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73-670: Beginning in 1913 Mount Tamalpais had hosted theatrical performances known as Mountain Plays in a natural amphitheatre setting 2,000 feet above sea level. John C. Catlin became the first president of the Mountain Play Association and financed its first play in the Cushing Memorial Amphitheatre in 1913. In the first two decades the performances were accessed by hiking or riding the winding Mount Tamalpais and Muir Woods Railway . The railway

146-476: A lake or ocean . A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, the drainage divide , made up of a succession of elevated features, such as ridges and hills . A basin may consist of smaller basins that merge at river confluences , forming a hierarchical pattern . Other terms for a drainage basin are catchment area , catchment basin , drainage area , river basin , water basin , and impluvium . In North America, they are commonly called

219-484: A sink , which may be a permanent lake, a dry lake , or a point where surface water is lost underground . Drainage basins are similar but not identical to hydrologic units , which are drainage areas delineated so as to nest into a multi-level hierarchical drainage system . Hydrologic units are defined to allow multiple inlets, outlets, or sinks. In a strict sense, all drainage basins are hydrologic units but not all hydrologic units are drainage basins. About 48.71% of

292-414: A watershed , though in other English-speaking places, "watershed" is used only in its original sense, that of the drainage divide line. A drainage basin's boundaries are determined by watershed delineation , a common task in environmental engineering and science. In a closed drainage basin, or endorheic basin , rather than flowing to the ocean, water converges toward the interior of the basin, known as

365-454: A drainage basin, and there are different ways to interpret that data. In the unlikely event that the gauges are many and evenly distributed over an area of uniform precipitation, using the arithmetic mean method will give good results. In the Thiessen polygon method, the drainage basin is divided into polygons with the rain gauge in the middle of each polygon assumed to be representative for

438-540: A drainage boundary is referred to as watershed delineation . Finding the area and extent of a drainage basin is an important step in many areas of science and engineering. Most of the water that discharges from the basin outlet originated as precipitation falling on the basin. A portion of the water that enters the groundwater system beneath the drainage basin may flow towards the outlet of another drainage basin because groundwater flow directions do not always match those of their overlying drainage network. Measurement of

511-463: A few isolated areas, are of two types. Northern coastal prairie is found below the fog line and is characterized by a Festuca - Danthonia association, while valley grassland , found in drier areas, is dominated by Nassella pulchra , with Elymus glaucus and Leymus triticoides also being common. Wetland vegetation types found on Mount Tamalpais include coastal riparian forests, wet meadows , and some marsh areas. Coastal riparian forest

584-541: A self-service fee ($ 8). The scenic Ridgecrest Blvd. running along the ridgeline between the Rock Spring trailhead and Fairfax-Bolinas Road, with panoramic views of the summit, Pacific, San Francisco , Bolinas , and Point Reyes , is featured in many automobile and other advertisements, as well as being the local hang-gliding launch point. Mount Tam is also home to the Edgewood Botanic Garden and to

657-815: Is a peak in Marin County , California , United States, often considered symbolic of Marin County. Much of Mount Tamalpais is protected within public lands such as Mount Tamalpais State Park , the Marin Municipal Water District watershed , and National Park Service land, such as Muir Woods . The name Tamalpais was first recorded in 1845. It comes from the Coast Miwok name for this mountain, támal pájiṣ , meaning "west hill". Various different folk etymologies also exist, but they are unsubstantiated. One holds that it comes from

730-465: Is a rare variety of thistle known only from the serpentine seeps of the mountain. The Mount Tamalpais jewelflower ( Streptanthus batrachopus ) is also limited to the area. Mount Tamalpais provides one of the last remaining wildlife refuges in the Bay Area. Urbanization has invaded wildlife habitat, forcing many fauna in southern Marin County to retreat up onto Mount Tamalpais, Muir Woods , and

803-696: Is a tribe in Siberia. Mount Tamalpais is the highest peak in the Marin Hills , which are part of the Northern California Coast Ranges . The elevation at the West Peak, where a radar dome currently stands, is between 2,560 feet (780 m) and 2,578 feet (786 m) It stood over 2,600 feet (792 m) before the summit was flattened for the radar dome construction. The East Peak is at 2,571 feet (784 m). The mountain

