Muir Woods

About 10 mile north of the Golden Gate Bridge on iconic CA Rt 1 is Muir Woods National Monument. It is a 550 acre preserve of which about 250 acres is a valley with a stand of coastal redwood trees. The track of land was presered by William King (a prominent political figure in the area) and his wife Elizabeth, along with their friends Lovel (a banker) and Laura White, with assistance from President Theodore Roosevelt.

The Kings purchased the red wood grove and surrounding high land in about 1900 to save the area from development. However, in 1907 a private water company proposed to use eminent domain to take control the valley so Redwood Creek, which runs through it, could be dammed to create a reservoir.

The Kings were able to out maneuver the company by donating the entire track to the federal government. In 1908 President Roosevelt established it as a national monument, naming it in honor of John Muir, who was a friend of William King.

Muir Woods is a very peaceful and beautiful place to hike. Sue and I have visited twice - in the early 1990s and in 2017. All of the photos posted there are from 2017. You may recognize some of the scenes in the photos from a recent TV commercial for Prolia.

The next two photos are views from the top the valley. The first looking across the valley to the west and the Pacific Ocean, hidden this day in low lying fog. The second is a look down from that west hilltop onto Muir Beach through the fog (taken with an iPhone 6) The bright area in the middle is waves crashing onto the beach. A small park overlooking the beach still has remnants of gun emplacements from WW II.

As noted in my 8/1/18 post, The area along the Pacific Ocean north of the Golden Gate Bridge is a series of parks and preserves, including the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, Muir Woods National Monument, Samuel P. Taylor State Park, and Reyes Point National Seashore. Historic California Rt 1 runs north-south through the center of the area. The last two photos, taken in the evening, is of a lagoon off Rt 1 near the very popular Stinson Beach. The egret added a nice touch.