Steep Ravine to Dipsea Trail Hike (2/22) Preview

On this favorite February hike we should see giant wake robin, redwood evergreen violets, star lilies, Smith’s fairy bells, fetid adder’s tongue and calypso orchids! We’ll go up Steep Ravine since some of us find the ladder is easier to go up than down. Lunch at Pantoll.  (Click here for a recap of last year's hike).

Directions to the trailhead: Take the Stinson Beach/Highway 1 exit off Highway 101. Go through Tam Junction, stay on Route 1, and follow signs to Muir Beach. Pass the road that goes to Muir Beach staying on Route 1 (towards Stinson Beach), pass Slide Ranch, and keep going until you see the locked gate for the Steep Ravine cabins on the west (left) side of the road. There is parking is on the east (right) side of Highway 1.

 

Time: 1 hour 5 minutes from COM. No restrooms at trailhead (but you can turn in at Muir Beach en route and use the ones in the parking lot).  Carpoolers can meet at the Greenbrae Park & Ride lot at 8:50 a.m.

Weather forecast: When we did this hike in mid-February in 2008 and 2009, strong storms buffeted the coast, and it rained heavily enough to discourage several of our group from making the trek.  As of Wednesday evening, February 16th, the forecast for the hike was partly sunny, with a chance of showers, and a high near 49. . (Click here for an updated forecast).

More on this hike: If you have the Martins' book, Hiking Marin, look at their hike "B14 Dipsea - Steep Ravine Trails" which starts at Pantoll, goes down the Dipsea, up Steep Ravine, and ends back at Pantoll. Since we're beginning and ending our outing down on Highway 1, our hike will be slightly longer, but basically the reverse of the Martins' hike. (Page 6 of the Mt. Tam State Park brochure has a park map that you can "zoom in" on to see these trails).