Marin Headlands: Ridge to Marin City

This hike has been rated easy.

• Length: 3.3mi / 5.7mi
• Travel time: approximately 41min from Salesforce Transit Center
• Stop served: daily
• Google Maps:
  • Transit stop
  • Trailhead
• Park information
• Download GPX file

Golden Gate Transit runs hourly service seven days a week northbound from San Francisco to the Golden Gate Bridge bus stop on Route 130. To get back, catch the hourly Route 150 at the Spencer Ave bus pad (3.3mi hike) or either of the half-hourly 130/150 buses at Marin City (5.7mi hike).

Golden Gate Transit’s buses (route 130) heading across the Golden Gate Bridge stop just past the Vista Point. After taking in the views of the bridge from up close at the Vista Point, head underneath the bridge and up onto the SCA Trail. Most visitors to the headlands will be heading up the road towards Hawk Hill, so the trails will get significantly less busy as you climb up the ridge under Slacker Hill. Eventually, you’ll pass across a saddle and make your way to the western side of the ridge, where the ambiance will immediately change from the din of a busy highway above small-town Sausalito to the peaceful backcountry wilderness of the inner headlands, at which point you’ve hiked nearly all of the uphill for the day.

For a short hike, continue past Wolfback Ridge Road onto the Alta Trail and take an immediate right onto the Morning Sun Trail. This takes you right to the Spencer Ave bus pad where Golden Gate Transit 150 buses will whisk you right back to San Francisco. For a longer hike, continue past the Morning Sun turnoff on Alta Trail, following Alta Trail as the suburbs reemerge to your right, eventually making your way back down to Marin City, where a strip mall awaits for snacks, and Golden Gate Transit 130/150 buses will pick you up for a trip back to San Francisco.