Muir Beach, California
Muir Beach is a census designated place (CDP), unincorporated community, and beach on the Pacific Ocean. The community is located 16.5 miles (26.6 km) northwest of San Francisco in western Marin County, California, United States. Unlike many other entities in the area, it is not named directly in honor of conservationist John Muir; instead, it was named after Muir Woods National Monument to capitalize on the latter's popularity. The population was 304 at the 2020 census. The community itself flanks the northwest side of the beach.
Muir Beach | |
|---|---|
Muir Beach as seen from the beach in December 2013 | |
Location in Marin County and the state of California | |
Muir Beach CDP, California | |
| Coordinates: 37°51′44″N 122°34′53″W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | California |
| County | Marin |
| Government | |
| • Type | Community Services District |
| • Board members | See Directors |
| • Supervisor | District 4 Dennis Rodoni |
| • State senator | Mark Leno (D) |
| • Assemblymember | Stephanie Nguyen (D) |
| • U. S. rep. | Jared Huffman (D) |
| Area | |
| • Total | 0.493 sq mi (1.28 km2) |
| • Land | 0.493 sq mi (1.28 km2) |
| • Water | 0 sq mi (0 km2) 0% |
| Elevation | 312 ft (95 m) |
| Population (2020) | |
| • Total | 304 |
| • Density | 620/sq mi (240/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-8 (Pacific) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-7 (PDT) |
| ZIP code | 94965 |
| Area codes | 415/628 |
| FIPS code | 06-49950 |
| GNIS feature IDs | 1853403, 2408888 |
| Website | www |
Located about 2 miles (3 km) from the entrance to Muir Woods, the beach is about 1,000 feet (300 m) long and 200 feet (61 m) wide, with coarse sand and several large boulders. Redwood Creek empties into the beach. There is a parking lot at the beach, which is accessible via a footbridge.
The subdivision of homes was formerly called Bello Beach, and the beach itself was formerly called Big Lagoon after a freshwater lagoon that was located where the parking lot is now. Damage from 20th century dairy farms interfered with the flow of the creek and the lagoon.