On Saturday, Byrne and I took a much-needed break from our usual weekend chores and went hiking with the kids from Six Apart. It was a beautiful Northern California spring day, complete with cloudless sky, light breeze, wildflowers in bloom, birds singing, unfogged view of glittering Pacific in the distance, etc.

The hike was easy and brief, but the fun was long and extended, thanks to what lay at the end of the trail: The Tourist Club. There you are, hiking along a ridge on Mt. Tamalpais when suddenly to your wondering eyes appears a full-blown Alps-style chalet. Inside, a charmingly grizzled staff of volunteers is filling pitchers of German beer for thirsty nature-goers. Outside, folks chill on the picnic-table-filled deck overlooking Muir Woods. Angels descend from the tops of the giant redwoods singing "Glory, Hallelujah! Come all ye weary travelers and get ye tipsy with your buddies in the sunshine!"

The Tourist Club was founded in 1912 by members of the Vienna-based group Naturfreunde (Nature Friends), who bought some prime land on the side of Mt. Tam for a couple hundred bucks and built the lodge. I'm not sure I agree with the barman's description of the place as the "best-kept secret in Marin" given the full-to-capacity deck by the time our group stumbled out for our return trip, but when you're there, you do feel as though you've come across some kind of hidden treasure.

We capped off our day with margaritas and Mexican food alfresco at Guaymas, overlooking the bay and SF at the tip of Tiburon. Does it get any better? Very rarely.

Check out more of my photos of the day. Mena and Miyagawa-san also posted some great shots.