Jaw Dropping Mountain Top and Redwood Forest Elopement
I was very excited when Nathan and Popsi called me to say that they'd gotten a permit for the early morning wedding ceremony slot at Muir Woods National Monument. I was intrigued by their willingness to bring Nathan's family and Popsi's good friend out to the early morning forest. Because her family lives in Asia, they'll be having a destination wedding there, so her side of the family can join in the celebration. If you plan to have a wedding overseas, you'll want to get legally married in the United States first, and a Muir Woods elopement wedding is a very nice way to do that.
I've personally photographed many joyous weddings in this park, and the California Redwood trees are sacred to many of our couples. Normally, most brides and grooms don't want to wake up early and arrive at the park at 8:30 in the morning, so I tend to schedule the weddings later in the day in the winter, or 4 pm to 6 pm in the warmer months when the slanting late afternoon sunlight lasts even later into the day.
I admit, I was slightly daunted by the prospect of getting up extra early and possibly hitting Golden Gate Bridge traffic, but I needn't have worried. I had an easy drive across the Golden Gate Bridge, took the Mill Valley exit, and followed the signs out to Muir Woods. I had already booked my parking pass for the forest, and if you're going to visit this park, you'll want to go online to get your parking situation set before you go. You will not be able to obtain the pass once you are there. Trust me on this one, friends.
Arriving early at the park, I walked through the parking lot trails leading up to the ticket kiosk, taking in the early morning scents and sounds, in a way that was never possible with the more active late afternoon wedding sessions. I decided that I liked this, a lot! The forest was like a bustling tiny town, with the birds calling to each other and the wind rustling through the swaying branches as I approached the ticket kiosk and met up with Nathan and Popsi, and their family and guests. Included in your wedding permit pass, is a gathering place, and a park ranger to escort you to your chosen wedding location at Founders Grove where you can have thirty guests, Fern Creek where you can also have thirty guests, or in our case, the Bohemian Grove which allows for up to ten guests.
All of the wedding sites are special and wonderful, you really can't go wrong with any of them. Weddings are allowed between 9 am to 10 am in the morning or from 4 pm to 6 pm later in the day. There is no good or bad season to get married. Summer is warmer, but you could encounter fog. Winter can be cool and crisp, or you might have some sprinkles. Trust me when I tell you that all of the atmospheric weather will just make your wedding pictures even more unique so don't have any anxiety about the weather. The redwood tree canopy will protect you from most of it, and you'll be in your own little elopement or wedding world!
How to get a Muir Woods Wedding Permit:
It costs about $700 to get a wedding permit, and first, you'll need to pay $60 for a non-refundable application policy. The fee does go towards your permit and covers your photographer's permit as well. Start your application process on the National Park Service website.
Our intimate wedding group headed over to Bohemian Grove and the bride and groom held hands as they walked through the towering redwoods, marveling at how tiny they felt under these ancient trees. Everyone was enjoying taking in the stunning scenery and commenting on how incredible and fresh the forest smelled as they walked through it. This forest is the perfect backdrop for quintessential California elopement photography.
We offer all-inclusive wedding packages for our couples, and Nathan and Popsi decided to book their wedding officiant, wedding photography, and hair and makeup services with our company. She was a radiantly beautiful bride, and she and Nathan looked at each other with so much love in their eyes!
After the wedding ceremony and family photography, things got interesting. Nathan showed me a photograph of an area they'd seen and really wanted to take a picture of the two of them standing on a cliff overlooking the Bay Area. They were staying up the road from Muir Woods at a very cute little place called the Mountain Home Inn. I knew there were similar rock formations nearby and that's where I thought we were going. I followed their car out of Muir Woods, and we headed up the hill and I saw the Mountain Home Inn...but Nathan Kept driving! We were on a beautiful two-lane road that was winding way up the mountain, to a place I'd never been before. About twenty minutes later I see that we're heading into Mt Tamalpais State Park.
Stepping out of my car, I realized that it was much warmer and sunnier on the mountaintop, and the view was the most spectacular I'd ever seen. There were dragonflies and hummingbirds darting around, and I could see clear across the bay to San Francisco and even Mount Diablo in the distance. They took me on the Verna Dunshe Trail which is a gentle walk on a .75 mile loop atop the mountain.
The parking is $8 cash so come prepared, and you pay when you arrive. It's a self-serve payment policy. This is an ADA area, and if you have a family member with disabilities, you can call ahead to 1-415-388-2070 to make arrangements for them to get extra assistance. There are restrooms, a fountain for drinking, and picnic tables if you want to do a little celebrating!
We walked down the trail to the location that they'd scouted ahead of time, and my jaw just dropped. I couldn't believe the view that I was taking in, and I knew right away that this was someplace special that I'd be sharing with all of you. A lot of couples who are elopement planning tell me that they'd like to get married high atop a cliff. Well, this beats any cliff I've ever seen, by about a million miles. We stopped and took pictures along the rim of the trail, and there were plenty of pretty rock formations to play around with. But off in the distance, I noticed a circular overlook created by the park service that reminded me of a much larger version of the Muir Beach Overlook. This area was big enough for a wedding officiant, the couple, and some guests. It also had a walkway that could double as an "aisle" for a bride to walk down. If you'd like to get married at this location, you can get a wedding permit for Mt Tamalpias by contacting: dkopler@parks.ca.gov.
If you're an outdoorsy couple, not afraid of heights, and can walk a mile easily, then this could be the dream elopement location for you. I would not suggest this space if you have small children that need to be watched as the trail doesn't have guardrails at some points. (Don't worry, we have other beautiful locations for families with littles. Muir Woods is baby stroller accessible.) As beautifully wild as this location is, you're only a 20-30 minute drive down the mountain to the luxury towns of Mill Valley and Sausalito for fine dining and honeymoon-worthy hotels that we're happy to share with you. If you think the delightful forest and the majestic mountains are the right locations for your elopement wedding and photography, please reach out to us and let us plan your upcoming event for you.
