Contact Information
7665 Redwood Blvd, Suite 150
Novato, CA 94945
415-893-1580
Samuel P. Taylor State Park features over 2,700 acres of 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 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. He purchased 100 acres of timberland along what is now Papermill Creek in the park. He built a paper mill and established a paper-making process using scrap paper and rags from San Francisco to produce 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 U.S. 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.Today, 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. 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. Because of natural disasters and destruction of habitat by humans, fishing is not permitted in the creek. However, fishing is permitted in nearby lakes on Marin Municipal Water District land. (A state fishing license is required.)
he park features a variety of flowers and trees, including oak, tanoak, madrone, live oak, laurel and Douglas fir. California native wildflowers include buttercups, milkmaids, Indian paintbrush and fare-well-to-spring. 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.
There are 60 campsites in the redwood groves. Each site has a table, wood stove, food locker and parking space. Piped drinking water and restroom facilities with hot showers are nearby. Parking spaces at several campsites accommodate small trailers, but electricity, water and sewage hookups are not available. (A special camping area has been set aside for bicyclists.)
Group Campsites: Two group camps sites are located in the Madrone Group Area near the camp entrance. Combined capacity of both sites is 75 people.
Horse Camp: Devil's Gulch Horse Camp has a corral, hitching racks, water troughs and a camping area for up to 25 people. Reservation for the horse camp may be made through the park office at (415) 488-9897.
Picnic Area & Group Reservations: The main picnic area is in a redwood grove along Papermill Creek. Each site has a table and a stove. Piped drinking water and restrooms are nearby. Also, the Redwood Grove Picnic Area is available for groups. Reservations for the Redwood Grove Picnic Area must be made in advance.
Climate in the San Francisco-Bay area varies greatly with elevation and the amount of coastal influence. Areas with more coastal influence experience moderate temperatures year round with fog likely from June through mid-August. Plan your coastal visit in the late summer or fall to ensure the best conditions for viewing the scenery. Also, occasional clear days between winter and spring storms are incomparable. Areas further inland experience greater temperature extremes, with relatively cooler winters and hot summers. Inland areas often receive frost on winter nights. As throughout most of California most of the precipitation comes in the winter months, with April through October normally very dry.
