Have you ever wondered what hiking Mt. Tamalpais is like? I did so I went with my friend Julian, an experienced hiker and mountain climber. He has hiked Mt. Tamalpais 20 times and knows all the routes so he took me through his favorite, most scenic route.
If you want to get to the tower quickly there is parking close to the top. During this adventure we opted to start the climb from the bottom. Climbing from the bottom, we were able to do see amazing views of the Bay Area while hiking up. Mt. Tamalpais has multiple trails, luckily I was with an experienced hiker. If I were to hike Mt. Tamalpais on my own, I would definitely take a map. With multiple trails, it is easy to get lost.
Multiple Peaks
Mt. Tamalpais is Marin County’s Highest Peak! When first looking at a map you might get confused because Mt. Tamalpais has multiple peaks. The east peak was my favorite. Unfortunately we were in a cloud when we got to this peak so we didn’t get the epic instagram worthy view that everyone talks about.
Pictures of us Hiking Mt. Tamalpais
Luckily this vlog I was with a photographer so I don’t have to bore you with vlog stills. The images below were shot by Julian, make sure you follow him if you enjoy his photography.
Weather Changes
While hiking these Marin County trails, we experienced multiple weather changes. As you can see on the vlog, this mountain was riddled with microclimates. The best way to get around this is to pack layers. We started the hike in the redwoods, the middle of the hike was in the sun and it was raining on the summit. The weather is as unpredictable as San Francisco’s weather.
The Wind Could Take You
My friend Julian has hiked Mt. Tamalpais multiple times. He has also hiked half dome, secluded places Trinity County and more. While he has experienced stronger winds than we did in the vlog, he had never experienced those winds on Mt. Tam. According to him, Mount Tamalpais is rarely that windy-at least from the times he’s been there.
Mt. Tamalapais vs Mt. Tam
It seems like all the locals call Mt. Tamalpais “Mt. Tam”. When looking at maps some peaks are called “Mt. Tamalpais” and some are called “Mt. Tam”. What makes things more confusing is sometimes the East Peak is called both names and sometimes the tower is also called both names. For simplicity I just did what most locals do and called in “Mt. Tam”. If you have any information about this, please leave it in the comments.
Would I do it Again?
I would do it again in a heartbeat. I want to climb the other side of the mountain to see the waterfalls everyone has been talking about. Maybe that will be one of the next vlogs.
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