Samuel P. Taylor State Park

California > San Francisco Bay Area

The Barnabe Mountain Trail

Occupying a dense band of mostly second-growth redwoods a short drive west of Marin County's suburbs, Samuel P. Taylor State Park is a popular recreation area for local residents. The park offers a day use (picnic) area and camping, plus the wide and level Cross Marin Trail, which makes for easy cycling under the redwoods. More challenging trails lead up to the grassy hilltops around the valley and offer nice views of the Marin countryside.

Busy Sir Francis Drake Boulevard passes through the park, and the campsites, picnic areas, and the Cross-Marin Trail all get nearly constant noise from cars roaring by on their way to Point Reyes and the West Marin towns.

Old-growth redwood hikes

* Pioneer Tree Trail (2.7 miles)
The actual Pioneer Tree is a little underwhelming, but this trail also passes through an attractive patch of old-growth redwoods located just outside the day use and camping areas.

Other hikes

** Bolinas Ridge Trail (10 miles)
On this amazingly scenic loop you'll the state park and amble through hilltop cow pastures with sweeping views over the rolling grasslands of the Olema Valley.

Getting to Samuel P. Taylor State Park

If you're driving north on Highway 101, take the San Anselmo exit and drive west on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard through San Anselmo and Fairfax. The road passes through the San Geronimo Valley and, just past the tiny town of Lagunitas, enters the redwoods. A wooden sign on your left that says "Camp Taylor" marks the park entrance. There's a $6 fee to park here. If you continue down the road another mile, you'll find a pullout on the left side of the road (opposite the Devil's Gulch trailhead) where you can park for free.

Food

One of the best things about Samuel P. Taylor State Park is the wealth of food choices available on the way to and from the park, especially along Sir Francis Drake Boulevard.

No redwood hike can properly begin without a visit to a hippie grocery store, and Fairfax's Good Earth Natural Foods nicely satisfies that requirement, complete with actual hippies. There's a nice selection of prepared foods like hot burritos, apple fritters, and wraps.
Just across the street, the Fat Angel Bakery has savory turnovers like ham and fontina, or maybe turkey and swiss, that make great trail lunches. There's a nice assortment of sweet baked goods as well. The pear and blue cheese scones are surprisingly delicious.
Much closer to the park, in the little town of Lagunitas, is Lagunitas Grocery, a small stare that makes good sandwiches. My favorite choices are sausage or meatloaf. The store is hard to miss since it sits right on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard.
After the hike, try the Iron Springs Pub and Brewery, a very enjoyable and wildly popular suburban pub. The location in a strip mall isn't the most attractive, but the pub is bright and modern, the food and beer are great, and prices are reasonable. The pub has a boistrous atmosphere and many people bring their kids. They have the only restroom I've seen where most of the graffiti is devoted to praising the pub.
Vladimir's Czechoslovakian Restaurant, in the remote Point Reyes town of Inverness, serves satisfying if somewhat pricey meals. Vladimir himself still presides over the restaurant as he has since 1960, and depending on your point of view he's either a colorful character or annoying and rude.