Samuel P. Taylor State Park covers 2,882 acres in west Marin, from shady redwood canyons to the grassy top of Barnabe Peak. California State Parks says the peak offers one of the best views in Marin County. The park is about 15 miles, or 30 minutes, west of San Rafael on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard.
Why go now
Late fall and winter are spawning season on Lagunitas Creek. State Parks lists watching salmon spawn among the park's activities. Fishing is not allowed in the creek because it holds threatened coho salmon and steelhead trout. All creek access closes from Dec. 1 through June 15 each year to protect the fish and their young.
Trails and camping
Wikipedia says the park has about 600 acres of old-growth forest, some of it visible on the Pioneer Tree Trail. The flat Cross Marin Trail follows the creek and is open to bikes, which are also allowed on fire roads and the seasonal Bill's Trail but not on single-track paths. State Parks says to use the Camp Taylor entrance for camping and picnicking. Hikers headed to Devil's Gulch should continue a mile west and park in the large pullout. Campsites are reserved through ReserveCalifornia.
Dogs and rules
Dogs must be leashed. They are allowed only in picnic areas, the campground and on the Cross Marin Trail, not on other trails, in the creek or at the cabins. Mushroom collecting is prohibited, and the speed limit is 15 mph for cars and bikes.
The history
The park is named for Samuel Penfield Taylor, a Gold Rush miner who built the Pioneer Paper Mill on the creek in 1856. Wikipedia describes it as the first paper mill on the Pacific Coast. He later ran the Camp Taylor resort beside the North Pacific Coast Railroad. The mill burned in 1916, and the state took the land in 1945 for unpaid taxes.