Muir Woods in Summer

Summer is Muir Woods’ busiest season and, counterintuitively, one of its cooler ones. Understanding the fog, the crowds, and the shuttle schedule separates a great visit from a frustrating one.

Weather

Muir Woods sits in a coastal fog belt. In summer, the marine layer typically moves in during the late afternoon and stays through the next morning, burning off between 11 AM and 1 PM. Under the redwood canopy, temperatures stay in the 55 to 68°F range even when San Francisco is hitting 75 and the inland valleys are at 95.

Visitors often arrive dressed for summer and regret it. Bring a fleece or light jacket even in July. The forest floor is damp, cool, and shaded.

Fog pattern by month

• June — heaviest fog of the year (“June gloom”). Marine layer often sits all day.
• July — similar fog but more afternoon clearing. Still cool.
• August — the warmest month; fog still present but lifts more reliably.

Crowds

Summer is the peak season. Parking reservations sell out several days ahead on weekends and 1 to 3 days ahead on weekdays. The main trail, especially between Bridge 2 and Cathedral Grove, feels crowded from about 10 AM to 3 PM every day in July and August.

Peak days: July 4th weekend, the full week before Labor Day, any summer Saturday or Sunday. Quietest summer day: any Tuesday or Wednesday in early June.

The Summer Shuttle

Marin Transit Route 66F, the free Muir Woods Shuttle, runs daily in summer (mid-May through late October) from Pohono Park & Ride and the Sausalito ferry terminal. Cost: $3.50 round trip. Stops directly inside the monument. The shuttle includes a reserved parking spot for your shuttle ticket holder — you do not need a separate parking reservation.

For most summer visitors who do not absolutely need their car in the park, the shuttle is the best option. It solves the parking problem, the traffic problem, and the return-trip problem in one go.

What’s Blooming

The redwood understory is quiet in summer — most wildflowers have already bloomed and gone. But a few things are worth looking for:

• California hedgenettle — low purple-pink flowers along trail edges in June
• Western sword fern — mature fronds, deepest green of the year
• Redwood sorrel — the three-leafed ground cover under big trees, occasional white blooms
• Coast redwood cones — developing on the branches of female trees

Animal sightings peak in summer. Banana slugs are active, Pacific wrens are singing, and Steller’s jays are loud. Coho salmon are not in the creek — they spawn in winter.

What Closes or Changes

Nothing major closes in summer. Full trail system is open, visitor center and cafe operating full hours. The one seasonal note: some Mount Tam trails leading out of Muir Woods may have grass-seed warnings in July and August — wear long socks or gaiters if you are hiking onto the Dipsea or Coast View ridge.

How to Beat the Summer Crowds

Go very early

Book a parking reservation for 8:00 or 8:30 AM. The main trail is nearly empty until about 10 AM. Tour buses start arriving around 10:30.

Go late

Book a reservation for 3:30 or 4:00 PM. Most tour groups are heading back to San Francisco by then. The late-afternoon redwood light is better for photography anyway.

Take the shuttle

It solves three problems at once: no parking search, no return traffic, no reservation conflict.

Skip the main trail

Walk the main trail to the second bridge (0.5 mile), then take the Hillside Trail or turn up Ben Johnson. Both offer old-growth redwood with a tenth of the foot traffic.

What to Pack

• A fleece or light jacket — the shade is cold
• Trail shoes if you plan to leave the paved main trail
• Water (2 liters minimum for hikers)
• Layered clothing — a San Francisco summer day can be 60 in the morning, 75 at noon, 58 by sunset
• Downloaded offline map — no cell service at the park
• Camera with lens cloth — fog condensation is real