“A very worthy diversion.” That’s what I was told about Muir Woods National Monument, not far outside of San Francisco. I was also told that it was a magical place. Both statements are completely accurate.

When we started planning our honeymoon in Northern California, Redwood National Park was on our short list of places to visit. We eventually ruled it out as it was a little further north than we wanted to venture on this trip. We also figured that we’d want to take a trip to Oregon at some point in the next handful of years and when we do, we’ll visit Redwood National Park as well.

Despite this decision, I was a little bit sad that I was not going to get to see any huge redwood trees on our trip. I’d never been to California before and redwoods seemed like a can’t miss part of the California experience to me. Fortunately when I asked for a few honeymoon suggestions on Twitter, a couple of my contacts came forward with raving reviews of Muir Woods! Thanks Lolly and Sara! Without your recommendations, we might have missed out on Muir Woods!

Muir Woods is just a short drive from San Francisco, so if you’re in the San Francisco area with a car, it’s very much worth a visit. We were eventually headed to Napa that day and Muir Woods was just a short distance off the path to Napa. Plus you get to drive over The Golden Gate Bridge to get there!

We spent the better part of an afternoon wandering around. The trees are so tall and magnificent that I think I spent most of the time looking up at the sky rather than paying attention to where I was walking.