Beauty Meets Bounty in Marin County

The Japanese call it shinrin-yoku: forest bathing. It's the polar opposite of a power walk—a slow, deliberate immersion in nature.

Anyone in need of such joy-inducing rambles should beeline to Marin County, CA. Home to poppy-dotted hillsides, tranquil woodlands, and wave-swept coves, Marin is a true walker's paradise, with some of the world's most superlative scenery.

Three destinations in particular stand out: Muir Woods, Mount Tamalpais, and Point Reyes. Each showcases Marin's varied splendor and is also just a short drive from restaurants that work wonders with the region's produce, seafood, cheeses, and wines. So slow down, stroll, sample, and sip—and surround yourself with natural marvels.

Point Reyes National Seashore

One of Marin's unexpected wild places is this triangular peninsula jutting into the Pacific Ocean. Comprising more than 100 square miles of windswept bluffs, dark forests, and dramatic sea stacks pummeled by surf, Point Reyes may be a protected treasure, but it has never been tamed.

On the shore's northwestern edge, the two-plus-mile roundtrip Abbotts Lagoon Trail offers a slice of untrammeled beauty, skirting shimmering lagoons. Smaller surprises await hikers in the trailside scrub: the sudden flush of a quail brood, the twitch of a wide-eyed jackrabbit, the springtime unfurling of delicate pink checkerblooms and golden buttercups.

At the channel connecting the lagoons, cross a wooden bridge for the chance to spot diving ospreys or watch the clownish antics of river otters. From here, hikers can thread their way another half mile through dunes and driftwood to reach the crashing waves of the aptly named Great Beach.

Eat Here: When you've been tasting salt on the air all day, nothing feels more fitting than seafood at rustic-chic Saltwater Oyster Depot, which overlooks Tomales Bay in the compact town of Inverness. Raw and baked bivalves—many sustainably farmed in the bay's cool waters—headline the menu, some zinged with red curry and ginger or topped with pesto and Parmesan. Other local delicacies share the spotlight, including semolina-crusted rockfish caught just down the coast in Bolinas and pineapple glazed barbecued pork ribs from Devil's Gulch Ranch in nearby Nicasio. Order a glass of Northern California wine and raise a toast to Marin's plenty.

Muir Woods National Monument

Only 12 miles north of San Francisco, Muir Woods includes six miles of paved or boardwalk trails through thousands of old-growth coast redwoods. Part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, the park welcomes over 1 million visitors each year from around the globe (arrive when the park opens at 8 a.m. to beat the crowds). The magnitude of these ancient groves, sheltering entire communities of birds and insects, induces a powerful sense of humility and connection.

On the Main Trail, you can appreciate the massive trunk of a 700-year-old giant tree, the hopeful green of a sword fern frond, or the contemplative pace of a banana slug. A mile in, the buzz of other visitors is replaced by the squawk of a Steller's jay and the drip of condensing fog. Across a small footbridge over Redwood Creek, the Hillside Trail completes the two-mile loop, its modest elevation gain providing a different perspective on the forest and a neck-saving reprieve from gazing up in wonder.

Mount Tamalpais State Park

The county's highest point, Mount Tamalpais, often photo-bombs the local landscape, inserting its 2,571-foot peak into vistas around the San Francisco Bay Area. Seen in close-up, the redwood groves, oak woodlands, and wildflower-filled meadows on the mountain's slopes capture the full range of Marin's natural beauty, earning Mount Tam, as it's called, a special place in hikers' hearts. Many summits can be reached only by the hardiest trekkers, but on Mount Tam, visitors can park just below the East Peak for an easy yet scenic stroll along the Verna Dunshee Trail, named after a crusader for the mountain's preservation. The flat 0.7-mile loop circles the crown, offering unforgettable panoramas and a crash course in Bay Area geography: in the distance, the pale line of surf along Ocean Beach, the sparkle of Richardson Bay, the sunbaked hills of wine country, the Farallon Islands emerging from the Pacific.