Our progress so far: 325 trail miles out of 405 … the end is in sight!
Stats
Total miles hiked
(including round trips, returns, getting lost)
Total elevation climbed (ft)
0Hours on the trail
0Number of hiking days
0Segments Complete
Our mission
Dawn likes an ambitious goal. Dan had an idea: “How about we hike the Bay Area Ridge Trail? All 394 miles of it.” Dawn was immediately on board, and the idea began to grow: We could create a new blog and social content; we could find sponsors to raise money for trail development and hiking equipment; we could write a book. We need some tension, so let’s hike it in 100 days.
Then reality set in. Most of the hikes are out and back, doubling the length of many trails and even extending those where car shuttles are possible. As the projected hiking and vehicle miles grew, our tally of family commitments began to squeeze days and occasional weeks off of the projected calendar. Summer heat is coming. Fires are inevitable. And after spending 13 months pretty close to home, we may want to spend some time with friends or take a trip or two once our COVID-19 vaccine is fully functional.
And so, we decided to simplify things. Let’s hike the trail at our leisure – one or two segments a week with occasional long weekends to knock off some miles. Let’s evolve our Coastside Slacking blog and social media instead of starting from scratch. Let’s make a gift to ridge trail development and include a link to the donation site at the end of each post rather than try to seek sponsorships. Let’s buy our own shoes.
Let’s have some fun.
The trail
As envisioned by a coalition of national, state and regional parks administrators in 1987, the Bay Area Ridge Trail one day will connect the San Francisco Bay region with a continuous 550-mile loop along the region’s ridgelines. The first two segments of the Bay Area Ridge Trail were dedicated in 1989 at Purisima Creek Redwoods Open Space Preserve, just down the road from our home on the San Mateo County Coastside, and at nearby Wunderlich County Park. Today, some 400-miles of existing and newly developed trails can be hiked, and more are being added each year.
More information
Find more information about development of the project plus detailed maps and descriptions of each trail segment at the Bay Area Ridge Trail site .
Trail Segments
- Big Sky & Wild Pigs at Grant Park on the Ridge Trail
- Battling Ridge Trail Anxiety at Mission Peak
- Hood Mountain Jump Starts Ridge Trail Trek
- Urban Hiking at Penitencia Creek on the Ridge Trail
- Battling the Ridge Trail ‘Wall’ on Sonoma Mountain
- A Boot Conundrum at Santa Teresa Park on the Ridge Trail
- Quicksilver Relics at New Almaden on the Ridge Trail
- Boot-sucking Mud above Coyote Lake on the Ridge Trail
- Silicon Vistas at Mt. El Sereno on the Ridge Trail
- Rolling Pastures at Hiddenbrooke on the Ridge Trail
- Moody Oaks at Rockville Hills on the Ridge Trail
- Napa to Suscol Ridge via Skyline Wilderness on the Ridge Trail
- A Tromp across the Vallejo Highlands on the Ridge Trail
- Mimosas on the Ridge Trail at Benicia
- Bay Area Ridge Trail Samples Petaluma Streets, Highlands
- A Ridge Trail Floral Spectacle at Jack London State Historic Park
- Hiking the Burn Scar at Bothe-Napa Valley State Park
- A Wine Country Canyon at Moore Creek on the Ridge Trail
- Vista Angst at Pacific Union College on the Ridge Trail
- Cranky Cattle in the Mist above Lynch Canyon on the Ridge Trail
- Ridge Trail by Reservation at San Francisco Peninsula Watershed
- A Cobblestone Legacy at Mount Burdell on the Ridge Trail
- Madrone and Manzanita at Indian Tree Preserve on the Ridge Trail
- A Toe-Stubber at San Geronimo Ridge on the Ridge Trail
- Paying it Forward at Loma Alta on the Ridge Trail
- Hiking Magic above Skywalker Ranch on the Ridge Trail
- Atop Bolinas Ridge on the Bay Area Ridge Trail
- Casual Hiking at Castle Rock on the Ridge Trail
- Southbound to Mount Madonna on the Ridge Trail
- A Hillside Ridge Trail Hike above Saratoga
- Trouble in Napa’s Palisades on the Ridge Trail
- San Jose to Morgan Hill via Coyote Creek on the Ridge Trail
- Rain Greens Up the Ridge Trail at Garin Regional Park
- Napa with a View Atop Mount Saint Helena on the Ridge Trail
- Easy Ridge Trail Miles at Vargas Plateau
- City Streets And Twin Peaks on the Ridge Trail
- Hiking the Ridge Trail with Friends at Windy Hill
- Urban Vistas & War Relics on the Ridge Trail at Pacifica
- The Presidio to Mt. Tamalpais on The Ridge Trail
- A New Path at El Corte de Madera on the Ridge Trail
- Summer on the Ridge Trail from Saratoga Gap to Russian Ridge
- Country Roads at Chabot Park on the Ridge Trail
- A Well-loved Path in Oakland’s Redwoods on the Ridge Trail
- Clouds Shroud Hike to Kennedy Grove on the Ridge Trail
- Desolate Beauty above Martinez on the Ridge Trail
- Almond Ranch Fills Ridge Trail Gap at Franklin Ridge
- Fog to Forest in the Berkeley Hills on the Ridge Trail
- FOMO Powers Dinosaur Ridge Ascent on the Ridge Trail
- Navigating the Carquinez Bridge on the Ridge Trail
- The Ridge Trail Kicks Our Butts in the Pinole Valley
- Crockett Hills on the Bay Area Ridge Trail
- Purisima Creek Redwoods Preserve on the Bay Area Ridge Trail
You both are amazing! Happy trekking!