Viewfinder: Garden and Estate Tours and Loads of Sports

Viewfinder caught up with some of the estimated 850 people who participated in the Mill Valley Outdoor Art Club's Garden Tour last week. The annual spring garden tour is the major fundraiser of the  and proceeds not only benefit the maintenance of the historic Maybeck clubhouse but are also distributed to a long list of local non-profit organizations.

This year's a memorial tribute to Marilyn Smith, a member of the club and former chair of the garden tour for three years, who .  Smith was best known as the executive director of the Mountain Play for twenty-three years. 

We also joined in on a tour of a different sort, nabbing a sneak preview of the historic Burlwood Estate in Mill Valley, which is going on the market for the first time in 45 years. The home was built over several years beginning in 1889 for Mill Valley founder Joseph G. Eastland by highly regarded California architect Willis Polk. This 6,257-square-foot house has seven bedrooms and three baths and is situated on nearly one acre in Cascade Canyon.

We also caught plenty of sports action this wee, including Tam High's girls varsity soccer squad's 6-0 win over Novato High and the junior varsity baseball team's 12-8 win over Terra Linda High. Tam’s JV baseball team is 10-3 on the season with two games remaining. Tam hosts Drake High on May 12 at 4:30 p.m. in the season finale.