Marin Headlands — Coastal/Miwok Loop
Golden Gate NRA (Rodeo Beach) · near Sausalito · SF Bay Area
Trail Running
At a glance
- Difficulty
- moderate
- Distance
- 5.2 miles
- Elevation gain
- 1,050 ft
- Best season
- Year-round · fog common in summer
Permits and booking
- Permit required
- No
- How the permit works
- No permit. Golden Gate National Recreation Area — free. Rodeo Beach lot fills by mid-morning weekends.
What is here
- Features
- Golden Gate Bridge & San Francisco skyline views · Hill 88 — Cold War radar station ruins · Dark sand of Rodeo Beach · Hub of the Bay Area ultra scene
Worth knowing
- Dogs
- Allowed
- Good for a first timer
- Yes
Trail Running detail
- Surface
- mixed
- Race
- Miwok 100K, Headlands 50/100 (Pacific Coast Trail Runs)
- Intl tip
- Tennessee Valley trailhead (just north) is the other main hub and has easier out-and-back options to Tennessee Beach (3.5 mi RT). All major Headlands trailheads have pit toilets; only Rodeo Valley has running water. The Marine Mammal Center at the top of the hill is worth a post-run visit.
The guide
The Marin Headlands are the beating heart of Bay Area trail running — a wind-scoured tangle of ridges and coastal bluffs direct…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Marin Headlands — Coastal/Miwok Loop — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 37.8327, -122.5406