Limited parking spot in Mt. Baldy parking area…read more Paths are well maintained Brought 32 oz H2O for 8 mile round trip on a partly cloudy day and it was all gone! Great path to walk with kids, but just be weary of bicyclists Nice views of San Jose Thanks!

Have not been up here since I was a kid and wanted to check to see how it has changed. Well now…read moreit's a park and the military left, so it's been 45 years..... but the view is still gorgeous and a must see. Bay Area icon. Plus the drive is worth it.

I've only hiked about 16 miles of this trail, but my oh my is it absolutely breathtaking! This is…read moretruly a hiker's and backpacker's dream trail. I've hiked about 8 miles of this trail through Castle Rock State Park and another 8 miles through Big Basin Redwoods State Park. I hiked this trail with a friend last year up to Berry Creek Falls and it was absolutely stunning! The actual trail itself is almost 30 miles long and stretches from the Santa Cruz Mountains all the way to Big Basin Redwoods State Park. The trail begins at the Saratoga Gap which is a ridge within the Santa Cruz Mountains. It makes its' way up the coast past the Pacific Ocean, then through the beautiful mountains of Castle Rock State Park, and finally through the amazing Redwoods within Big Basin Redwoods State Park. This trail has such an amazing variation of different terrains. From your typical coastal ridge paths, to hilly and mountainous inclines, to flat and paved excursions through the Redwoods; this trail seems to simply have it all. I'd have to say that my favorite section of this trail was definitely being able to hike through the Redwoods. Big Basin is California's oldest park and you'll get to see the most amazing old growth Redwood trees. I've always been fascinated by Redwoods, so exploring them while on this trail was so much fun. Aside from the Redwoods, the stretch of this trail through Big Basin is extremely green and filled with a plethora of different plant species and vibrant flowers. And of course, there's Berry Creek Falls which is pretty much the icing on the cake. This waterfall is beautiful and worth the extra miles to get there. I can't forget to mention the incredible rock formations that you'll see while hiking the section that goes through Castle Rock State Park. These views are equally mesmerizing. It's definitely a great workout as much of the trail ascends and descends through the mountains. Lots of water is must and I would recommend bug spray (at least for the portion that runs through Big Basin). I would love to hike the rest of this trail at some point and hopefully make it down to the beach one day. Either way, any hike along this trail will be enjoyable whether it's 5 miles or 30. Would highly recommend this hike if you're planning on visiting Big Basin Redwoods, Castle Rock, Sanborn County Park, or Saratoga Gap Open Space Preserve.

