Easiest

Before San Francisco became the bustling city we know today, a large part of it was made up of coastal sand dunes. With the development of San Francisco over two centuries, much of the native landscape no longer exists.

This short connector trail links the main Coastal Trail thoroughfare across Lands End to El Camino del Mar, near the Legion of Honor art museum. 

A part of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, the Legion of Honor houses a vast collection of ancient and European art in a

At the end of Le Conte Avenue in Montara, near Farallone View Elementary School, you'll come to the start of the Le Conte Trail. Passing through coastal meadows, this short trail connects you to longer trails that snake across the sprawling Rancho Corral de Tierra.

This trail segment, technically part of the Coastal Trail, takes visitors past jaw-dropping views of the Marin Headlands and valleys, on the way to a beautiful lookout point and, beyond that, Black Sands Beach. In the spring, you're treated to a stunning trailside display of wildflowers.

Most hikers utilize this trail to complete the shorter loop through the Muir Woods National Monument. This direction is a gradual climb and connects with the Redwood Creek Trail at the end of the valley. Expect a good amount of traffic going in both directions.

Start at the southern end of the Coastal South Trail and head east. The trail starts out dropping on a fairly straight trail. Soon, the very tight switchbacks will start and continue, and proceed until you are dropped out in a flat field.

Watch hawks trace circles in the sky from rolling hills in the Marin Headlands. Besides its widescreen vistas of the Pacific and the Golden Gate, Hawk Hill offers fascinating wildlife experiences.

It is the best place to witness the fall raptor migration with the Golden Gate Raptor Observatory,

To get to the trailhead, you'll need to make your way into the Green Gulch Farm. Go past the left side of the farm, and you'll start an ascent.

From Golden Gate National Recreation Area headquarters at Fort Mason (the big, green-roofed building), follow the winding, paved pathway across the Great Meadow...beloved by locals as one of San Francisco's most popular "backyards.

Located in the Marin Headlands north of Rodeo Lagoon, Fort Cronkhite is a former World War II military post that stands at the edge of the Pacific Ocean. Fort Cronkhite is one of the few examples of these World War II "mobilization posts" remaining in the country.