This weekend, I had a chance to visit Muir Wood National Park, which is located in Mill Valley,  just about 17 miles north of San Francisco

Muir Woods is one of the best-preserved redwood forests in the U.S and is the first national monument created by a land donation from an individual. Congressman William Kent donated the land to the United States on the condition that it be named for John Muir, the father of the US National Parks.   

Background: In the days before Europeans colonized the west, scientists believe that the Pacific coastline hosted more than 2 million acres of the redwood forest. Loggers harvested vast quantities of this untouched forest, and by the early 1900s, not many redwood stands remained. Worried about deforestation, Congressman William Kent and his wife Elizabeth purchased 611 acres of a redwood forest for conservation. In 1907, a local water utility attempted to use eminent domain to force the Kents off their land; Kent outmaneuvered them by donating the contested lands, which amounted to 295 acres, to the federal government, which immediately announced it as a National Park.

The species of trees that Muir Woods is famous for are the coast redwood and Sequoia Sempervirens (trivia for the botanists amongst the readers). The redwood trees are massive on a scale, which most of us do not experience every day. The highest tree in Muir Woods apparently stands at 250 feet tall and is estimated to be about 784 years old, and likely to have sprouted in the year 1237.

While this Park may be famous among conservationists and nature enthusiasts, Muir Woods has also appeared in Hollywood productions such as Alfred Hitchcock’s 1958 thriller Vertigo, Planet of the Apes franchise, and Jurassic Park: Lost World.

Here are two clips that capture the tranquility of the park, as we walked for a mile or two around the park

Here are cinematic views of Muir Woods Beach Overlook point over looking the Pacific. You will be amazed by the 360-degree reviews from this view point

Driving on the stunning San Rafael Bridge. The San Rafael Bridge is the northernmost of the east-west crossings of the San Francisco Bay in California, USA. It opened in 1956, is 9 kms long, and is a Double-Decked Dual Cantilever bridge with Pratt Truss Approach.  These two clips are shot from both the lower deck and upper deck