Tuesday, May 3, 2016

Rock Spring "Final Exam" Hike (5/10) Preview

As we do each year, we'll wrap up the Spring College of Marin hiking series with this Mount Tamalpais State Park hike. (Click here for a recap of our 2010 hike.  View photos from past hikes in the online album).



Here's Wendy's outline for the hike: "We should see Coral Roots (a native orchid), Meadow Rue, and Golden Banners on this mostly shady loop hike."

"Bring a plate and utensils, and food to share for the Gourmet Final!"

Directions to trailhead: Go south on Highway 101 to the Stinson Beach/Highway 1 exit. Go west on Highway 1 and wind around a lot. At the top of the ridge, turn right onto Panoramic Highway and continue to the 4-way "crossroads." Take the middle road to Mt. Tamalpais. Continue along this road for 5-6 miles.

At the Pantoll Ranger Station the road divides. Take the upper road for about 1 mile. The road divides again. This is Rock Spring. Park here. (Click here for a Google Maps map showing the parking area at the trailhead.  Right click on the teardrop icon or click on "Directions" on the left-hand side of the screen to get  driving time and directions from your location.)

Driving time from College of Marin 55 minutes.

Carpoolers can meet at the Greenbrae Park and Ride lot at 9:10 a.m. (Click here for a Google Maps map showing the parking lot on Drakes Landing Road; right click on the teardrop icon to get driving time and directions from your location.)

Outhouse at trailhead and mid-way.

Weather forecast: As of Tuesday, May 3rd, the National Weather Service forecast for the area around Rock Spring on Mt. Tam was sunny, with a high near 68. (Click here for an updated forecast).

More on this hike: The "B17 Simmons - Potrero - Arturo Trails" hike in the Martins' book, Hiking Marin, shows the trails that we'll be hiking on, although we'll probably follow a different route (Simmons to Benstein to Potrero Meadows to Laurel Dell and back up the Cataract Trail to Rock Spring). Page 6 of the state park brochure has a trail map that shows the area.

Here's the hike profile and route we'll follow.


The Google Earth image below shows were we'll be on the mountain. (Click on the photo to open a larger image in your Web browser).

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