Marin County

Marin County is in Northern California, across the Golden Gate Strait from San Francisco. The sprawling Marin Headlands has Golden Gate Bridge views, trails and the 1855 Point Bonita Lighthouse. North are the giant redwood trees of Muir Woods National Monument. Mount Tamalpais State Park’s namesake peak has panoramic views. The Frank Lloyd Wright–designed Marin County Civic Center is in county seat San Rafael. San Quentin Prison is located in the county, as is George Lucas' Skywalker Ranch. Autodesk, the publisher of AutoCAD, is also located there, as well as numerous other high-tech companies. The Marin County Civic Center was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and draws thousands of visitors a year to guided tours of its arch and atrium design. In 1994, a new county jail facility was embedded into the hillside nearby.[8] Marin County's natural sites include the Muir Woods redwood forest, the Marin Headlands, Stinson Beach, the Point Reyes National Seashore, and Mount Tamalpais. The United States' oldest cross country running event, the Dipsea Race, takes place annually in Marin County, attracting thousands of athletes. Mountain biking was invented on the slopes of Mount Tamalpais in Marin.