Novato has a mountain too ya know...

We all love Mount Tam. It is perfect. Even the name. Whether you choose to abbrev., say the full name Tamalpais, or go with the nickname “The Sleeping Lady.”

And then there’s Mount Burdell in Novato. The overlooked little sister is impressive in her own right.

The peak is 1,500 feet (vs. 2,500 for Mt. Tam). But it comes with its own cool name: Olompali (the northeast side of the mountain is Olompali State Historic Park).

Here are a few more interesting facts:

• Stone walls at the top (see picture below). These mortarless walls were stacked by Chinese laborers in the 1870s to contain grazing lifestock.

• The Burdell mansion. We will have to do another post just about it, including its ties to the Grateful Dead and the fire that destroyed it in 1969.

• There were several quarries and the stones were used to pave SF streets in the 1880s through early 1900s. Rock enthusiasts: Marin is mostly Franciscan bedrock, but Burdell is volcanic andesite/tuff, part of the Sonoma Volcanic Field.

• There’s a seasonal Hidden Lake pond partway up, known for its frogs and salamanders.

Tip: this is a great hike to try in the winter. Novato is generally a little warmer than Southern Marin and the Mt. Burdell trails don’t have a lot of shade.

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A-Frames are the ultimate mountain home. They are generally built for areas with heavy snowfall, and Mt. Tam is not such an area. That makes them rare to see here in Marin!

This is a 3 bed, 2 bath, 2,000 sq ft home. Incredible views if you can overlook the power lines. How many times would you look out that window and hope PG&E would bury them in the name of fire safety?

It is a short 2 mile hike to Muir Woods. And just a 4 mile drive down to Tam High, so not a horribly inconvenient location either. Remote, but accessible.

Check it out:

Zillow link

Thanks for reading. We will be back with the regular events and activities email Wednesday morning!

— Allison + Brian