Old Mine Trail to Stapelveldt Loop

A foggy morning on Lower Old Mine Trail.

This hike begins with an easy stroll on accessible Old Mine Trail, climbs down steeply into Muir Woods, then climbs back up on Stapelveldt Trail.

Location: Mount Tamalpais State Park (and Muir Woods National Monument)
Length: 2.3 miles
Difficulty: moderate (leaning towards strenuous)
Shade: shaded
Parking: Pantoll Station ($8/vehicle)
Public Transportation: buses 61 and 61M (Stagecoach) stop at Pantoll Ranger Station
WC: toilets at Pantoll Station
Dogs: not allowed on trails; only allowed in developed areas, and must be kept on leash

Link to park website

Hiked: May 2021

Trail Route

This hike begins at Pantoll Station, to the right of the station and away from the road. You’ll see multiple signs for Lower Old Mine Trail, first at the parking lot, then further down the paved path. The trail is on the left. It’s half a mile to Dipsea Trail. Lower Old Mine Trail meets Deer Park Fire Road where the trail emerges from the woods; follow the sign to Dipsea Trail.

Take Dipsea Trail to the left, heading towards Ben Johnson Trail. The hike on Dipsea is all downhill, and it follows along Deer Park Fire Road for a short section, so make sure to look for the sign indicating where Dipsea Trail continues. Shortly after that, you’ll see the sign for Ben Johnson Trail to your left. Follow that towards Stapelvelt Trail. Ben Johnson is another downhill, winding back and forth along the hill for 0.2 miles. (This whole section from Dipsea to Ben Johnson is within Muir Woods National Monument.)

The next trail marker is next to a bench. Turn left onto Stapelveldt Trail towards Pantoll. The 1.1 miles back to Pantoll Station are mostly uphill, and sometimes pretty strenuous. There’s one more criss-crossing of trails, where Stapelvelt is intersected by the TCC, but look for the signs directing you along Stapelvelt and uphill to Pantoll. You’ll know you’re near the end of the climb when you see the campsites at Pantoll Campground. Stapelvelt Trail takes you around a campsite or two and back to the parking lot.

Stapelveldt is a pretty continuous uphill climb.

Notes

This was a pretty tough hike given its short length. The downhill on Dipsea involved some stairs and a lot of tree roots, and it was hard on the knees. And the uphill was pretty constant on Stapelveldt, so that was tiring. It was a nice hike, though, as hikes at Mt. Tam tend to be.

We hiked on a foggy morning, so there was no view from the end of Lower Old Mine Trail as there usually is. And we got some droplets of water falling on us from the trees, but the woods were actually quite beautiful in the fog.