Hello Fitfam,

Welcome to the San Francisco Series!

In this series, I cover ‘Things To See and Do’ in San Francisco for the healthy, active tourist.

There are so many iconic places to visit while you’re in San Francisco, my blog aims to give you some extra ideas for those of us that love being outdoors, living an active lifestyle, staying fit or just have a love for all things healthy.

‘Frisco’, ‘The Bay’, ‘San Fran’ or ‘SF’, are just a few names you may hear this beautiful, eclectic, hilly and unique city in Northern California, being called. With so much to do here, you can be excused for visiting time and time again!

The first blog in the series is…

Hiking the trails of Muir Woods National Monument.

Muir Woods is the famous home of some of the last remaining ancient redwood forests and can be found in Marin County, California, a few miles north of San Francisco.

The main hike promoted at the National Monument is a 2 mile paved loop around the park, although you can lengthen the hike by taking your own little detour (probably not recommended for the novice). There are also hiking tours and talks available led by the park rangers at different times throughout the day.

Muir Woods is extremely beautiful and picturesque. There is nothing more insta worthy than a photo of the sun beaming through the 1000 year old Redwoods but to get those kind of photo’s, I highly recommend visiting Muir Woods when the park is less busy. Quieter times are, like most things, the colder months of the year and early mornings.

It can be particularly chilly in Muir Woods and it can be known for its dense fog passing through the trees – so I would definitely take a jacket all year round *uses mum voice*.

Entrance to the park costs $10 per person and is open from 8am till sunset.They have toilets, a small shop and cafe at the entrance so, if your anything like me, you can finish off your hike with a nice warming cup of tea!

No bikes are allowed in the park and the parks website itself doesn’t recommend you ride there as it is surrounded by very steep hills that often have no hard shoulder for you to ride in. Its probably the only time I’d say leave the bike at home when it comes to visiting San Francisco!

How to get there…

I suggest the best way to get to Muir Woods is by driving or taking the park’s shuttle buses. The shuttle buses are available only on weekends and holidays and then daily during the peak/summer season (june-august) for a fee of $3 per person. Some shuttle bus locations have free parking available and most locations can be reached through public transport but ALL shuttles need to be booked ahead of time.

If you are driving to the park itself you will need to book a reservation to park which costs a fee of $8 per car. This is a new process that began in January 2018 due to the car parks getting extremely busy and people resorting to illegal and dangerous parking.

Book your car park or shuttle bus reservations here… Muir Woods

I don’t recommend using a taxi/uber to get to the park as down in Muir Woods you will find no wifi or phone signal to organise a pick up home!

However you decide to get there, enjoy the great outdoors, crisp, fresh air and the stunning flora and fauna that Muir Woods National Monument has to offer.

I hope you enjoy the series and I’d love to hear from you with any feedback or questions, and if there is anything you’d like to see in future blogs, the San Francisco Series or others, just get in touch through my socials (links below.)

Lilfitmiss 💋💋

Other posts in this series

Twin Peaks – San Francisco Series

Golden Gate Park