Photo by Stacy Geiken

–M’Gee Johnston

When you look up at Mt. Tamalpais in Marin County from the towns below you can’t see all the hidden treasures that it holds — from lakes and waterfalls to wild animals and giant redwoods.  One of its special places is the Mountain Theater, an outdoor venue where theatrical events have been performed since 1913.  I recently attended the Mountain Play. We sat in the stone seats (constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930’s) built into the hillside with the stage at the bottom of the hill.  This year’s play was The Wizard of Oz and it was so much fun I found myself clapping and singing along with the hundreds of people in the audience.  This is a family event and people of all ages attend.  There are shuttle buses provided to ride to and from Mill Valley, or you can hike up, ride a bike or drive a car (there is very little parking, however.)  We parked and hiked partway up the mountain ~~ about 2 hours up and a little less coming down.  What a wonderful way to spend the day……..the hike was invigorating  and when we arrived we thoroughly enjoyed our lunch while waiting for the play to begin.  The play itself was so well done; the actors and scene changes were first rate and there was even an airplane that flew overhead trailing a banner saying, “Surrender Dorothy.”  I’m already looking forward to next year’s show, Man of La Mancha.  Meanwhile, I will enjoy the pleasure of hiking the many trails on Mt. Tam.  You can learn more about some of the other hidden treasures of Mt. Tamalpais here: Mt. Tamalpais’ Land and Legends and Mt. Tamalpais Land of Lakes.

– Carl Bidleman

Growing up in Detroit, mountains were not part of my everyday experience. Glaciers left southeast Michigan flat as Kansas and the western landscapes on television and in the movies fascinated me. So imagine my delight when I moved to Marin county in 1991 and discovered that I had acquired my own local mountain. Mt. Tamalpais rarely has the snow I captured in this photo but always has the landscapes, wildlife and reservoirs to provide a wonderful natural escape that begins just down the street. Our latest post includes a very nice Mt. Tamalpais video.  It’s called Mt. Tamalpais’ Land of Lakes and gives you a good look.

Photo: Jerry Downs

M’Gee Johnston

I recently read an article in the Marin Independent Journal that a small slice of land once owned by Janis Joplin will be purchased by the MarinCounty Open Space District to provide access to Blithedale Ridge from Baltimore Canyon in Larkspur.

The headline caught my eye because of the mention of Janis Joplin (as it was meant to do), but I was so pleased to learn that this bit of land will become part of the hiking area that I love to roam. I can go out my door in Mill Valley and soon be on a fire road that will take me to trails and paths leading to Mt. Tamalpais, Corte Madera, Larkspur and beyond.

I’ll think of Janis as I meander the trails and be thankful that I live in a place where they are preserved. Speaking of legends, you can learn more about the history and terrain of Mt. Tamalpais by checking out our story: Mt. Tamalpais’, Lands and Legends.

Weekend Sherpa’s Brad Day gives Doug (and himself) some tips on getting away from the computer and how and where to enjoy life outside the box in the San Francisco Bay Area: Angel Island, the Marin Headlands, Mt. Tamalpais and the San Mateo coast beaches.