What a fantastic trail! 30+ miles over 3 days starting at Castle Rock campground to Waddell Beach…read more(stopping at Waterman Campground and Jay Campground at the Big Basin HQ). Almost all shaded by the trees (lots of redwoods!) and fantastic scenery the entire time, will well marked trails. You pretty much can't get lost at all. If you do, you deserve to get lost! Also all these campsites have piped drinking water and pit toilets so you probably don't need to bring your water pump. You'll need to make these reservations quite early too since they're pretty limited. State park # is (831) 338-8861 to make the reservations. NIGHT 0: Castle Rock Campground. We ended up not actually staying here because we thought (and there wasn't anything that indicated otherwise) that the campground was right at the trailhead. Instead it's 2.7 miles in. Thus as we had prepared for car camping the first night and were meeting others the next morning at the trailhead, we decided to find another campground elsewhere that was next to the road. Parking at Castle Rock trailhead gets crazy packed on the weekends so come early! The parking lot also closes at sunset so you'll need to make sure your car is in before then. DAY 1: This will be the most "complicated" path since you have to take a couple different trails. As you hike towards Castle Rock (assuming you didn't stay there the night before), you'll see a bunch of day climbers and boulderers. Gorgeous views above the tree skyline along the way. http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/skyline-to-the-sea-trail-davenport?select=mjXU08P2ueRqY-WvlfHxSw#yvfjWy3mdAw7PSTrD67dWw After you past Castle Rock, take the Travertine Springs Trail for ~2 miles which will connect to the Saratoga toll road trail for another mile until you hit an uphill dirt road on your right. It's 0.4 miles going up a couple hundred feet so not too bad. This will take you to the Skyline to the Sea trail (finally!) in which you'll take this for another ~2.6 miles to Waterman camp. You'll hug Highway 9 pretty closely so you'll see a couple abandoned cars that fell off the road. This one more recent. http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/skyline-to-the-sea-trail-davenport?select=mjXU08P2ueRqY-WvlfHxSw#QekFu-9mgaN6xt7NUH5KsA. And this one from a while ago! http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/skyline-to-the-sea-trail-davenport?select=mjXU08P2ueRqY-WvlfHxSw#UnpOYfPqPlJ-impxBrz65A NIGHT 1: Waterman Gap Campground Your instinct may be to tucker down at the sites right around the pit toilet. My advice is to walk a little further towards the back to sites 5 and 6. It's a a bit extra of a hike but totally worth it since you get your privacy. Campsite isn't too far from Highway 9 too so you may hear some speedracers zooming by at night like we did. This is also the first (and only) area where you do get cell phone reception. DAY 2: You pretty much stay on Skyline to the Sea trail the entire way from here now. Your goal now is to get to the Jay Campground at Big Bason HQ. You still hug the road sometimes and even cross it a couple times. Again gorgeous views along here. http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/skyline-to-the-sea-trail-davenport?select=mjXU08P2ueRqY-WvlfHxSw#WIfT7_JSDYc7zXVP0uHMWA NIGHT 2: Jay Campground You're at the park HQ so good time to stock up on stuff or get a bit of real food if you're tired of your freeze dried! THEY DO HAVE BEER THOUGH. And showers too (1 quarter = 2 min), The camp shop does not carry propane for Jet Boilers in case you run out like we did. However you can ask them to use their hot water though to heat up your freeze dried foods. DAY 3: You're almost there! A slight change in scenery here. No more hugging highways and more bridge crossing and waterfalls. Oh and way more banana slugs. http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/skyline-to-the-sea-trail-davenport?select=mjXU08P2ueRqY-WvlfHxSw#mjXU08P2ueRqY-WvlfHxSw I swear, the last ~3 miles felt like FOREVER. The trail opens wider and the trees start thinning in front of you which makes you constantly feel like you're almost there. Then you immediately smell the salty ocean breeze and which iswhen you know you're at the end!

Incredible hike! However go early because parking is sort of difficult to find later in the day…read more The best time I find to go is early morning since it's cooler and the parking will be easier to find. Around 7-9 am. Super clear trails, beautiful plants and livestock that occasionally walk by. Fantastic hike and I will continue referring majority of my friends here!

Quite relaxing hike! I went with a couple friends for sunrise and there were great views !read more

Loved the trail, but FYI there are a ton of ticks. We're lucky our dog is on Simparica Trio, but we…read morestill found one biting and stuck on her belly. Make sure to check your pups carefully after!

First time hiking this trail. Heard about it via friend. The entrance we used was tucked in behind…read morea residential area. Once we walked through the gates you see the steep slopes you are about to engage, there is no gradual beginning. Put your big kid undies on and get er done. Once you get up the initial incline, the trail is pretty consistent. There are a few more hurdles, nothing too difficult. However, it was quite muddy due to the recent rain. That added a minor level of difficulty with attempting not to fall. Beautiful views of snow capped Mount Hamilton... there are different trails to choose from. Nonetheless all views are breath taking. I will definitely go back.

This checked all my boxes for a great hike: woodsy, water, scenic, peaceful, moderate, posted…read moresigns, and free parking was a bonus. We arrived around 10:15 am on a Thursday, and there were still a few parking spots in their smallish parking lot. I'm sure you'd have to come much earlier on the weekend. There's a map of the various trails. We decided to do a loop of: Fall Creek - S-cape - Ridge trail - back to parking lot. The Fall Creek section was very easy, and you're walking along the creek with a few small waterfalls to admire. A couple of times you cross over the creek, but there are planks to walk on. I couldn't stop taking pictures during this section. There's a bit of elevation when you get to the Ridge trail section, but nothing too bad. The only thing to be cautious of is the abundance of poison oak. There are some narrow paths where the poison oak was spilling over from both sides of the path. TIP: wear long pants. This is a hike that I'd come back to.

