West Marin

Picture Perfect. The wide-open spaces of West Marin include the coastal communities of Stinson Beach and Bolinas, the diary farms of Olema, Point Reyes Station, Tomales, and Nicasio, and the forest glens of Lagunitas, San Geronimo, and Woodacre.

Uniting them all is a love for the land. That’s not going to change any time soon, thanks to the efforts of MALT, the Marin Agricultural Land Trust, an organization dedicated to preserving family farms, dairy, and cattle operations through voluntary conservation easements. Love of outdoors extends from the surfing at Bolinas and Stinson, to the famed mountain biking on Mt Tam, from the thousands of runners who compete in the Dipsea race to Stinson Beach, to preservation of the local salmon run up Lagunitas Creek. It’s an area of unrivaled natural beauty, one that can lay claim to the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, Muir Beach State Bark, Stinson Beach State Park, Muir Woods National Monument, and Pt Reyes National Seashore.

Of course it’s not all about the outdoors in West Marin. Devotees of inner peace turn to the Zen Center at Green Gulch in Muir Beach and Spirit Rock Meditation Center in Woodacre. And for those who need o feed the belly as well as the soul, Pt Reyes Station has become a destination for the locavore movement. Pt Reyes Station is home to the Hog Island Oyster Company, Marin Sun Farms, purveyor of ethically raised and butchered meat, and Cow Girl Creamery that makes its award winning cheeses using organic milk from nearby Strauss Family Dairy.