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876-814: Is clearly visible from parts of San Francisco and the East Bay . The majority of the mountain is contained in protected public lands, including Mount Tamalpais State Park, Muir Woods National Monument , and the Mount Tamalpais Watershed. It adjoins the Golden Gate National Recreation Area (which in turn adjoins Point Reyes National Seashore ) as well as several Marin County Open Space Preserves. This provides nearly 40 miles (64 km) of continuous publicly accessible open space. Some of

949-439: Is more dominant in shadier, moister areas; madrone is abundant in certain soil types in both moist and dry spots. Oak woodlands are a more open-canopy forest dominated by coast live oak, while oak savannah has a completely open canopy and represents a mixture of coast live oak woodland and grassland. The great diversity of microclimates on Mount Tamalpais ensures a wide variety of plant communities as well. Plant communities on

1022-435: Is predominant along the valley streams of Mount Tamalpais. Red and white alder ( Alnus rubra and Alnus rhombifolia ) and arroyo and yellow willow ( Salix lasiolepis and S. lasiandra ) are dominant in these types of woodland, with bigleaf maple ( Acer macrophyllum ), box-elder ( Acer negundo ssp. californicum ), and California bay also being common. Wet meadows are present in several high-elevation spots on

1095-487: Is referred to as " watershed management ". In Brazil , the National Policy of Water Resources, regulated by Act n° 9.433 of 1997, establishes the drainage basin as the territorial division of Brazilian water management. When a river basin crosses at least one political border, either a border within a nation or an international boundary, it is identified as a transboundary river . Management of such basins becomes

1168-614: Is the Dead Sea . Drainage basins have been historically important for determining territorial boundaries, particularly in regions where trade by water has been important. For example, the English crown gave the Hudson's Bay Company a monopoly on the fur trade in the entire Hudson Bay basin, an area called Rupert's Land . Bioregional political organization today includes agreements of states (e.g., international treaties and, within

1241-713: The African Great Lakes , the interiors of Australia and the Arabian Peninsula , and parts in Mexico and the Andes . Some of these, such as the Great Basin, are not single drainage basins but collections of separate, adjacent closed basins. In endorheic bodies of water where evaporation is the primary means of water loss, the water is typically more saline than the oceans. An extreme example of this

1314-534: The Bolinas Ridge . A wide variety of avifauna , amphibians , arthropods and mammals are found on Mount Tamalpais, including a number of rare and endangered species . Mt. Tamalpais and the neighboring Golden Gate Recreation Area together encompass over 115 square miles (298 square kilometers) of land, forming one of the largest preserved parklands located near a U.S. urban center. The Coast Miwok are said to have believed that an evil witch dwelled at

1387-828: The Continental Divide , northern Alaska and parts of North Dakota , South Dakota , Minnesota , and Montana in the United States, the north shore of the Scandinavian peninsula in Europe, central and northern Russia, and parts of Kazakhstan and Mongolia in Asia , which totals to about 17% of the world's land. Just over 13% of the land in the world drains to the Pacific Ocean . Its basin includes much of China, eastern and southeastern Russia, Japan,

1460-714: The Korean Peninsula , most of Indochina, Indonesia and Malaysia, the Philippines, all of the Pacific Islands , the northeast coast of Australia , and Canada and the United States west of the Continental Divide (including most of Alaska), as well as western Central America and South America west of the Andes. The Indian Ocean 's drainage basin also comprises about 13% of Earth's land. It drains

1533-730: The Marin County Fire Department . Mount Tamalpais is a hiking, picnicking, mountain and road cycling, horseback riding, and hang-gliding destination for residents of the San Francisco Bay Area , with over 100 miles (160 km) of trails and fire roads. With numerous trailheads, a well-networked trail and road system, and hikes of greatly varying length and difficulty, the mountain offers a compelling range of attractions. Marin Municipal Water District maintains several reservoirs on

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1606-622: The North American Plate as it slides along the Pacific Plate near the San Andreas Fault zone . In 2004, a team of Penn State geoscientists suggested that a blind thrust fault , like the one that caused the infamous Northridge earthquake , lies beneath Mount Tamalpais. This idea was partly based on the steepness of Mount Tamalpais and of nearby Bolinas Ridge , such steepness on the visible surface often being

