Robert Louis Stevenson State Park is a scenic section of wilderness located near and on the volcanic peaks of
Mount Saint Helena, one of the tallest mountains near the San Francisco Bay Area (and one of the only places near the Bay Area to reliably see snow in winter). The mountain itself is wide as well as tall, with five different peaks and straddling three different California counties.
R.L. Stevenson Park itself is located around those parts of the mountain that touch the Sonoma and Napa Counties (Lake County, the third county touched by the mountain, is not part of the park). It's a great place to go hiking, offering many typical Northern California sites and views. In particular, there are many vistas of the rolling, golden-colored hills, dotted with oak trees and scrub, for which the San Francisco Bay Area is best known. During the winter, snow can be seen on the peaks of
Mount Saint Helena. The peak is reachable via a particularly satisfying, moderately difficult 8-mile hike. From this peak, one can see the entire Bay Area, from San Jose to San Francisco, spread out to the south. Looking to the north, it's sometimes possible to see Mount Shasta, the second-tallest mountain in California--located almost 200 miles away.
R. L. Stevenson Park is named after the writer Robert Louis Stevenson, best known for his classic novels of adventure, such as "Treasure Island" and "Kidnapped." A little-known fact about Stevenson is that he spent his honeymoon on the slopes of
Mount Saint Helena in 1880. He, his new bride, and his bride's son from a former marriage, lived for one romantic summer near an abandoned mine on the mountain's slopes. Visitors to the park can still see where once stood the writer's family's cabin.
