Mount Tamalpais rises 2,571 feet over Marin County, and the state park that covers it draws hikers, cyclists and sightseers year-round. If you're planning a weekday visit, plan for delays. California State Parks says there will be one-way traffic control on Pantoll Road during road work, and construction equipment may be staged at Trojan Point and Rock Spring. Traffic control isn't expected on weekends, but the equipment may still take up parking spaces.

The basics

The park is mostly redwood and oak forest, with grasslands and chaparral higher up. It has about 60 miles of hiking trails that connect to a larger, 200-mile network on neighboring public lands, and it surrounds Muir Woods National Monument. State Parks says views from the upper mountain take in the Farallon Islands 25 miles out to sea, San Francisco, the East Bay and Mount Diablo. On rare days you can see the snow-covered Sierra Nevada, about 150 miles away.

On top

On most weekends, volunteers staff the East Peak Visitor Center, where they share information and sell merchandise and snacks. Nearby, volunteers at the Gravity Car Barn tell the story of the old Mount Tamalpais Scenic Railway. A couple of miles below sits the Mountain Theater, also called the Cushing Memorial Amphitheatre, an open-air stone theater built in the 1930s that seats about 4,000. It hosts the Mountain Play, staged every year since 1913, and astronomy programs.

Rules to know

  • Dogs: allowed only on paved roads, Old Stage Fire Road, the Verna Dunshee Trail, and in developed areas, campgrounds and picnic areas. They must stay on leash. Service animals are the exception.
  • Bikes: allowed only on fire roads and the Coast View Trail.
  • Drones: prohibited by superintendent's order.
  • Mushrooms: collecting isn't allowed. All rocks, plants, wood and animals are protected.
  • Fire and camping: smoking, camping and fires are never allowed on the upper mountain.

State Parks also warns visitors to watch for poison oak, rattlesnakes, mountain lions and ticks.

Camping

Pantoll and Bootjack campgrounds offer first-come, first-served walk-up tent sites, with no RV or camper camping. The Alice Eastwood Group Camp and the Steep Ravine Cabins and Environmental Campground on the coast can be reserved through ReserveCalifornia.

Weather and getting there

State Parks says fall and winter temperatures on the mountain are cool, in the 50s, and fog is common. Arrive early to avoid heavy weekend and holiday traffic, or take the West Marin Stagecoach bus.