Samuel P Taylor State Park - California

Samuel P. Taylor State Park has wooded countryside in the steep rolling hills of Marin County north of San Francisco. The park features a unique contrast of coast redwoods groves and open grassland.

The park features a variety of flowers and trees, including oak, tanoak, madrone, live oak, laurel and Douglas fir. California native wildflowers include buttercups, milkmaids, and Indian paintbrush.

The most common animal in the park is the black-tailed deer. There are also raccoons, striped skunks and gray foxes. Silver salmon and steelhead trout migrate up Papermill Creek to spawn.

Location-Directions

The park is 15 miles west of San Rafael on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard.

Address

P.O.Box 251, Lagunitas, CA 94938

Facilities and Activities

The park offers a network of hiking trails and fire roads, making it easy to hike to the top of Mount Barnabe. Or, for a less strenuous visit, many visitors consider Devil's Gulch the best place in the park for a picnic or a place to relax.

A paved bike trail runs about three miles through the park, beginning near the entrance of the park. The trail is nearly level and follows the old Northwest Pacific Railroad right-of-way.

Because of natural disasters and destruction of habitat by humans, fishing is not permitted in Papermill Creek. Fishing is permitted in nearby lakes on Marin Municipal Water District land. A state fishing license is required.

Seasons/Climate/Recommended Clothing

summer and spring are warm, fall and winter can be cool. Layered clothing is best.

Some Park History

The park is named after Samuel Penfield Taylor, who came to California from Boston in 1849 to try his luck in the gold rush. He actually found gold, cashed in, and entered the lumber business.

Purchasing 100 acres of timberland along Papermill Creek, Taylor built a paper mill and established a paper-making process. Using scrap paper and rags from San Francisco the mill produced newsprint and well as square-bottomed paper bags -- a novelty at the time.

Taylor built a resort hotel and Camp Taylor, one of the first sites in the US to offer camping as a recreational pursuit. The area was one of California's most popular and well-known weekend recreation destinations in the 1870s-80s.

Lagunitas Elementary School

The staff at Samuel P. Taylor State Park is very proud of the close working relationship we have with our local schools. The park is involved with many projects with our local students. Take a look at some of the things we are doing with students from Lagunitas Elementary School District.

Wi-Fi Service

Samuel P. Taylor State Park now offers ATandT Wi-Fi Service!

This service enables park visitors with wireless enabled laptop computers or personal digital assistants (PDAs) to access the Internet. Park visitors will be able to gain Wi-Fi access when they use a wireless device within about 150 to 200 feet of the Ranger Station located in the park. For more information about this service please see January 19, 2005, News Release.