest trees in the world, the Coastal Redwoods are often taller, while Sequoia tree trunks tend to be wider than Coastal Redwoods.

You might have seen some pictures of drive-thru trees with a car size tunnel in them? Most of those have been Sequoias although the one in Leggett, California is a Coastal Redwood.

Muir Woods National Monument

Redwoods in Muir Woods are approximately 600 to 800 years old. The oldest one of them is thought to be about 1200 years old. The original forest was actually much bigger but by the 1900s most of the redwoods in California had been cut down. Redwood is a popular building material since it doesn’t burn easily.

In the beginning of the 20th century the politician William Kent got worried about the dwindling amount of redwoods and purchased Muir Woods himself. He fought in court to protect the area from local lumber companies. Finally, in 1908 President Roosevelt signed a law to make Muir Woods a national monument.

Kent bacame friends with John Muir who is the most widely known naturalist in U.S. history. He was also an author and an environmental philosopher, and he is widely considered to be the “father of the national parks”. In honor of John Muir, Kent named the forest Muir Woods. Before that it was called Redwood Canyon.

When the Golden Gate Bridge was built in 1937 the visitors to Muir Woods tripled. In the busiest year they have had over 1.5 million visitors. Since it has gotten so popular and busy the national park system has now restricted the amount of visitors with reservations.

visiting Muir Woods

It is best to start your visit to Muir Woods from the visitor center which is right at the gate. From there you will get a trail map and you can talk to a ranger if you have any questions.

They also have a fun Junior Ranger activity book which our kids loved. By filling it out and showing it to a park ranger when leaving, the kids will get a junior ranger pin.

The main trail at Muir Woods is a loop of 2-miles in total. If you want to make it shorter, you can choose to circle back from any of the bridges along the way. The trail follows Redwood Creek and has all the most notable trees, and of course also the most people. Redwood Creek is actually quite pretty and has salmon as well.

The trail is paved and suitable for strollers and wheelchairs.

There are also some more challenging trails at Muir Woods. When we were there, the rain damage had closed some of them so we decided to hike to Camp Alice Eastwood‘s picnic area to eat lunch. It was a nice trail with the bigger kids and didn’t take all day.

If you have reserved more time on your visit, I highly recommend going further into the forest from the main trail. Then you will find some peace and quiet and can hear the actual noises of the forest. Walking in the middle of these majestic trees is truly amazing. It’s like a totally different world.

Here are our tips for hiking with kids.

If you have not brought your own picnic, you can get a light lunch, snacks and refreshments at the cafeteria next to the visitor center.

Is Muir woods worth visiting?

Many people wonder if Muir Woods is worth visiting. I would say, it depends. Seeing the California redwoods is definitely something you should do, but there are many other parks too that are equally good if not better than Muir Woods.

If you are visiting San Francisco, then Muir Woods is definitely the closest to you. However, you can find some less crowded parks elsewhere in the Bay Area. If you have a car consider driving over to Big Basin Redwoods State Park, Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park or Reinhardt Redwood Regional Park.

However, if you are exploring California further afield, I would recommend that you go see the Giant Sequoias. The most popular places to see them are the Mariposa Grove in Yosemite and Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks. Calaveras Big Trees State Park is also one of our favourites.

If you are heading north from San Francisco, make sure to stop at the Avenue of the Giants or the Redwoods National and State Parks. These trees are all coastal redwoods, but Avenue of the Giants has a drive-thru tree and Chimney Tree which are both fun to visit.

Best Time to Visit Muir Woods

Muir Woods is very nice at any time of the year. The best months in my opinion-weather wise-are late spring and fall. Winter months can sometimes be pretty rainy and summer months are quite hot. Although, the redwood forest is a great place to go to cool down on a hot day.

We prefer to go to any of the nature parks as early as possible. That way we can beat the worst crowds and the heat on a hot day. That also leaves us more time to explore and choose when we are ready to leave. I hate to feel rushed in case the park closes or to be in the forest while it gets dark.

How to dress for Muir Woods

Whenever we take our guest to redwood forests, I always advise them to wear layers. Because the trees in redwood forests are so tall, they block almost all of the sun and it will for sure be colder than the surrounding areas. Morning can also get quite crisp.

I have been in Muir Woods during a heat wave and we were able to wear t-shirts and shorts. But on most of our visits, we needed either a sweater or a light jacket.

During the winter months it is always wise to carry an umbrella because the weather can be unpredictable. In the morning hours you can expect some fog carried there by ocean winds.

Good walking shoes or hiking boots will be the best for forest trails.

Getting a reservation and how to get to muir woods

When I went to Muirs Woods for the first time about 25 years ago, it was very easy. We just drowe down the twisty road to the parking lot, parked our car and walked in. There was a couple other cars beside us and we hardly saw anyone in the forest.

Times have truly changed. The last several years, it has been nearly impossible to find parking at Muir Woods and the trails are very crowded. So much so, that we have driven over just to turn back because the parking lot was full.

Finally, a few years ago the national park service decided to open up a reservation system in order to limit over crowding. Now you will need either a reservation for a parking spot or a shuttle, or you will have to come with some other transportation.

Just don’t forget that ordering an uber or taxi to Muir Woods can be challenging due to the poor cell phone service down in the valley.

The road leading to Muir Woods is small and twisty, and driving on it is quite slow. Make sure to leave early enough to make your reserved time.

There are also a handful of arranged day excursions that you can choose from, if you don’t want to deal with the driving, shuttles or parking reservations:

Where should you stay the night?

Muir Woods doesn’t have any camping or lodging.

Most people visiting Muir Woods are staying in San Francisco. Over there Marriott Marquis is our favourite and it is located right by the Union Square. We have also stayed in Grand Hyatt which is right next door but was a little bit cheaper. Also Argonaut Hotel is popular.

If you are looking for a place to stay closer to Muir Woods, the closest ones are in Mill Valley or Muir Beach. I would also recommend Sausalito; Mountain Home Inn or Casa Madrona Hotel & Spa.

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The redwood forests should definitely be on everyone’s list when visiting California. They are so unique and part of California’s history.

For us these forests are a place to recharge and relax. Especially after a hectic week there is nothing better than getting deep into the nature and breathing the fresh forest air.

What are the biggest trees you have seen? Have you seen redwoods somewhere?