In brief:
6.4 mile Mount Tam loop from Stinson Beach to Pantoll and back, through gorgeous woods, high grassy slopes, and a lush steep ravine. Matt Davis Trail is a Bay Area Ridge Trail segment.

Highlights:
Gorgeous trails, waterfalls, views, lots of elevation change.

Distance, category, and difficulty:
This 6.4 mile loop hike is moderate, with about 1920 feet in elevation change. Trailhead elevation is around 75 feet. The featured hike climbs to about 1600 feet, then descends back to the trailhead. Some sections of Steep Ravine are well, steep, but the other trails are moderate, with long easy stretches.

Exposure:
More shade than sun.

Trail traffic:
Moderate-heavy (near Pantoll).

Trail surfaces:
Dirt trails.

Hiking time:
4 hours.

Season:
Nice any time, but best in early spring.

Getting there:

From US 101 in Marin County, exit CA 1/Mill Valley/Stinson Beach and drive on Shoreline Highway to the junction with Almonte, about 1 mile. Turn left, remaining on Shoreline, and drive about 2.5 miles to the junction with Panoramic Highway. Turn right on Panoramic and drive about 1 mile to the junction with Muir Woods Road; stay straight on Panoramic (right lane). Continue about 7.5 miles (past Pantoll) to the junction with CA 1, just before the town of Stinson Beach. Turn right, drive about 0.2 mile, then turn right (at the fire station) onto Belvedere Avenue. Look for parking on the left side of the road before the "do not enter/wrong way" signs.

GPS coordinates* for trailhead:
Latitude 37°53'58.61"N
Longitude 122°38'14.42"W
(* based on Google Earth data, shown as degrees, minutes, seconds)

Gas, food, and lodging:
Restaurants, motels, and stores in Stinson Beach, along CA 1 just past Belvedere. More store and restaurant options, as well as gas, are available in Mill Valley at the junction of Panoramic and Almonte. There is a small, walk-in campground a few feet from the Pantoll trailhead, with very nice shaded sites, unfortunately situated close to Panoramic Highway and the Pantoll parking lot.

Trailhead details:
Side of street parking. No entrance or parking fees at this trailhead -- if you start at Pantoll the day use parking fee is $8. No designated handicapped parking, and trails are not suitable to wheelchairs or strollers. Maps available (for a fee) at the Pantoll Ranger Station. Restrooms and water at the beach, a few blocks west. Pay phone at the fire station, and the Pantoll trailhead. Marin Transit offers public transportation to this trailhead.

Rules:
Park is open from 7 a.m. to sunset (hours fluctuate slightly during the year). Bikes and horses are permitted on some trails; Matt Davis and Steep Ravine are hiking only trails. Dogs are not allowed on the trails.

The Official Story:
CSP's Mount Tam page.
Pantoll Ranger Station 415-388-2070

Map/book choices and more information:

• Download the park map pdf from CSP's website.
•

This hike is described and mapped in 60 Hikes within 60 Miles: San Francisco, by Jane Huber (yup, that's me, the creator of this website). Order this book from Amazon.com.
• Redwood Hikes has a great map and descriptions of this hike, with gorgeous photos.
• Barry Spitz's Tamalpais Trails (order this book from Amazon.com), a book with a pullout map of Tam is a great guide.
• A Rambler's Guide to the Trails of Mt. Tamalpais and the Marin Headlands, map from Pease Press (order from Pease Press) is useful.
• Mount Tam Trail Map, published by Tom Harrison Maps (order from Tom Harrison Maps).
• Hiking Marin by Don and Kay Martin (order this book from Amazon.com) has a good map and descriptions of this hike.
• The official State Park map is available (for a fee) at the ranger station.

Matt Davis/Steep Ravine/Dipsea Loop in a nutshell -- a printable, text-only guide to the featured hike.

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