1679-658: The Sidney B. Cushing Amphitheatre where Broadway musical productions are performed every year by the Mountain Play Association. Monthly astronomy viewings and lectures are held at Rock Spring and Mountain Theater April through October by Mt Tam Astronomy. Since the Mount Tamalpais area contains large expanses of undeveloped, natural land, there are many trails and trailheads that criss-cross

1752-400: The manzanita slopes, cool and breezy at the summit, and shady on the heavily Douglas-fir -forested north slopes near Alpine Lake. Annual precipitation around Mount Tamalpais varies greatly from around 27.5–31.5 inches (700–800 mm) in the drier, eastern foothills to about 59 inches (1,500 mm) near the Bolinas Ridge , close to the Pacific Ocean . Both Mount Tamalpais and

1825-614: The 50th Anniversary of the Magic Mountain Festival with performances by Bob Weir and Phil Lesh of the Grateful Dead, Jim James of My Morning Jacket, Preservation Hall Jazz Band, The Stone Foxes, Vetiver, and the Printz Dance Project. The Sound Summit 2018 featured jazz icon Herbie Hancock , Grace Potter , Bob Weir , Nikki Lane, Con Brio , and Amelia Einhorn. The event took a rest in 2019, and it

1898-529: The Bolinas Ridge and the summit of Mount Tamalpais. In summer, the area gets almost no precipitation, except for fog drip that occurs in Muir Woods, the Bolinas Ridge and the western end of Mount Tamalpais, where summer fog and oceanic breezes are more prevalent. In contrast, the eastern foothills, sheltered from the oceanic breezes and fog, are drier, since the foothills force little moisture out of

1971-571: The Bolinas Ridge force moisture out of the air efficiently, since the air is cooled rapidly as it ascends the steep mountain faces and thus Mount Tamalpais's western part is heavily forested with tall redwoods and Douglas firs. The same fact holds for the steep, south-facing bowl canyon that Muir Woods is located in, with precipitation in Redwood Canyon at around 39.4–47.2 inches (1,000–1,200 mm). As in San Francisco , most of

2044-485: The North Bay, San Francisco, and any other nearby locale resting on unstable earth and loose fill. Major Mount Tamalpais rockforms include serpentine , particularly evident in outcroppings near the summit and on the north side. A number of serpentine endemic plants grow in the serpentine soils in this part of the mountain. Since the steep slopes of Mount Tamalpais force out moisture from passing storms and/or fog,

2117-773: The Roseland Rhythm Review , and Danny Click and the Hell Yeahs . In 2014, Michael Nash formed Roots & Branches Conservancy and since 2015 has produced Sound Summit at the Amphitheatre, raising $ 200,000 for Mount Tamalpais State Park . The Sound Summit 2015 lineup included Tedeschi Trucks Band , Dr. John & The Nite Trippers, The Mother Hips , Portland Cello Project, The Mother Truckers, and Caroline Sky. Sound Summit 2016 featured Wilco, Los Lobos , Bill Frisell & Guitar In The Space Age, The Stone Foxes , and Matt Jaffe. Sound Summit 2017 celebrated

2190-654: The Spanish Tamal país , meaning "Tamal country," Tamal being the name that the Spanish missionaries gave to the Coast Miwok people. Another holds that the name is the Coast Miwok word for "sleeping maiden" and is taken from a " Legend of the Sleeping Maiden " Supposedly, the legend is that the mountain's contour reflects the reclining profile of a young Miwok girl who was saved from a rival tribe by

2263-623: The US, interstate compacts ) or other political entities in a particular drainage basin to manage the body or bodies of water into which it drains. Examples of such interstate compacts are the Great Lakes Commission and the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency . In hydrology , the drainage basin is a logical unit of focus for studying the movement of water within the hydrological cycle . The process of finding

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2336-518: The air. This leads to the fact that the eastern slopes contain only oak, pine, chaparral shrub, coastal sage scrub , grassland and sparse Douglas-fir forest. Coastal sage scrub also occurs on some of the exposed coastal slopes. Temperatures on top of Mount Tamalpais are generally somewhat cooler than places next to the San Francisco Bay or the ocean due to elevation. In summer, however, the top of Mount Tamalpais may actually be warmer than

