Marin Headlands: Tennessee Valley Trail

Before moving to the west coast, my former boss gave me a number of outdoor activities we had to try after we moved.  (He had lived in San Francisco for a number of years before.)

One of his recommendations was to hike the Tennessee Valley trail in the Marin Headlands.

We attempted to hike this route last April, but it turned out we pulled off the road too early and didn't end up hiking the correct trails.  Finally we returned to the Tennessee Valley (with friend "E" this time!), parking at the correct trailhead this trip.

The first quarter of the hike is an easy and down-sloping dirt trail to Tennessee Cove.

We ate sandwiches on the beach before beginning the strenuous uphill part of the hike:

The trail rose quickly in elevation.

And it was a clear enough day to see the Farallon Islands.

View North, towards Bolinas

Turkey Vultures

A peek back at the city

The hike turned out to be just a bit over 6 miles...easy at the beginning and pretty challenging for the loop in the middle!  (Our route, using this map, was Tennessee Valley Trail to Coastal Trail, to Coastal Fire Road, to Fox trail, and back to the trailhead via the Tennessee Valley Trail.)

Thanks, E, for joining us!