I have had excellent memories at Muir Woods throughout the various points in my life. Maybe I am just lucky.
When most people casually think of San Francisco, they often associate the bright city with the Golden Gate Bridge, steep hills, or generally good eats. However, just outside the main city rests a wonderful redwood forest. Muir Woods is a national monument that hosts an incredible amount of extremely tall redwoods. The beautiful scenery transports any individual away from San Francisco’s urban environment and into a nature-filled haven. I have been to Muir Woods three times in my life (which I personally don’t think is enough) and my experience every time has been vastly different.
I was in elementary school and with my parents the first time I went to this national monument. My first memories of Muir Woods are a bit hazy. I can remember being unenthused about leaving the car, looking up at what appeared to be the tallest trees ever, and then wanting to walk around the park more when my parents said it was time to go. The second time I went to Muir Woods, I was in middle school and with my Girl Scout troop. I can vividly remember how much I talked up the park to my fellow friends by telling them how beautiful and relatively “cool” the park was. With my Girl Scout troop, I walked around a paved loop that took about an hour. On this loop I admired some of the largest redwoods in the park and stood under the trees that were hollowed out at the bottom. We also discovered that the forest was filled with banana slugs and that, reportedly, if you kissed one, it was good luck.
My appreciation for the park was beginning to expand. The last time that I went to Muir Woods I was in my second year of college and with my boyfriend. He had never been to Muir Woods before and I thought taking him on the same hour loop I went on in middle school would be great. As we started walking into the redwood park, we deviated from the accessible paved loop and began to walk up a larger and longer trail (there are many trails within the park). We ended up hiking for a full three hours and experienced the most incredible views of the forest. Since we hiked up to the top of a massive hill, I was able to look down upon the tops of the trees and it was beautiful. I realized then that I would have to return to the park. I wanted to become more immersed in the nature.
I have had excellent memories at Muir Woods throughout the various points in my life. Maybe I am just lucky. Or, maybe Muir Woods captivates me because I am a tree-lover of sorts. Muir Woods is certainly a sought-after destination for tree lovers, but it is also equally alluring for those who are looking to find natural beauty. In his essay, Nature, Emerson articulates the profound effect the natural environment can have on an individual: “In the woods too, a man casts off his years, as the snake his slough, and at what period soever of life, is always a child. In the woods, is perpetual youth. In the woods we return to reason and faith.”