2409-482: The annual precipitation falls during the winter months. During cold, wet winter storms, the mountain also regularly gets some snowfall, sometimes as much as 6 inches (15 cm) overnight, as observed in February 2001, March 2006, February 2011, February 2019, and February 2023. The region sometimes gets hit with strong Pacific storms that may topple trees, and bring hurricane-force winds to exposed, barren areas like

2482-520: The area. Many of these trails are used by hikers and bikers seeking refuge from the urban landscape of the San Francisco Bay Area. Some of these trails, including the mountaintop or ridgetop trails, have views of the San Francisco Bay and Pacific Ocean. Other trails, usually lower elevation valley trails, lead into natural, dense groves of mature Douglas-fir and redwood trees, clear, open grassland, and shrublands. All roads leading to

2555-406: The basin, it can form tributaries that change the structure of the land. There are three different main types, which are affected by the rocks and ground underneath. Rock that is quick to erode forms dendritic patterns, and these are seen most often. The two other types of patterns that form are trellis patterns and rectangular patterns. Rain gauge data is used to measure total precipitation over

2628-475: The birthplace of mountain biking in the 1970s, where early mountain bikers such as Gary Fisher , Charlie Kelly , and Joe Breeze were active. British philosopher Alan Watts owned a cabin on Mount Tamalpais later in his life where he ultimately died in his sleep of heart failure on November 16, 1973. On top of the East Peak is a fire lookout station, staffed during the summer months by volunteers with

2701-430: The discharge of water from a basin may be made by a stream gauge located at the basin's outlet. Depending on the conditions of the drainage basin, as rainfall occurs some of it seeps directly into the ground. This water will either remain underground, slowly making its way downhill and eventually reaching the basin, or it will permeate deeper into the soil and consolidate into groundwater aquifers. As water flows through

2774-441: The drainage area is dependent on the soil type. Certain soil types such as sandy soils are very free-draining, and rainfall on sandy soil is likely to be absorbed by the ground. However, soils containing clay can be almost impermeable and therefore rainfall on clay soils will run off and contribute to flood volumes. After prolonged rainfall even free-draining soils can become saturated , meaning that any further rainfall will reach

2847-697: The drainage basin to the mouth, and may accumulate there, disturbing the natural mineral balance. This can cause eutrophication where plant growth is accelerated by the additional material. Because drainage basins are coherent entities in a hydrological sense, it has become common to manage water resources on the basis of individual basins. In the U.S. state of Minnesota , governmental entities that perform this function are called " watershed districts ". In New Zealand, they are called catchment boards. Comparable community groups based in Ontario, Canada, are called conservation authorities . In North America, this function

2920-857: The eastern coast of Africa, the coasts of the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf , the Indian subcontinent , Burma, and most parts of Australia . The five largest river basins (by area), from largest to smallest, are those of the Amazon (7 million km ), the Congo (4 million km ), the Nile (3.4 million km ), the Mississippi (3.22 million km ), and the Río de la Plata (3.17 million km ). The three rivers that drain

2993-681: The first outdoor rock festival ever held during the Summer of Love . It hosts theatrical productions each year in the spring. In response to the California State Parks budget crisis, on June 21, 2013, the Tamalpais Conservation Club hosted a benefit concert, Mount Tam Jam , produced by Michael Nash. This eight-hour festival resulted in a sell-out crowd under perfect weather conditions. The musical lineup included CAKE , Galactic , Taj Mahal , Mike Farris and

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3066-465: The fog line with relatively low overall rainfall or thin soils are often the site of a northern coastal scrub community characterized by coastal sage - coyote brush association, with lesser amounts of poison-oak , bush monkeyflower , California blackberry , western bracken fern , and various species of grasses and forbs . Chaparral is predominant in areas characterized by thin, rocky soils and little moisture. Two main types of chaparral are found

3139-646: The fog line, and deep soils. Muir Woods is the most extensive and best-known redwood forest of the Mount Tamalpais area. Mixed evergreen forests of various combinations of tanoak , madrone , coast and canyon live oak , and Douglas-fir are found in moist areas on middle to high elevations on the mountain. Very moist areas of mixed evergreen forest may also include bay, redwood, and California torreya . Areas in which mixed evergreen forests are predominant include areas of Fairfax-Bolinas Road and Ridgecrest Boulevard and around Alpine Lake . Various kinds of scrub communities are also widespread. Low-elevation areas below

