Woman Walking down stairs to a beach called Cowell Ranch State Beach

Nature's Stairways

We're stair-ing at you! The San Francisco Bay Area has an abundance of beautiful hikes with natural stairways built into nature, to help us all step up to brilliant panoramas. Here are three that look out to the sea... 

Week: 10.03.2024
Regions: Northern CA

More Cowell-bell!

Hike to Cowell Ranch State Beach on the San Mateo Coast

If you didn’t know it was there, you might just drive right on by it. But for those who make the 0.5-mile walk (or bike ride) to the wooden stairway leading to Cowell Ranch State Beach, the reward is sinking your toes into one of the best beaches in Northern California.
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Carson City Is Calling

Fall Getaway to Carson City, Nevada

This state capital is where going wild means exploring the outdoors and enjoying the history and comforts of a vibrant community. Your best days are ahead in Carson City, Nevada!
Plan Your Carson City Getaway

Morning Sun and a Mimosa

Hike the Morning Sun and SCA Trails in the Marin Headlands

Two hikers go up the stairsteps on the Morning Sun Trail in Sausalito
Morning Sun Trailhead hikers in Sausalito
Maybe you’ve strolled the Sausalito waterfront, but have you ventured up the forested stairway trail to beautiful bay views and the headlands? Get an early start (parking fills quickly!) and hike the Morning Sun Trail, which switchbacks for half a mile up through an oak forest with peek-a-boo views of the bay.
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Lands Zen

Hiking Lincoln Park Steps and Lands End in San Francisco

Find a little peace in San Francisco on an urban walk featuring a beautiful stairway, panoramic views, a labyrinth, and plentiful coastal drama.
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Trending Stories NorCal

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  1. Serene Las Gallinas

    A serene stroll alongside marshland, passing ponds and grasses frilled in seasonal wildflowers, with Mount Tam a beacon in the background … how nice. As part of the esteemed Bay Trail, San Rafael’s Las Gallinas Valley Birding Loop and Wildlife Ponds comprises about 3.5 miles of wide-open trail.

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  2. Paint Brushy

    This time of year you’ll have good reason to head for the hills—the electric-green rolling hills of Brushy Peak Regional Preserve in Livermore. This 4.5-mile loop hike is like stepping into a plein air painting.

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  3. Sponsored

    2025 POST Wildflower Walks

    Get flower empowered! POST’s complimentary 2025 Wildflower Walks guide blooms with the best places to see a variety of florals across the Peninsula and South Bay this spring.

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  4. All right, Almaden!

    Take a trip through time on this 5-mile loop in Almaden Quicksilver County Park. Explore the ruins of an old cinnabar mine and enjoy the first hints of wildflower season.

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Trending Stories SoCal

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  1. Sponsored

    Weekend in Reno Tahoe

    Weekend plans? Reno Tahoe! Just a few hours by car or a short flight away, Reno Tahoe springs to the moment with great ways to combine adventure and relaxation in its beautiful mountains-meets-desert setting.

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  2. Hiker walking along the North Bluff Trail on Santa Cruz Island, Channel Islands National Park

    Purely Wild

    Channel Islands National Park lives up to its nickname as “North America’s Galapagos.” This less-traveled national park is an undeveloped and isolated series of five dramatic and distinct islands reached by boat. Hike the largest of the islands, Santa Cruz.

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  3. Woman hiking the South Kaibab Trail in the Grand Canyon

    Truly Grand Day Hike

    One of the best spring day hikes in the Grand Canyon? See layer upon layer of the park’s grandeur—including the river—on this 3-mile (one-way) journey to Skeleton Point via the South Kaibab Trail.

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  4. A woman stands amid an array of yellow and purple flowers at Descanso Gardens in Los Angeles

    Petal Paradise

    Tulips, lilacs, and daffodils—flower power is in full bloom at Descanso Gardens in La Cañada Flintridge. Sprawling across 150 acres surrounded by mountains, the gardens are putting on their best show right now.

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