If I could only take one wildflower hike in May in Marin, I would choose this moderately difficult five-mile loop in the Marin Headlands. It will reward you with views of the ocean, Tennessee Valley and Mount Tamalpais, and parts of the Golden Gate Bridge and San Francisco.

The loop starts on the paved Coastal Trail, then splits. Bikes go straight, staying on the paved road, and hikers turn left on the unpaved Coast Trail. Head uphill, stopping to admire the hillside covered with a native sunflower, narrow-leaf mule’s ears. You pass a scenic but inaccessible pocket beach and rejoin the paved road, turning left where a sign tells you it is 1.6 miles to Hill 88.

Soon you pass Battery Townsley, built in 1938. A sign explains that the 68-foot gun you see is not the original, but one that was take from the USS Missouri. Battery Townsley honors Maj. Gen. Clarence P. Townsley who commanded the 30th Infantry Division in France in World War 1. Walk in to see the cliff swallows nesting in the corners and recesses in the ceiling.

Continue up the paved road and turn left to climb the stairs. A sign saying Coastal Trail gives you a progress report — only one mile to Hill 88 now. Purple harvest brodiaea, white yarrow and orange sticky monkeyflowers mix with blackberries and coyote brush. As you reach the steep part of the stairs, take a moment to notice the lichen on the rocks. It is sea fog lichen, growing only close to the coast.

Turn right on the paved road. This road once led to the radar tracking station at the top of Hill 88, but part of it has collapsed so a sign routes you up yet more stairs. The reward is that higher you get, the better the view. Rejoin the paved road, listening to wrentits calling with their bouncing ball rhythm, spotted towhees sounding like an athletic coach’s whistle, and Nuttal’s white-crowned sparrows singing. Although the plan is to take Wolf Ridge trail down, I like to go to the top of Hill 88 first to admire the view.

Heading down Wolf Ridge trail has me rewriting the Christmas carol and singing “walking in a springtime wonderland” in my head! This is the best part of the hike for flowers, but a fairly steep downhill with loose rocks so also keep an eye on the trail. Blueblossom perfumes the air as you pass by, and there are many different flowers on this north-facing slope. Here orange and yellow columbine flowers mix with red bee plants and fringe cups, purple larkspurs, and the last of the pink shooting stars. Succulents cling to the rocks, and huckleberry sports new red leaves. Thimbleberries have both white flowers and small, unripe green berries.

Turn right on Miwok Trail for an easy one-mile downhill on fire road. Cross Bunker Road and take the trail along the lagoon for the last half mile back to the parking lot.

From Highway 101 South, take the last exit before the Golden Gate Bridge and turn right. Go under the freeway. Get in the left turn lane which will take you to the one-way tunnel with the five-minute light. When you exit the tunnel follow Bunker Road which will take you along the north side of Rodeo Lagoon to the parking lot at the end. Dogs on leash or under voice control.

Wendy Dreskin has led the College of Marin nature/hiking class Meandering in Marin since 1998, and teaches other nature classes for adults and children. To contact her, go to wendydreskin.com.