Mount Tamalpais: Pantoll to East Peak
- Length: 7.8mi (out and back)
- Travel time: approximately 44min from Marin City Hub
- Stop served: daily
- Google Maps:
- Park information
- Download GPX file
Pantoll Ranger Station an important node in southern Marin County’s trail network. From here, you can go north along the coastal ridge, south and down into Muir Woods and Stinson Beach, or continue up to the peak of Mount Tamalpais, the tallest mountain in the county.
Mount Tamalpais – Mt Tam between friends – needs no introduction to Bay Area hikers. The views from the top are stunning panoramic views of nearly the entire northern half of the Bay Area. The easiest transit-accessible hike up starts here at Pantoll, where you can immediately get on the Old Stage Road, remnant of the once mighty “Crookedest Railroad in the World”. By virtue of being a grade built for a railroad, it’s an even, steady uphill without much in the way of steep slope. Continuing up past the historic West Point Inn (a great place to stop for a picnic), an old railroad hotel and still an active non-profit inn today, turning up to continue onto the main Old Railroad Grade to the top. The hike starts out in redwood, but quickly ascends above and into shrubby chaparral – bring sunscreen!
At the top, soak in views of San Francisco in the distance, the Bay sprawling out in front of you, and innumerable hills and mountains around the greater Bay Area, including Mount Diablo rising above the hills in the East. There are plenty of water fountains and bathrooms available at the top, and the Gravity Car Barn is open weekends to admire a replica of the types of carriages that used to ply the very grade you hiked in on. Then, turn around and hike down back to Pantoll for your bus back home!