Muir Woods - very, very big trees

In the shadow of Redwoods.

Here I was born, and there I died. It was only a moment to you. You took no notice." - Alfred Hitchcock's Vertigo, 1958.

There is a lot of forest in Finland. Consequently, it may seem surprising that Finnish tourists travel all the way to California and go to see some trees. However, everything is bigger in America, including trees. The highest tree species of the world, California Redwood, and the biggest by volume, Giant Sequoia, grow in California. These are the biggest living creatures of the world, and among the oldest. Oldest living Giant Sequoia is about 3200 years old.

The very tallest trees are elsewhere, but you can see some really big ones in Muir Woods, too.

Yeah, they're tall.

The closest place to San Francisco to see these giant trees is Muir Woods National monument, one of the sites ran by the excellent National Park Service. Even for people who enjoy other things more than the Great Outdoors, Muir Woods is easily accessible: there are good signposted walk routes and information boards.

"When I grow up, I'll become a 100-meter Giant Sequoia".

The only drawback is common to many other U.S. National Parks: the place is a bit too popular. The footpaths get crowded, and the tourist hordes are sometimes unnecessarily loud. In Muir woods there were even signposts asking the visitors to be quiet in order not to disturb wildlife, but unfortunately many - I would say most - visitors ignored them. We visited on a Monday, but the site was very crowded, parking lots full and a lot of cars were parked dangerously by the narrow mountain road. We would advise against visiting on a weekend, if at all practical. Muir Woods is not the only place to see giant trees in California and the U.S. West Coast. Another popular spot is Wavona in Yosemite National Park. Muir woods is, however, one of the few Redwood and Sequoia forests practically accessible by public transport.

The overall ambience in the forest is tranquil, in spite of all the visitors.

Getting to places on public transport is sometimes laborious in the USA. Trip from San Francisco to Muir Woods is not particularly difficult, but it is slow, it may take more than two hours from city center and one should be prepared to wait when changing buses. From central San Francisco, first take a bus over Golden Gate Bridge to Sausalito or Marin City (for example bus number 70), or a ferry to Sausalito. Then take minubus 66 or 66F (only from April to October, timetables here) to Muir Woods. At least one can pay by Clipper Card in all buses and ferries.

If you're lucky you may see a traditional hippie VW bus when waiting for the bus.

Sausalito is a nice place to stop for a meal or ice-cream, there are a lot of options. Prices are on the expensive side but small town ambience is peaceful and relaxed. The sporty ones - not us! - may want to rent a bicycle from San Francisco: the ride to Muir Woods is demanding, long and hilly, but the views are great.

We visited big trees on June 30th 2015