All Stories from North Bay

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  Dam Tam!

  Hike in the Sierra without leaving the Bay Area! Well, at least it seems that way. The sparkling reservoirs on the north side of Mount Tamalpais offer miles of hiking trails and the kind of peaceful forest sensation that could be a stand-in for low elevation Sierra Nevada.

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  Hike Napa's Skyline!

  Bottles of wine aren't the only things popping in Napa. Right now the wildflowers are popping, too! Get in a 4-mile (round-trip) hike packed with wildflowers and wonderful views. S

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  Cheers to Chimney

  If you’re looking for all that Point Reyes has to offer in spring, Chimney Rock is the place to be. The 1.75-mile (round-trip) hike to Chimney may be short, but it packs a visual punch, quadrupling the viewing thrills during spring.

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  Big Burdell!

  If you’re gonna go big on a hike, make it at Marin County’s biggest open space preserve, Mount Burdell. And go to the summit. You’ll be sharing the trail with grazing cows, poppies

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  Sponsored

  What a Rush!

  Epic waterfalls and wildflowers for days—it’s happening in Yosemite Mariposa County right now! We haven’t seen snowmelt like this in years, so get to Yosemite Valley to see the wat

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  Hike the Dunes to the Beach

  Bodega Head is popular for its impressive cliff-hugging hiking trails, but few people follow the path north to a less-trodden hiking trail winding along the bluff and down to spect

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  Dewy at Dawn

  Redwoods, wooden bridges, a trailside stream, and lush greenery galore … Marin County’s Baltimore Canyon Open Space Preserve has lots of bragging rights, including a terrific 2.4-m

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  Sonoma Garden Park

  Forget a dozen roses. Give your love a botanical garden. Specifically, one hidden away on the western slope of Sonoma Valley’s Mayacamas Mountains. Sonoma Botanical Garden has one of the Bay Area’s best displays of Asian flora—and it’s a brilliant place for a quiet picnic.

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  Planet Picnic

  So, you wanna give your love the sun, the moon, the stars … okay. But to turn it up to 11 you’re gonna have to give the planets too! Good thing there’s a state park hike for that.

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  Bewitched, Bothered, Bewildered, and Bodega!

  Whale watching, hiking along bluffs, and a picnic overlooking the Pacific with the one(s) you love: no, it’s not a Cialis commercial—it’s a great way to spend the day in a gorgeous

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  Yes, Berryessa!

  Napa County’s Lake Berryessa is known for its boating, but few people know of the excellent hiking trails overlooking this lake, which is particularly serene in winter. Thank UC Da

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  Hike to Pluto!

  Ever wanted to check out Mars? How about Jupiter, Neptune, and Pluto? All you’ve gotta do is hike in Sonoma Valley’s Sugarloaf Ridge State Park. The park’s super cool PlanetWalk is a marvelous, and marvelously quiet, hiking trail designed as a scale model of the solar system.

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  Museum in the Redwoods

  Wanna find some solitude to read more this year? Get inspired at a literary museum and an adjacent hiking trail leading to famous ruins tucked among redwoods. The all new House of

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  Millerton Time

  Point Reyes National Seashore seems to be on everyone’s “favorite things” list, and for good reason. It’s a bounty of beauty from land to sea. So, how do you find a little peace and quiet here? Make it a Millerton afternoon!

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  Slide On Over

  Marin's Slide Ranch has a popular neighbor in the Muir Beach Overlook. But don’t overlook Slide! This open-to-the-public nonprofit organization sits on 134 acres of coastline and is filled with animals, Pacific scenery, and an adjacent hiking trail.

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  Strolling With Sam

  Most people come to Samuel P. Taylor State Park for the beautiful creekside campground and picnic areas. But the hiking here can be pleasantly peaceful on a short trail featuring old-growth redwood trees.

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  All Hail Helena

  Ready to get in that last long hike before the days get a little too short? Make it count by conquering one of the highest peaks in the Bay Area: Mount Saint Helena. On clear days

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  Go for Moore

  It’s just 20 miles north of Napa, but Moore Creek Park feels like a world of its own. This quiet park just past Lake Hennessey has a nice 4-mile loop hike combining Moore Creek Tra

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  Her Name is Del Rio

  Del Rio Woods east of Healdsburg along Sonoma County's Russian River is a welcome addition to the Regional Parks system.

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  Reach the Pinnacle

  The thing about hidden beaches is you’ve usually got to do a little legwork to find them! In this case, the legwork is a lovely 0.5-mile hike to a gorgeous beach on Bodega Bay. The

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