3212-583: The greatest portion of western Sub-Saharan Africa , as well as Western Sahara and part of Morocco . The two major mediterranean seas of the world also flow to the Atlantic. The Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico basin includes most of the U.S. interior between the Appalachian and Rocky Mountains , a small part of the Canadian provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan , eastern Central America ,

3285-435: The ground and along rivers it can pick up nutrients , sediment , and pollutants . With the water, they are transported towards the outlet of the basin, and can affect the ecological processes along the way as well as in the receiving water body . Modern use of artificial fertilizers , containing nitrogen (as nitrates ), phosphorus , and potassium , has affected the mouths of drainage basins. The minerals are carried by

3358-781: The ground at its terminus, the area can go by several names, such playa, salt flat, dry lake , or alkali sink . The largest endorheic basins are in Central Asia , including the Caspian Sea , the Aral Sea , and numerous smaller lakes. Other endorheic regions include the Great Basin in the United States, much of the Sahara Desert , the drainage basin of the Okavango River ( Kalahari Basin ), highlands near

3431-639: The islands of the Caribbean and the Gulf, and a small part of northern South America. The Mediterranean Sea basin, with the Black Sea , includes much of North Africa , east-central Africa (through the Nile River ), Southern , Central, and Eastern Europe , Turkey , and the coastal areas of Israel , Lebanon , and Syria . The Arctic Ocean drains most of Western Canada and Northern Canada east of

3504-482: The lower slopes of Mount Tamalpais fall within several cities and unincorporated communities of Marin County, including Mill Valley , Tamalpais-Homestead Valley , Stinson Beach , and Kentfield . These areas are generally developed, consisting of mostly low-density single-family homes . Like the rest of the California Coast Ranges, Mount Tamalpais is the result of uplift, buckling, and folding of

3577-601: The many trailheads around Mount Tamalpais are usually open, but during fire season some of these roads may be closed due to high fire risk. The many roads, paved and unpaved, that cross the Mount Tamalpais region are used by mountain bikers , especially on weekends. Mount Tamalpais played an instrumental role in the birth of mountain biking many years ago, with pioneer frame builders such as Tom Ritchey , Gary Fisher, and Joe Breeze setting up shops in nearby towns. There has been considerable controversy over trail access for mountain bikes, both in terms of environmental impact and

3650-633: The middle, foggy elevations due to a thermal inversion . The summer fog and breezes make locations on Mount Tamalpais, closer to the ocean, cooler than the blazing hot interior valleys. Hardwood woodland types are generally subtypes of California oak woodland , including oak-bay-madrone forest, oak woodland, and oak savannah . Oak-bay-madrone forests are found in areas with moderate moisture and particularly favor north-facing slopes. They are dominated by one or more of three hardwood tree species – Coast Live Oak , California bay , and madrone . Coast live oak tends to be dominant in somewhat drier areas, while bay

3723-514: The most water, from most to least, are the Amazon, Ganges , and Congo rivers. Endorheic basin are inland basins that do not drain to an ocean. Endorheic basins cover around 18% of the Earth's land. Some endorheic basins drain to an Endorheic lake or Inland sea . Many of these lakes are ephemeral or vary dramatically in size depending on climate and inflow. If water evaporates or infiltrates into

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3796-804: The mountain chamise chaparral and manzanita chaparral. Chamise is dominant in the hottest, most xeric areas of the mountain, particularly on south- and west-facing slopes, while manzanita is dominant in other xeric areas, particularly on east-facing slopes and forest borders. Areas of mixed chamise-manzanita chaparral occur in relatively more mesic areas; Ceanothus and dwarfed interior live oak may also predominate on such sites. Areas in which various kinds of chaparral communities are dominant include areas along Old Railroad Grade. Grassland areas are also common on Mount Tamalpais. Native perennial bunchgrass species were originally dominant, but most of these grasslands are now dominated by invasive annual grasses of European origin. Native grasslands, still found in

