All "Hikes" Stories in Northern CA
Big Burdell!
Summiting Marin’s Mount Burdell isn’t on many bucket lists, but it should be. At just over 1,500 feet, it’s the highest peak in north Marin, and the summit payoff is plentiful.
ViewNow and Zen
Feel like you need to enlighten up? Green Gulch Zen Center understands. For over 40 years, this Marin County staple of mindfulness has blazed a trail to ahhs (including, literally,
ViewSea You at the Ranch
Rough-and-tumble coastline, twisting Highway 1, open grasslands, hidden beaches, bluff trails, and a rustic lodge for storm watching from indoors —we’re not talking about Big Sur.
ViewIsland Tree Topper
The Christmas light atop Angel Island State Park’s Mount Livermore has long been a cheerful twinkle visible from many cities throughout the Bay Area on holiday season nights. Get i
ViewNisene Quiet
The sublime Forest of Nisene Marks State Park is popular for good reason, but head to its far reaches and you’ll be awestruck by the solitude beneath the looming redwoods. The Loma
ViewOh, Henry!
Hike through a verdant redwood forest less traveled and get a glimpse into Santa Cruz of old, when oxen, wagons, and miners populated the hills. The Fall Creek Unit in Henry Cowell
ViewHike to New Lights
For an enlightening late day hike, catch the San Francisco skyline at sunset from high atop Ring Mountain. The Ring Mountain Open Space Preserve in Tiburon is pretty compact but oc
ViewDrake Awakening
Part salt water, part fresh water, Drake’s Estero is smack in the middle of Point Reyes, and one of only two marine wilderness areas in the entire nation. Yeah, it’s worth a look. Get the extended version by hiking right alongside it.
ViewMerry Colorful State Park
Red, green, and blue are just a few of the holiday hues. Get your Christmas colors and some solitude on a 5-mile (round-trip) hike in Butano State Park on the San Mateo Coast. The
ViewPeak Pondering
Some magical hikes begin like a magic trick: The start is filled with lots of people, and then, within minutes, it's quiet. All you have to do is find the entrance to Narnia—or, in this case, Laurel Canyon Trailhead in the East Bay’s Tilden Regional Park.
ViewHeadlands Happiness
One of the many reasons people love the Bay Area is that getting outdoors for a coastal adventure is always an option. And there’s probably no better example than hiking the Marin
ViewThree Falling
Three waterfalls, and fewer people. McCloud Falls might be the best waterfall hike in Northern California. There are bigger waterfalls in the state, but it’s the whole package that makes this 4-mile (round-trip) hike truly memorable.
ViewA Shot of Whiskey
Whiskeytown Falls is a relative newcomer. While a few locals knew of its existence, it wasn’t largely shared, and there wasn’t a trail—until 2004. That’s when park biologist Russ W
ViewBurney Man!
Upon first seeing Burney Falls, President Theodore Roosevelt called it one of the wonders of the world: a 129-foot waterfall gushing 100 million gallons every single day. This baby
ViewAlabama Backdrop
Despite being named for a Confederate warship, the CSS Alabama, there’s nothing Southern about the Alabama Hills. This range of rocky hills between the eastern slopes of the Sierra
ViewGolden Guadalupe
You’re in the South Bay, you have time for only a short hike, and early fall colors are a bonus. Oak-ey dokey! Head to Guadalupe Oak Grove Park and circle it in a mile-long hike wi
ViewLone Oasis
Every summer, thousands travel to Whitney Portal in the Eastern Sierra to summit Mount Whitney, the highest peak in the contiguous United States. But thousands more are denied the
ViewFirst of Its Kind
First place, first to market, first in line. Firsts are good! And that includes hiking in Santa Clara County's first park: Stevens Creek County Park. It’s an ideal choice for a Sou
ViewQuest for Quicksilver
The new gold rush meets the old gold rush at Almaden Quicksilver County Park, named for the once-booming industry of mining mercury, which was essential for extracting gold. Today,
ViewOld and Gnarly
Few places will magnify your sense of time and space quite like the rugged White Mountains. A part of Inyo National Forest, this remote, seldom-visited range along the upper Owens
View
Savor Summer in Paso Robles
Ready for the “Great California Road Trip”? Keep it real and rolling in bucolic and beautiful Paso Robles. This down- to-earth destination has everything you need to enjoy the coolest experiences.
Book Your Ideal Stay in Paso Robles
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