#641 #1/25 A very…read moreBeLated review of '23 summer hike... til next visit to a Lusher forest :) Started from Big Ben near Bonny Doon airport to Fall Creek and return. Climb Dry rebirth after the fire Me n this Forest Scenery is an old growth forest with little ground cover other than Redwood sorrels after the fire. Entirely canopied, easy and well kept but a steep trail. Heard owls at the top near Big Ben, a squirrel, few birds and some grasshoppers. Otherwise pretty quiet. Fall Creek had steady water flowing and a tiny waterfall at the time of my visit. Pups are NOT allowed here. Less visited old growth forest as the trail is continuous elevation down to Fall Creek and back up to Big Ben. A couple of crossing to HC Lime Kilns where the lime was used to rebuild SFO post 1906 earthquake and to Lost Empire. Signals were virtually nonexistent and the BBT is NOT marked! I took pictures of the Trail descriptions and maps prior to and that was helpful. Go with someone who is familiar with these trails or download descriptions and good trail mapS. Felton Empire Rd runs through it. There is NO parking lot or any signs to per se. Once you find the trail, you can park on the shoulder. Pro tip: It's MUCH easier to find and start from Bennet Creek to Fall Creek Trailhead as there is a parking lot off Felton Road. About 3 to 8.4 miles hike depending on the trails (partial loop) you choose with little to ~1500 ft elevation if you hike to Big Ben and entire loop (8.4 miles). Recommend water, protein bars and comfortable shoes.

Gorgeous! My friends and I went during some lights rain and didn't regret it at all…read more It was still super gorgeous. I guess it was considered a moderately difficult hike but for me it seemed fine because it was pretty short. 10/10

Another one of my favorite spots to go a nice walk! It is hard to distinguish where the St Joseph's…read moreOpen Preserve ends and this starts. It does not matter really. Just go and enjoy!

Shark Fin Cove really is a hidden gem. I saw it online and have had it saved for a while, but I was…read morenot too far from there adventuring the coast and decided to finally come check it out. Looking into it, I had seen a few reviews focusing on litter and people there taking photos(?), so I wasn't sure what to expect, but maybe we caught it on a good day. When we went, it felt peaceful and absolutely beautiful. It's a short but steep hike down, so be ready for that. Once you're at the bottom though, it's completely worth it. The way the cove is shaped makes the sound of the crashing waves feel amplified, it's dramatic and so calming at the same time. There's a small cave to the right when you first get down into the cove, we looked inside but didn't go all the way in. Closer to the water, there's another cave that opens out toward the ocean, which was really neat to see. Such a cool natural spot to explore and take in nature. I did notice a piece or two of trash, but instead of complaining and leaving it there, I just picked it up. My fiancé always brings a bag with us on hikes, beaches, or nature walks in case of any forgotten scraps. It's too beautiful of a place not to take a second to care for it. Definitely recommend checking it out :)

Visited Shark Fin Cove Beach and it was absolutely stunning! The dramatic cliffs, hidden cave, and…read morecrashing waves made it feel like a little slice of paradise. Such a peaceful spot to unwind, take in the ocean views, and soak up nature's beauty. Definitely one of the most breathtaking coastal gems along Highway 1! Trail down to the beach is a short but steep, rugged walk across abandoned railway tracks and down a cliffside trail.

One of our favorite reserve California sites! The final 20 miles drive there is a little…read moretreacherous but nice you get there all is great. We had enough sun and sky for our solar and Starlink and site 21 was huge for our van camper. The pad was semi level so we only needed a few leveling blocks. There were many nice hiking trails and the bathrooms were clean. There were also dishwashing stations (but no hot water). It was a little strange to see all the teslas lol.

Pros: Beautiful park, large campsites, very picturesque. Coin op showers, dishwashing station and…read morenice little hikes for the whole family. Family events on the weekends (ie young kids groups Sunday AM and family camp fire with marshmallows Saturday night) Cons: large/loud groups who blast music loudly until 10pm, traipse through others' campsites and allow their kids to scream on their scooters and bikes at 7am. Just in general seems there were a lot of people who did not understand basic camping etiquette. Very windy road to get there so be aware of that if you are prone to car sickness. We loved the park and it would be perfect if not for the annoying crowd. It wasn't any one particular group but multiple groups scattered throughout the park who didn't seem to have any awareness of others. We may consider a return during the week or off season (we were here for a weekend in peak summer) and possibly near the camp host to avoid excess noise we got towards the rear of the camp. Tons of mosquitos.