All Stories from Northern CA
Thornewood In Your Pocket
Hints of wildflowers, a ravine of redwoods, and vistas over the San Francisco Bay and Diablo Range. Thornewood Preserve in Woodside packs a lot into its tiny space. An early morning start has perks.
ViewShort Hike, Sweet View!
Steady as you go ... all the way up to a sweeping Bay vista at Claremont Canyon Regional Preserve. This 208-acre haven has a 4.3-mile loop to one of the best views in the East Bay.
ViewCanyons Calling
Canyon hikes come in all shapes and sizes in Death Valley, and we’ve got two gems. One requires more rigorous scrambling and navigation, and leads to a dryfall; the other takes you up to a brilliant vista.
ViewDune Swoon
Of all the places to catch a sunset in Death Valley, we still think there’s none better than the Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes, inspiring many things, including log rolls, cartwheels, and sundown selfies.
ViewGood as Golden
Golden Canyon in Death Valley has a variety of hiking trails. We like this classic 5.5-mile loop exploring a labyrinth of marbled gold colored hills, badlands, narrow canyons, and tremendous vistas.
ViewCataclysmic Galactic
Death Valley has a Star Wars vibe going with its desolate landscape. So when you first arrive to hike at the incredible Ubehebe Crater you might expect to see the Millennium Falcon hunkered nearby.
ViewGone With the Windy
You don’t have to trek far to enjoy a hiker’s high at Windy Hill Preserve on the Peninsula. Its panoramic attraction is easily accessed via the 0.7-mile Anniversary Trail, and it’s magnificent at sunset.
ViewSanta Cruz Epic Views
Redwoods, wildflowers, and ocean vistas offer the best of the Bay Area at Upper La Honda Creek Preserve in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Take a 3.75-mile loop through the preserve's highlights.
ViewBest Foot Forward
Foothills Park has 15 miles of trail surrounded by misty valleys, tender oak trees, seasonal creeks, a peaceful lake, and beautiful Bay Area vistas. Plan ahead because it's new, and very popular.
ViewFind Your Flow
Far back in the Santa Cruz Mountains, Uvas Canyon County Park is a compact, tree-filled delight with hiking trails and several waterfalls bunched into a loop along Swanson Creek and amid lush forest.
View- Sponsored
Ready When You Are: Reno Tahoe
With outdoors being essential for health and wellness, and new protocols in place, Reno Tahoe welcomes visitors! It's wide open with snowshoe trails, fire pits by the river, skating, and hot springs.
View Winter Castle
All you need is a clear day and a pair of sturdy snowshoes for the 2.25-mile (one-way) hike up to Castle Pass near Donner Summit in Tahoe National Forest. The views from the pass are royally good!
ViewShell of a Good Hike!
Head to the East Bay’s Shell Ridge Open Space near Walnut Creek to find 1,400 acres of rolling hills. This 7-mile ridge rambling loop showcases all that the foothills of Mount Diablo have to offer.
ViewSerenity at Sunrise
El Sereno Preserve's namesake mountain rises to majestic views spanning the Diablo Range, Santa Cruz Mountains, and Santa Lucia Mountains. Do a sunrise hike to a new bench on the Aquinas Trail.
ViewBig Wave Hiking
Pillar Point Bluff's amazing trail system is a coastal haven most popular for being the best spot to watch the famed Mavericks surf break in winter. But this place is beautiful year round for hiking.
ViewSpit Shine
Limantour Beach in Point Reyes is wild and beautiful coastline. Walk the beach for a few miles and spy amazing wildlife along this narrow spit of sand flanked by the Pacific Ocean and Drakes Estero.
ViewWatershed Moment
The Presidio in San Francisco offers some of the best urban hiking in the country! And the new marsh bridges under Presidio Parkway offer more habitat for plants, fish, and bird life... and trails for us!
ViewSkyline's the Limit
The brand-new Saratoga to the Skyline Trail connects Saratoga to the Santa Cruz Mountains and the Pacific Ocean. Thru-hike the first 5.1 miles for beautiful Santa Clara Valley vistas.
View- Sponsored
2021 Hiking Calendar!
Ready to kick off 2021? (Like we have to ask.) Literally kick it off, with a hike! Download the 2021 POST Hiking Calendar (complimentary)—with recommended trails for every month of the year.
View Thank You to Our 2020 Team
Thank you to our wonderful 2020 team for bringing the great outdoors home in a most challenging year. Meet our contributors and get ideas from their personal favorite CA adventures this year.
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The 2025 Hiking Calendar Is Here!
Ready to make hiking part of your New Year’s wellness plan? Get the all-new 2025 Hiking Calendar courtesy of Peninsula Open Space Trust (POST).
Get the 2025 POST Hiking CalendarYour Inbox to the Outdoors
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