Muir Woods Is Free This Weekend

It's not like we need to be reminded of the beauty in our own backyard, but the entrance fees to Muir Woods National Monument are being waived this weekend, so if that $5 fee was keeping you way, now's the time to go.

On the heels of America's Best Idea, Ken Burns' acclaimed documentary on the history of the national parks on PBS, the National Park Service is hosting another fee-free weekend Aug. 14-15, waiving entrance fees at national parks and monuments all over the U.S. Muir Woods entrance fees for adults are $5, but fees at some of the nation's biggest parks, like Yosemite and Grand Canyon, usually run as high as $25 per person.

"The National Park Service really wants everyone to feel connected to the 393 park service sites that there are in the country," said National Park Service spokesperson Alexandra Picavet. "One of the best ways to get people out, especially those who have never been to a national park site before because of the fee, is by having these fee-free weekends and giving those new visitors to the national parks an opportunity to have this new experience."

Muir Woods was designated the 10th national monument in the U.S. in 1908. Muir Woods marked the first time private individuals, in this case William and Elizabeth Kent, donated land to the federal government to create a national monument. It was also the first time a national monument was created in an urban setting, just 12 miles north of San Francisco, and it was the first time the Antiquities Act of 1906 was used to preserve a living species, the Coast Redwood tree.

The fee-free days will continue on Sept. 25, recognized as National Public Lands Day, and Veterans Day on Nov. 11. The promotion kicked off earlier this year with National Park Week in mid April.

Picavet encouraged Mill Valley residents to use the Golden Gate Transit Route 66 Muir Woods Shuttle to avoid congestion getting there. Go here for more information on the shuttle.