Climb Every Panoramic Peak

For more than a century, Bay Area walkers and visitors from around the world have enjoyed rambling over the slopes of Mt. Tamalpais. Glorious panoramas of the Pacific coastline and San Francisco Bay were attracting walkers to the mountaintop well before Mt. Tam was preserved as a state park in 1928.

If you’re lucky, perhaps you’ll experience what some Bay Area walkers call “a Farallons day”--one of those clear days when visibility is greater than 25 miles, thus allowing a glimpse of the sharp peaks of the Farallon Islands.

The Mt. Tamalpais and Muir Woods Railroad, known as “the crookedest railroad in the world,” was constructed in 1896; it brought passengers from Mill Valley to the summit via 281 curves. Atop Mt. Tam, a restaurant called Tavern of Tamalpais welcomed diners and dancers.

Redwood-lined creeks, Douglas fir and oak cover the mountain. Thanks to the early trail-building efforts of the Tamalpais Conservation Club, as well as later efforts by the Civilian Conservation Corps during the 1930s, more than 50 miles of trails explore the state park. These trails connect to 200 more miles of trails that lead through the wooded watershed of the Marin Municipal Water District and over to Muir Woods National Monument and Golden Gate National Recreation Area.

The top of Mt. Tam, with its fire lookout tower ringed with barbed wire, isn’t quite as nice as the top-of-the-world views it offers. Motorists can drive to within three-tenths of a mile to the top, which often means a crowd at the summit.

But getting there is more than half the fun, particularly on trails such as Railroad Grade and Fern Creek, which offer a little bit of everything: dense stands of laurel, open grassland, oak-dotted knolls, a canyon full of redwoods and ferns.

If you want to stay on the Railroad Grade all the way to the top of Mt. Tam, add 2 1/2 miles to the ascent.

Some other state park hiking suggestions: The whole Railroad Grade Trail (8 1/4 miles one way) from Corte Madera to the summit makes an interesting, if long, day trip that appeals particularly to train buffs. Steep Ravine Trail (three miles one way) from Pantoll to Stinson Beach is a favorite mountain path. If you use the bus stops in and around the state park, you can design some terrific one-way hikes up and down Mt. Tam.

Directions to trail head: From Highway 1 in Mill Valley, veer right on Panoramic Highway, ascending a few miles to the Mountain Home Inn and a parking area. The trail begins across Panoramic Highway. A bus stops at the Mountain Home Inn, so consider the bus a way to the trail head.

The hike: Begin your steady ascent (7% grade all the way) on the Old Railroad Grade. An occasional view opens up among the brush. Almost two miles out, you’ll reach a junction with the east fork of Fern Canyon. Take this very steep shortcut a long half-mile to Ridgecrest Boulevard just below the East Peak parking lot.

Dogged railroad buffs will ignore such shortcuts and stay on the Railroad Grade that visits the West Point Inn, originally built by the railroad and now owned by the Marin Water District and run by the West Point Inn Assn. Hikers may pause on the veranda and buy some liquid refreshment. You’ll circle clockwise around West Point, heading north another two miles up the railroad grade.

Once you reach the summit parking lot and picnic area, catch your breath and join the three-tenths-mile summit trail to the top of Mt. Tam.

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Railroad Grade, Fern Creek Trails Where: Mt. Tamaipais State Park. Distance: Mountain Home Inn to East Peak summit is six miles round trip with 1,300- foot elevation gain. Terrain: Deep canyons, steep slopes. Highlights: Fantastic urban and natural panoramas. Degree of Difficulty: Moderate. For More Information: Mt. Tamalpais State Park, 801 Panoramic Highway, Mill Valley, Calif. 94941; tel. (415) 388-2070.