We are going to San Francisco in a few weeks and I need some advise. We were planning to do 2 all day trips: one to Muir Woods and Sonoma Valley and one to Yosemite. The main reason to go to Muir Woods was to see the giant Redwood trees. After looking at the itinerary for Yosemite, it says it is taking us to see the giant Sequoia trees. Are these the same trees? If not, it is worth a separate trip to both or should I not go to Muir Woods and go to Napa and Somona Valley for the day?

I was disappointed in the Muir Woods because it was a pretty small area. It took a very short time to walk through the area.

Coastal redwoods are definitely NOT the same as Sequooias. Both are impressive. The redwoods can be taller (up to 350 ft tall), but Sequoias are a much more massive tree, 90-100 feet circumferance at the base, and nearly as tall at up to 300 ft. I don't recall how many redwoods are at Muir Woods. I believe the best stands are substantially father north. Driving up Highway 1 to Muir Woods will increase the travel time to Sonoma. Going up 101 and then east on 37 and north on 121 is much quicker. I'm not sure Yosemite is a day trip from SF. I believe the north entrance to the park (on 120) is open, it's the most direct from SF, but even taking that route is about 183 miles to Yosemite Village, but more importantly, its going to be about a 4 hour drive. There is a small grove of Sequoias, the Merced Grove, not too far in from the 120 entrance (Big Oak Flat entrance). The largest grove, and the largest Sequoias, are in the Mariposa Grove at the south end the park. Driving all that way just to see the Merced Grove might not be the wisest use of your time. I'd at least plan an overnight stay at Yosemite. Of course, if you are taking a bus tour and somebody else is doing all the driving... I still think you will want to drive around / walk around the Valley at least, if not drive up to Glacier Point. I don't see how you can do that in a day trip.

Just returned from Muir Woods last week and I have the hat and Tshirt to prove it! I absolutely love it there - our second visit.

I have also seen the giant Sequoias in Yosemite and was moved and impressed. I think they are both worth seeing. Muir is just an hour or two. Spent the same amount of time at Yosemite because we were on a tour. I probably would have stayed longer. DO BOTH!!!!! NannyJan

Trying to do Yosemite in one day from S.F. is madness--mostly you'll see the road over and back rather than the beautiful park.

In addition to the difference in the trees, the vegitation surrounding them is vastly different as well. Definitely worth seeing them both. For a short visit, Muir Woods is great. It is a small area, but it give a nice taste of a coastal redwood forest. There are larger groves in the Santa Cruz mountains and then even larger groves further north.

The "easy" part of Muir Woods is indeed small. However, there are trails heading uphill towards the Bootjack and Pantoll areas which are more serious hiking. I've hiked the entire Mt. Tam area extensively. The only time I ever saw both a bobcat and a flock of condors in the same 20 minutes was on one of the back trails in Muir Woods.

dovima - you've seen several condors at once? I am in awe. I've only seen 1 condor in the wild and it was magnificent. I was on a backpacking trip down in the Los Padres national forest near Ojai in the mid-1980s. We hiked up to a rock outcropping one morning, and just as the sun was coming up over the mountains a condor flew overhead. Amazing.

J_Correa,
I admit to being less than the total ornithological expert on the difference between buzzards and condors, but these sure did look like condors to me. We were on a trail way into the back part of Muir Woods in a place where there are rough-hewn "steps" cut into the trail. We paused and looked down into the gully below us, and in a moss-covered tree (not a redwood, BTW) there were several of these enormous birds either roosting on branches or alighting on them. We were in awe. A little later on, before we emerged onto the road just below Bootjack Camp, we glimpsed a bobcat slinking along a ridge paralell to us. It was quite a day.

Probably not condors, their range doesn't cover Marin County and there are only about 130 or so in the wild. Maybe turkey vultures, which are pretty big.

SAB-The last article I read counted 270.
I did see them on occasion when I lived in Mill Valley, especially hiking in Tennessee Valley and up in the headlands, not at all their
typical range as you say.

R5

I think that is 270 total--in captivity and in the wild.

According to the Ventana Wildlife Society "Today the population of California condors has grown to more than 275. Of those, about 125 live in the wild at Big Sur, Pinnacles, Ventura County and the Grand Canyon, with a few in Baja California, Mexico. The rest live in captivity at the Los Angeles Zoo, San Diego Wild Animal Park and other facilities."

I remember a statistic from a couple decades ago that the wild population of condors was down to around 30. So it seems that they have made quite a comeback - 125 in the wild is excellent news.

Muir Woods was very nice; we went on our way to Sonoma. If you get there when it opens (8 I believe), it is very peaceful. It only takes a couple of hours to get through; you wold have plenty of time for wine country.
Yosemite is incredible; I wish we could have seen the sequoias but our short time in the park did not allow it. If you are doing a day trip, you will be exhausted. We got a room outside the park and thought it was well worth it.
Have a great time!

Yosemite is not really a "day trip" from San Francisco. At best you will get a glimpse of the sights in the Valley and hurriedly turn around and drive back. It's four hours each way for a tourist, I would say. But it is gorgeous! (not the ride, but the place)

We visited Muir Woods a couple of years ago and loved it. When we left Muir Woods we kept going up the coast. It was a long ride on Hwy 1 but beautiful coastal scenery, narrow winding roads and quiet little towns made it well worth the trip.

muir woods were spectacular-- the scent, the cool, crisp air, gentle hiking paths, and those gorgeous trees!

but, it's only like a half-day trip. pretty small park (i was suprised!).

OK, I did both and I'm glad I did. The trip to Yosemite was long, but well worth it. The size of those trees was absolutely incredible. The next day we went to Muir Woods and saw the tallest trees in the world. Again, just awesome. I would definitely recommend both places.

I am glad you were able to fit both into your trip. They are definitely amazing trees.

dovima,

I doubt that you saw a flock of condors. These birds tend to be solitary and their range does not extend this far north.