Martin Luther King Junior Park
Park
11 acres0.5 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: en:User:Squirrel 22 · Public domainA+Outdoors
Outdoors in Sausalito
23% of Sausalito’s land is conserved, and virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park
Virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park. 4.9 miles of mapped trail cross Sausalito, 2.8 per square mile of land. 23% of Sausalito’s land is conserved, about 260 acres.
Among the top 1% of U.S. towns · #38 of 847 in California. What drives it
Conserved land
23%
260 acres · of 1.8 sq mi of land
Trails
4.9 mi
2.8 per sq mi of land
Park land
257 ac
36 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%+
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
5.0 mi
3.6 mi lanes · 0.6 mi paths
What kind of outdoors town is Sausalito?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Land that stays wild23% of the land is conserved; a typical California town, 4%.A trail town2.8 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, more than 97% of U.S. towns.Parks close to homeVirtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park.History along the way5 places on the National Register.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Sausalito have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Sausalito is among the top 1% of U.S. towns, #38 of 847 in California. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, park acres per resident lowest.
A+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Sausalito’s overall grade.
Conserved land23% of the land · typical CA town 4% · U.S. 4%ATrails2.8 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (5 mi) · CA 0.9 · U.S. 0.4A+Park land36 acres of park per 1,000 residents (257 acres) · CA 5 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to homeVirtually all residents within a half mile of a park · CA 91% · U.S. 72%A+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Among the top 1%
LessMore
California towns of 2,500+ (847)Ahead of 96%
Water is 22% of Sausalito’s area (0 of 2 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 18%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would still be A+. Trails and many small parks come from OpenStreetMap, mapped by volunteers, so coverage varies from town to town; the half mile is a straight line from each census block, so a river or highway in the way isn’t counted against it.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
The map
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Easements protect land from building but are usually private.© OpenStreetMap contributors · USGS PAD-US
Places to walk
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is Martin Luther King Junior Park, with 0.5 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Cypress Ridge Open Space
Nature preserve
20 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 6 parks & preserves
Martin Luther King Junior Park11 acres · 0.5 mi of trail
Dunphy Park3 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsCypress Ridge Open Space20 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Marinship Park2 acres
DirectionsRobin Sweeny Park1 acres
DirectionsGabrielson Park1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
260 conserved acres
23% of Sausalito’s land. Water is left out: Sausalito has 1.8 square miles of land and 0.5 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Sausalito’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
National Park Service224 ac
Town or city34 ac
Other or Unknown Federal Land2 ac
National Recreation Area · 222 acLocal Park · 19 acLocal Recreation Area · 15 acRecreation or Education Easement · 4 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 2 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Golden Gate National Recreation Area National Recreation Area | National Park Service | 222 | Open |
| Cypress Ridge Open Space Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 15 | Open |
| Martin Luther King Jr. Park Local Park | Town or city | 12 | Open |
| Marinship Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Dunphy Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| Schoonmaker Beach Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
| Robin Sweeny Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
| Gabrielson Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
Things to do
15 places to go in Sausalito
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Sausalito
Schoonmaker Beach
DirectionsSwede's Beach
DirectionsPlus 1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Playgrounds in Sausalito
MLK PlaygroundIn Martin Luther King Junior Park
DirectionsMary Ann Sears Park Playground
DirectionsSouthview Park Playground
DirectionsPlus 1 playground without a name on the map.
Boat launches in Sausalito
4 boat launches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Scenic views in Sausalito
Bay Bridge & Skyline
DirectionsPlus 1 scenic view without a name on the map.
Picnic areas in Sausalito
2 picnic areas without a name on the map.
Trails & water
6 named trails
Named trails
Open to bikes · 1.7 miHorses · 2.0 miUnpaved · 3.8 mi
Alta Trail1.1 mi
Rodeo Avenue Trail0.7 mi
Morning Sun Trail0.4 mi
SCA Trail0.3 mi
Bobcat Trail0.2 mi
Public Shore0.1 mi
Biking & sports
5.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
3.6 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
0.6 mi
off-road bike paths
0.8 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
9Tennis
5Basketball
1Baseball
1Volleyball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →5 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
When to get out
The best walking months in Sausalito: April to August
NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals for the town and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have long days, highs of 59 to 86 °F and little rain for the place.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 9.8 | 10.7 | 11.8 | 13.1 | 14.2 | 14.8 | 14.5 | 13.6 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 10.1 | 9.6 |
| High (°F) | 57 | 59 | 61 | 63 | 66 | 70 | 70 | 72 | 72 | 70 | 62 | 57 |
| Rain (in) | 5.3 | 5.3 | 3.9 | 1.9 | 0.8 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 1.3 | 3.0 | 5.8 |
July is the driest month (under 0.1 in) and September the warmest (highs of 72 °F). 5.8 inches fall in December, the wettest month. The climate in Sausalito →
Next door
Sausalito and its neighbors
Sausalito has the second most mapped trails of the 2 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sausalito | 23% | 2.8 | 36 | 99%+ | A+ |
| Tamalpais-Homestead Valley | 49% | 5.1 | 117 | 99%+ | A+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Sausalito
Where can I hike in Sausalito?
The longest trail networks: Martin Luther King Junior Park, 0.5 miles; Cypress Ridge Open Space, 0.1 miles; Dunphy Park, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Sausalito is conserved land?
23% of its land, against a typical 4% for a California town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Sausalito’s trails?
Martin Luther King Junior Park and Cypress Ridge Open Space don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Sausalito?
5.0 miles of bike routes are on the map: 3.6 of painted or protected lanes, 0.6 of off-road paths and 0.8 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Sausalito?
48,363 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Sausalito or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 257 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Sausalito have?
Among the top 1% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #38 of 847 in California. The grade combines the share of land that is conserved, miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, park acres per 1,000 residents and the share of residents within a half mile of a park. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
Trail talk
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Sausalito neighbors.
Share a tip
Sources
Where this page comes from
Conserved and public land: USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US), service updated July 2026. Parks, trails, playgrounds, beaches and other places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), map data as of 2026-10-28. Land and water area: Census 2025 Gazetteer. Residents near a park: 2020 Census blocks. National Register: National Park Service. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →