Touring * Scene *

Heading south from San Rafael or north from San Francisco on U.S. 101, exit at Tiburon/Mill Valley (the Tiburon Boulevard/Highway 131/East Blithedale Avenue exit) and head east. Follow Tiburon Boulevard about 1.5 miles and turn right when you see the sign for Blackie's Pasture Road to park in the large dirt lot (some pasture!). Try to avoid raising dust as you drive to the far west end of the lot where the trail begins. Walk, don't roll, to preserve your wheel bearings between car and asphalt.

It's hard to think of this trail as a railroad line, since there's no remaining trace of it. But the Tiburon Linear Park Trail was once part of the north bay terminus for barges carrying railroad cars across the bay for Northwestern Pacific Railroad. Now it's one of the most popular destinations for Bay Area skaters, offering excellent views across the shimmering waters of Richardson Bay.

Begin by skating up a short hill and continuing southeast above the McKegney Green soccer fields on the right, which are closed to soccer after 1 p.m. on Sundays so that others can enjoy them, too. Continue through the Max H. Grefe Wildlife Sanctuary, a series of small ponds maintained by the Richardson Bay Sanitary District, complete with mud flats. The trail gradually moves closer to Tiburon Boulevard after this, with a semi-blind street crossing. After you cross a second street, the trail splits into a bike path parallel to the pedestrian sidewalk. Both paths continue east to enter the shopping area of Tiburon. Here, the trail intersects a traffic circle. On the east side of the traffic circle, you can continue skating next to the water on a truly fine concrete surface. This section is lighted for night skating and still off-limits to bicycles. Who could ask for more?