Sunday, January 22, 2023

Mt. Tamalpais State Park (Part 1) - Marin County, CA

On 28 December 2022, my parents and I took a day trip to Mount Tamalpais State Park in Marin County, CA. We visited Trojan Point and Mt. Tamalpais East Peak. Recently, it has been raining quite heavily in the San Francisco Bay Area, and we took this trip on a day where there was a break from the storms. It was quite foggy and cloudy on the day we went. You'll see a lot of clouds and fog in the photos. The photos are split into 3 blog posts. I hope you enjoy viewing my photos!

High Resolution Photos: If you want to see high resolution photos of any of the photos you see here, use the following links. If you wish to purchase prints of any of the photos, please contact me here. To view my best Mt. Tamalpais State Park  photos, use this link. To see all of my photos from Mt. Tamalpais State Park & Bolinas, CA from 2016 to 2022, use this link.

Parts: Cellphone Photos | Olympus Part 1 | Olympus Part 2

This is part 1 of the photos I took with my Olympus mirrorless camera. The photos were shot at Trojan Point and Mt. Tamalpais East Peak.

Our first stop on our trip was Trojan Point.

A scenery photo of the SF Bay Area, forest, fog, and clouds.
In the Photo (in the distance): Angel Island, Treasure Island, Yerba Buena Island, Bay Bridge, and San Francisco.
Approximate GPS location (type into Google): 37° 54' 20" N 122° 36' 51" W

A black and white process of the photo above.

A scenery photo of forest, ocean, fog, and clouds.
In the Photo: Ocean Beach & San Francisco (in the distance), and Sutro Tower & Twin Peaks (in the distance on the left).
Approximate GPS location (type into Google): 37° 54' 16" N 122° 36' 50" W

A scenery photo of ships (in the distance), ocean, fog, and clouds.
Approximate GPS location (type into Google): 37° 54' 17" N 122° 36' 51" W

A scenery photo of ships (in the distance on the left), ocean, forest, fog, and clouds. The photo was shot near Trojan Point.
In the Photo: Ocean Beach (in the distance on the left).
Approximate GPS location (type into Google): 37° 54' 21" N 122° 36' 57" W

A scenery photo of forest, ocean, fog, and clouds. The photo was shot near Trojan Point.
In the Photo: Ocean Beach & San Francisco (in the distance), Sutro Tower & Twin Peaks (in the distance on the left)
Photo shot at the same spot as above.

After we finished up at Trojan Point, our next stop was Mt. Tamalpais East Peak. We first headed up to Gardner Fire Lookout via Plankwalk Trail.

A scenery photo of the SF Bay Area, clouds, and fog.
In the Photo: Richmond-San Rafael Bridge (center), San Quentin State Prison (left), Corte Madera (foreground), and Richmond (in the distance).
Approximate GPS location (type into Google): 37° 55' 45" N 122° 34' 39" W

A scenery photo of the SF Bay Area, forest, rocks, clouds, and fog.
In the Photo: Richmond-San Rafael Bridge (slightly right from center), San Quentin State Prison (center), Corte Madera (foreground right), Corte Madera Creek (foreground left), San Rafael (foreground left), and Richmond (in the distance).
Photo shot near the same spot as above.

A scenery photo of the SF Bay Area, forest, clouds, and fog.
Photo shot near the same spot as above.

A scenery photo of the SF Bay Area, forest, clouds, and fog.
Photo shot near the same spot as above.

A scenery photo of Mt. Tamalpais Middle Peak, forest, and clouds.
Approximate GPS location (type into Google): 37° 55' 45" N 122° 34' 40" W

A scenery photo of the SF Bay Area, forest, clouds, and fog.
In the Photo: Angel Island (left), Sausalito (right), Treasure Island & Yerba Buena Island (in the distance on the left), Bay Bridge & Alcatraz Island (in the distance in the center), and San Francisco (in the distance on the right).
Photo shot near the same spot as above.

A scenery photo of the SF Bay Area, forest, clouds, and fog.
In the Photo: Angel Island (left), Sausalito (right), Treasure Island & Yerba Buena Island (in the distance on the left), Bay Bridge & Alcatraz Island (in the distance in the center), and San Francisco (in the distance on the right).
Approximate GPS location (type into Google): 37° 55' 44" N 122° 34' 40" W

A scenery photo of the SF Bay Area, forest, clouds, and fog.
In the Photo (foreground): Mill Valley (left), and Sausalito & Marin City (right).
In the Photo (in the distance): Yerba Buena Island (left), Bay Bridge & Alcatraz Island (slightly left), and San Francisco (right).
Photo shot near the same spot as above.

A scenery photo of the SF Bay Area, clouds, and fog.
In the Photo: Richmond-San Rafael Bridge (center), San Quentin State Prison (left), Corte Madera (foreground), and Richmond (in the distance).
Photo shot near the same spot as above.

A scenery photo of the SF Bay Area, forest, clouds, and fog.
In the Photo (foreground): Mill Valley and Angel Island.
In the Photo (in the distance): Treasure Island, Yerba Buena Island, Bay Bridge, and Alcatraz Island (right).
Photo shot near the same spot as above.

A scenery photo of Bon Tempe Lake, Lake Lagunitas, forest, clouds, and fog. 
Photo shot near the same spot as above.

A scenery photo of Mt. Tamalpais Middle Peak (right), Mt. Tamalpais East Peak Parking Lot (left), forest, clouds, and fog.
Photo shot near the same spot as above.

After we were done exploring the area around the Gardner Fire Lookout (Plankwalk Trail), we headed down towards the parking lot for Verna Dunshee Trail. You are technically suppose to use Plankwalk Trail to get back down to the parking lot, but we and a few other tourists got a bit lost and went down a "different trail" which I think was formed by a rockslide. This "different trail" is not on the park map or Google Maps. It is chained off at the bottom of the "trail" but not at the top. We accidentally took that "trail". This "trail" really looks like the main trail from the top. It is very steep and slippery, so don't get lost up there! I think California State Parks need to add more clear signage up at the peak. It is a little hard to find your way back down from up there. This is the second time I have accidentally done this (the previous time was in August 2016 - photos from that trip here).

A scenery photo of Gardner Fire Lookout, forest, and clouds.
Approximate GPS location (type into Google): 37° 55' 42" N 122° 34' 39" W

A scenery photo of Gardner Fire Lookout, forest, and clouds.
Photo shot near the same spot as above.

This is all the photos for today. I hope you have enjoyed viewing the photos! Please don't forget to share the blog post with your friends and family members! Also, if you want to get notifications when I post up more photos, "Like" us on Facebook or follow me on Instagram. These links can also be found on the top of the right sidebar.

Parts: Cellphone Photos | Olympus Part 1 | Olympus Part 2