About a month ago I mentioned to my husband in passing that I’d never been to Muir Woods. His response? “And you call yourself a Californian.” I was born in Cali, I’ve lived in or near to San Francisco my whole life, and yet, I have failed to visit one of the most historic and beautiful monuments that’s practically in my backyard. Though it was a chilly day here in San Francisco last weekend, we headed over the Golden Gate Bridge and spent part of the day at Muir Woods.

For those not familiar, here’s a little background on Muir Woods. Muir Woods National Monument was dedicated by Teddy Roosevelt in 1908. William Kent, a wealthy businessman and friend of the naturalist and conservationist John Muir, bought the land to protect the rare and beautiful redwood forest from development. When the land was dedicated, Roosevelt was going to name it after Kent, but Kent insisted it be named for his inspiration, John Muir. I like this story because it shows how one or two people can make a difference in preserving our environment. Muir inspired Kent, and today we have a lovely forest for it.

I digress, back to last weekend. Despite the cold weather, the forest was gorgeous, maybe more so since the usual crowds converging on Muir Woods were minimal. We stood in awe of towering huge redwoods that nearly block out all the sun. Also, redwood forests smell really nice, like a mossy-peaty-ferny kind of smell. Its hard to find words to describe how awesome it is, so let’s just say, its awesome.

We stuck on the main path, which is a low impact nature walk, but you can branch off to more challenging hikes through the forest. If you’re visiting San Francisco, I’d recommend coupling Muir Woods with a tour to wine country or Sausalito, Muir Woods won’t really take up a whole day and you’re already headed in that direction. Sausalito is basically next door, I recommend lunch or a beer on the waterfront. If its a warmer time of year, coupling a visit to Muir Woods with a bay cruise can’t be beat. You can drive up yourself to Muir Woods, like I did, but if you’re not driving you get to enjoy the Golden Gate Bridge and scenery a whole lot more (its often a traffic riddled drive, and your eyes will be on the road and directions and not the view, trust me). Also, John Muir would be proud you carpooled.

So now I am truly a Californian, and I left Muir Woods with a greater appreciation for natural beauty. Like Muir inspired Kent, I hope you’re a little more inspired to visit.

–Kelly G

Find all Viator tours that visit Muir Woods.

Find all Viator blog posts about San Francisco.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 16th, 2007 at 10:43 am and is filed under Destinations, Travel Inspiration, USA, Canada, Mexico. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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