Mount Tam — Eldridge Grade to East Peak
Mount Tamalpais (from Phoenix Lake) · near Ross / Fairfax · SF Bay Area
Trail Running
At a glance
- Difficulty
- strenuous
- Distance
- 12.5 miles
- Elevation gain
- 2,400 ft
- Best season
- Year-round · clear winter days for the view
Permits and booking
- Permit required
- No
- How the permit works
- No permit. Marin Municipal Water District / Mount Tam SP. Phoenix Lake parking (Natalie Coffin Greene lot) is tiny — arrive early or start from Ross.
What is here
- Features
- Summit of Marin at 2,571 ft · Steady fire-road climb (very runnable) · Phoenix Lake start · Bay Area's grand panorama
Worth knowing
- Dogs
- Not permitted
- Good for a first timer
- No
Trail Running detail
- Surface
- fire-road
- Intl tip
- Phoenix Lake parking is very limited; many runners start from the Ross Post Office and add a mile each way. The Temelpa Trail from Mill Valley is the steep, technical alternative to the summit. The East Peak has a snack bar (seasonal) and the historic Gardner Lookout.
The guide
Eldridge Grade is the classic runner's route to the top of Mount Tamalpais — a long, steady fire-road climb that gains the 2,57…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Mount Tam — Eldridge Grade to East Peak — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 37.906, -122.575