3869-482: The mountain in the early 20th century, only to be destroyed by one of the periodic hurricane-force windstorms. In late November 1944, a US Navy plane crashed into the mountain after developing engine trouble shortly after takeoff from Alameda Naval Air Station . All eight aviators on board were killed. The U.S. Weather Bureau operated a weather station at the site of the now defunct Mill Valley Air Force Station for many years. The peak and its surrounding areas are

3942-412: The mountain include various types of hardwood and coniferous forests , coastal scrub , chaparral , grassland , and wetland vegetation. Wholly or partially coniferous forest types are found in the moistest areas of Mount Tamalpais. Coast redwood forests are restricted to areas where the particular ecological needs of redwood are met: areas characterized by high overall moisture, low elevations below

4015-490: The mountain supports several year-round streams like Redwood Creek on the southern face of the mountain down into Muir Woods . The steep southeastern slopes of Mount Tamalpais drain to Arroyo Corte Madera del Presidio , which in turn discharges to Richardson Bay . With its height, various faces, and proximity to the ocean and bay, the mountain contains many microclimates , ranging from cool and foggy in lower ocean-facing valleys with their redwood forests, to hot and dry on

4088-597: The mountain, while High Marsh represents a rare example of a marsh community on the mountain. Serpentine soils have a high rate of endemism and are the site of several unique subtypes of the above plant communities. Serpentine grasslands are some of the few grasslands in which native perennial grasses are still relatively dominant. Serpentine chaparral forms a unique plant community, dominated by dwarfed leather oak ( Quercus durata ), Jepson ceanothus ( Ceanothus jepsonii ), Tamalpais manzanita ( Arctostaphylos montana ), and Sargent cypress ( Cupressus sargentii ). On

4161-435: The north slopes of Mount Tamalpais, including Alpine Lake , Kent Lake , Bon Tempe Lake , Phoenix Lake, and Lake Lagunitas . The western slopes of the mountain descend to the Pacific Ocean at Stinson Beach . The annual Dipsea Race traverses the mountain from Mill Valley to Stinson Beach. Though backpack camping isn't allowed, walk-in camping exists at the Pantoll and Bootjack campgrounds. The historic Bootjack Campground

4234-418: The rainfall on the area of land included in its polygon. These polygons are made by drawing lines between gauges, then making perpendicular bisectors of those lines form the polygons. The isohyetal method involves contours of equal precipitation are drawn over the gauges on a map. Calculating the area between these curves and adding up the volume of water is time-consuming. Isochrone maps can be used to show

4307-572: The responsibility of the countries sharing it. Nile Basin Initiative , OMVS for Senegal River , Mekong River Commission are a few examples of arrangements involving management of shared river basins. Management of shared drainage basins is also seen as a way to build lasting peaceful relationships among countries. The catchment is the most significant factor determining the amount or likelihood of flooding . Catchment factors are: topography , shape, size, soil type, and land use (paved or roofed areas). Catchment topography and shape determine

4380-435: The result of blind thrust faults. Another reason for the suggestion was that the San Andreas Fault creeps more slowly south of Mount Tamalpais than it does in its sections north of Mount Tamalpais and in the Olema Valley , and that the existence of a blind thrust fault may explain the different creeping velocities. If a blind thrust fault does exist under Mount Tamalpais, and if it ruptures, it could be potentially devastating to

4453-461: The river rather than being absorbed by the ground. If the surface is impermeable the precipitation will create surface run-off which will lead to higher risk of flooding; if the ground is permeable, the precipitation will infiltrate the soil. Land use can contribute to the volume of water reaching the river, in a similar way to clay soils. For example, rainfall on roofs, pavements , and roads will be collected by rivers with almost no absorption into

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4526-408: The safety of other trail users. As a result, bicycles have been banned from the majority of narrow, single-track trails, though bicycles are still allowed on fire roads. The fire roads on Mt. Tam are mixed-use and they are commonly used as running, hiking, biking and horseback riding routes. The Dipsea Race , the oldest cross-country trail running race in the U.S., is held in the area and part of

