Getting to Marin

There are several hikes in Marin that are easy to get to from San Francisco without making a transfer. Check out Angel Island for world-class views from an island one quick ferry away, or go hiking in the Headlands along the ridge above Sausalito on the SCA Trail!

To get outdoors in Marin, it can feel like you have to become a transit planner. Transit in the Bay Area generally does a very good job at having timetables and real-time data on Google Maps, Apple Maps, and the Transit app, so simply using those apps to determine how to get to a specific trailhead is perfectly doable. However, if you know which buses serve the trailheads you are considering, you can understand how many transfers and how long it might take to get to a given park more easily.

When riding Golden Gate Transit and Marin Transit buses, it’s important to tag on when you board and tag off when you get off. The buses charge distance-based fares, and forgetting to tag off can result in a much higher fare than expected. If you forget to tag off, you can contact Clipper customer sevice for a refund of the excess.

• Getting around Marin
  • Muir Woods Shuttle
  • Marin Transit 61
  • Marin Transit 68
• From San Francisco
  • Muir Woods Shuttle
  • Marin Transit 61
  • Marin Transit 68
• From the East Bay
  • Muir Woods Shuttle
  • Marin Transit 68
  • Marin Transit 61

Getting around Marin

There are parks everywhere in Marin. The most famous, however, are mainly located along the two West Marin Stagecoach routes 61 and 68.

Muir Woods Shuttle

The Shuttle is the easiest and most convenient way to get to world-famous Muir Woods. Operating only during the peak season, around March to October, the shuttle runs from the Larkspur ferry terminal to the central Muir Woods Visitor Center.

Marin Transit 61

Route 61 serves Mount Tamalpais, Muir Woods, and beaches from Stinson Beach up to the Bolinas Lagoon. The major transfer points for Route 61 are the Sausalito Ferry Terminal (GGT 130 and Sausalito Ferry) and the Marin City Hub (GGT 130 & GGT 150).

Marin Transit 68

Route 68 serves Samuel P. Taylor State Park, Tomales Bay State Park, and Point Reyes National Seashore. The major transfer point for Route 68 is San Rafael Transit Center.

From San Francisco

If the ferry schedule lines up with your plans, it is by far the most alluring way to go hiking. For hiking directly off the ferry, Angel Island cannot be bested; Old St. Hilary’s Preserve and the Morning Sun Trailhead in the Headlands are just over a half-hour walk from the Tiburon and Sausalito ferry terminals respectively, but otherwise you will need to transfer to a bus, in which case it’s almost certainly better to take a Golden Gate Transit bus from San Francisco across the Golden Gate Bridge. Golden Gate Transit runs buses half-hourly or better for most most of the day seven days a week, but not all routes serve all transit centers.

Read more about the 101, 130, and 150 buses on Golden Gate Transit’s website »

Muir Woods Shuttle

This section will be updated when the Muir Woods Shuttle schedule for 2025 is released.

Marin Transit 61

Weekday bus transfers at Marin City

*the connection to the 6:35pm bus is from GGT 130. All other weekday connections are from GGT 150.

Weekend bus transfers at Marin City

*the connections to the 8:15am and 3:25pm buses are from GGT 130. All other weekend connections are from GGT 150.

Ferry connections

The 61 is not timed to meet ferries in Sausalito. However, it’s a cute town that over a million people visit every year, so it would be entirely reasonable to take a ferry to Sausalito and wander around until the next departure.

Weekday ferry transfers at Sausalito

Weekend ferry transfers at Sausalito

Marin Transit 68

From San Francisco, the Golden Gate Transit 101 express bus takes around 1 hour from the Salesforce Transit Center in San Francisco to reach San Rafael and is consistently the best option for transfering to the Marin Transit 68.

Weekday transfers at San Rafael

Weekend transfers at San Rafael

From the East Bay

East Bay to Marin transit is possible either via the Golden Gate Transit 580 bus across the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge, or by heading into San Francisco and taking buses from the Salesforce Transit Center. The following charts describe connections from buses heading westbound across the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge.

Read more about the 580 bus on Golden Gate Transit’s website »

Muir Woods Shuttle

This section will be updated when the Muir Woods Shuttle schedule for 2025 is released.

Marin Transit 68

Weekday transfers at San Rafael

Weekend transfers at San Rafael

Marin Transit 61

Transfers to the 61 are complicated, as the GGT 580 and Marin Transit 61 do not directly connect. Depending on the particular departure, there are several options for which bus is best to take to transfer between them; on weekends, there’s generally a decent transfer via the Golden Gate Transit 150 bus at Marin City.

• Golden Gate Transit 150: transfer at Marin City*
• Marin Transit 17: transfer at Almonte Blvd & Rosemont Ave
• Marin Transit 71: transfer at Marin City

Weekday transfers

Weekend transfers

*Due to a short transfer for the 10:00am and 2:00pm Marin Transit 61, transfer at the Manzanita Park and Ride/Shoreline Hwy & Pohono St.