Tag: santa cruz mountains

Sierra Azul Trudge ‘Completes’ Bay Area Ridge Trail Odyssey

We began our Bay Area Ridge Trail adventure in April 2021 at Purisima Creek Redwoods Preserve in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Three years, 403 trail miles, 530 total miles and 13.7 miles of elevation gain later, we completed the last of the 73 segments listed in the 2019 Ridge Trail guide book with a difficult 12-mile tramp across Sierra Azul Open Space Preserve at Los Gatos.

We are hiking the Bay Area Ridge Trail. Sign up to follow our progress here.

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Logistics Complicate Ridge Trail Hike at Mount Umunhum

The Bay Area Ridge Trail at Mount Umunhum climbs steadily and occasionally steeply through a mixed forest of madrone, bay laurel and oak. The 3,486-foot peak, pushed skyward by a left bend in the San Andreas fault, is the fourth highest in the Santa Cruz Mountains. In addition to the requisite views and a large parking lot, the summit contains “The Cube,” the shell of a Cold War era radar installation that was decommissioned in 1980.

We are hiking the 410-mile Bay Area Ridge Trail. Sign up to follow our progress here.

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Castle Rock State Park

Casual Hiking at Castle Rock on the Ridge Trail

The Bay Area Ridge Trail gently dips and rises through a shady mixed-growth forest and sandstone outcroppings at Sanborn County Park and Castle Rock State Park. The well-used path roughly parallels Skyline Drive along the eastern ridge of the Santa Cruz Mountains above the Silicon Valley.

We are hiking the 400-mile Bay Area Ridge Trail. Sign up to follow our progress here.

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Mount Madonna

Southbound to Mount Madonna on the Ridge Trail

Mount Madonna County Park currently is home to the southern-most section of the Bay Area Ridge Trail. The 3.4-mile segment begins at Blackhawk Creek with a gentle climb through a mixed woodland before soaring more than 1,000 feet in just two miles. The trail then levels off for a winding final mile through a shady redwood forest.

We are hiking the 400-mile Bay Area Ridge Trail. Sign up to follow our progress here.

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A Hillside Ridge Trail Hike above Saratoga

The Bay Area Ridge Trail follows the path of the John Nicholas Trail at Sanborn County Park. The wooded trail on a hillside above Saratoga drops 1,200 feet from Skyline Drive to Lake Ranch Reservoir. The Ridge Trail portion of the route ends at the reservoir. The nicely crafted footpath opened in 2014. It still holds a hint of new trail smell.

We are hiking the 400-mile Bay Area Ridge Trail. Sign up to follow our progress here.

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Hiking the Ridge Trail with Friends at Windy Hill

The Bay Area Ridge Trail at the Windy Hill Open Space Preserve is an easy hike through the woods in the Santa Cruz Mountains above the Portola Valley. The trail breaks into open grassland shortly before reaching the 1,900-foot summit and its sweeping view of San Francisco Bay. Bring your friends.

We are hiking the nearly 400-mile Bay Area Ridge Trail. Sign up to follow our progress here.

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Urban Vistas & War Relics on the Ridge Trail at Pacifica

The Bay Area Ridge Trail traverses the northern tip of the Santa Cruz Mountains on Sweeney and Milagra ridges before descending to the ocean at Pacifica. Connected by Skyline College and the steep staircases that distinguish the mile-long Notch Trail, the two ridges include views of suburban San Mateo County, the Pacific Ocean and San Francisco Bay. Shade is sparse. Historic relics are not.

We are hiking the nearly 400-mile Bay Area Ridge Trail. Sign up to follow our progress here.

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A New Path at El Corte de Madera on the Ridge Trail

The Bay Area Ridge Trail from El Corte de Madera Creek Preserve to Huddart County Park tracks two very different primary trails. The Skyline Trail winds through a shady mixed forest to the east of the preserve, with a thick undergrowth of blackberry and poison oak. The well-groomed and much shorter Oljon Tail, which opened in 2019, rises and falls in the shade of second-growth redwoods. Find a trail map here.

We are hiking the 390-mile Bay Area Ridge Trail. Sign up to follow our progress here.

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Summer on the Ridge Trail from Saratoga Gap to Russian Ridge

The Bay Area Ridge Trail at Saratoga Gap, Skyline Ridge and Russian Ridge undulates through shady oak and bay laurel woodlands and exposed grasslands. The Midpeninsula Regional Open Space preserves include classic views of the layered interior of the Santa Cruz Mountains and glimpses of San Francisco Bay.

We are hiking the 395-mile Bay Area Ridge Trail. Sign up to follow our progress here.

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