4599-428: The shuddering of the mountain. However, this legend actually has no basis in Coast Miwok myth and is instead a piece of Victorian-era apocrypha . The "Sleeping Lady" story was the creation of playwright Dan Totheroh, who wrote the first play performed at Mt. Tamalpais' Mountain Theater about Tamelpa, the Mountain Queen. Another suggests a tie to the Eurasian origins of the Miwoks, where "pais" means place and "tamal"

4672-418: The speed with which the runoff reaches a river. A long thin catchment will take longer to drain than a circular catchment. Size will help determine the amount of water reaching the river, as the larger the catchment the greater the potential for flooding. It is also determined on the basis of length and width of the drainage basin. Soil type will help determine how much water reaches the river. The runoff from

4745-415: The time taken for rain to reach the river, while catchment size, soil type, and development determine the amount of water to reach the river. Generally, topography plays a big part in how fast runoff will reach a river. Rain that falls in steep mountainous areas will reach the primary river in the drainage basin faster than flat or lightly sloping areas (e.g., > 1% gradient). Shape will contribute to

4818-477: The time taken for runoff water within a drainage basin to reach a lake, reservoir or outlet, assuming constant and uniform effective rainfall. Drainage basins are the principal hydrologic unit considered in fluvial geomorphology . A drainage basin is the source for water and sediment that moves from higher elevation through the river system to lower elevations as they reshape the channel forms. Drainage basins are important in ecology . As water flows over

4891-588: The top of Mount Tamalpais and therefore never set foot on the peak. Tamalpais was home to the Mount Tamalpais and Muir Woods Railway , also known as "The Crookedest Railroad in the World," a railroad which wound its way from downtown Mill Valley up to the mountain's East Peak, starting in 1896. An auto road was constructed to the peak as automobiles gained popularity in the 1920s. The 8-mile standard-gauge railroad used conventional rails but required mountain-climbing geared steam locomotives and operated from 1896 to 1930. Early wireless towers were constructed on

4964-429: The trail traverses the mountain from Mill Valley to Stinson Beach. Broadway musicals are performed outdoors, several times each summer, in the stone open air Cushing Memorial Amphitheatre on the southern side of Mt. Tam. Drainage basin A drainage basin is an area of land in which all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth , or flows into another body of water , such as

5037-499: The upper slopes of the mountain, small groves of Sargent cypress trees up to 50 feet (15 m) tall can be found in serpentine areas. Several species of endemic plants are found only on serpentine soils; these species may be widespread, but only occur on serpentine soils, or the may be more restricted, only growing in a few other places besides Mount Tamalpais, or may even be restricted just to Mount Tamalpais. The Mount Tamalpais thistle ( Cirsium hydrophilum var. vaseyi ), for example,

5110-405: The world's land drains to the Atlantic Ocean . In North America , surface water drains to the Atlantic via the Saint Lawrence River and Great Lakes basins, the Eastern Seaboard of the United States, the Canadian Maritimes , and most of Newfoundland and Labrador . Nearly all of South America east of the Andes also drains to the Atlantic, as does most of Western and Central Europe and

5183-411: Was established in the early 1920s by the Tamalpais Conservation Corps, and the Civilian Conservation Corps further refined the campground facilities in the 1930s. Showing substantial signs of overuse, the campground was closed by State Parks in 1969. The Bootjack Campground and Trail were reopened on Thursday, June 5, 2014. Trailhead parking within Mt. Tamalpais State Park is available generally with

5256-597: Was led by businessman Sidney B. Cushing and, in 1933, the Civilian Conservation Corps began construction of a 4,000-seat stone amphitheater that was named the Sidney B. Cushing Memorial Amphitheatre in his honor. The amphitheatre was constructed by the corps using massive serpentine rocks . In 1967 the venue hosted the two-day Fantasy Fair and Magic Mountain Music Festival , widely considered

5329-668: Was postponed in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The following year, Sound Summit 2021 returned to a joyful and jubilant crowd with performances by Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real , Father John Misty , Allah-Las , Cha Wa , Teal Collins, and Ray & Paul Holmberg. 37°54′46″N 122°36′32″W  /  37.91278°N 122.60889°W  / 37.91278; -122.60889 Mount Tamalpais Mount Tamalpais ( / t æ m əl ˈ p aɪ ɪ s / ; TAM -əl- PY -iss ; Miwok : Támal Pájiṣ ), known locally as Mount Tam ,

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