Robert Louis Stevenson State Park

Robert Louis Stevenson State Park Review

Encompassing the summit of Mt. St. Helena, this state park was where Stevenson and his bride, Fanny Osbourne, spent their honeymoon in an abandoned bunkhouse of the Silverado Mine. This stay in 1880 inspired the writer's travel memoir The Silverado Squatters, and Spyglass Hill in Treasure Island is thought to be a portrait of Mt. St. Helena. The park's approximately 3,600 acres are mostly undeveloped except for a trail leading to the site of the bunkhouse—which is marked with a marble memorial in the form of a open book on top of a pedestal—and a fire trail to the summit beyond. If you're planning on attempting the hike to the top, a 10-mi round-trip, bring plenty of water and dress appropriately: the trail is steep and lacks shade in spots, but the summit is often cool and breezy.