Best hiking trail in the North Bay Area (San Francisco, Napa: campground, restaurants)

[StandingLenticular]

This Christmas will be my first time in the Bay area (besides conferences for work in which I didn't get to look around a lot).

We're probably staying in the North Bay area (Sonoma City) and we're looking for a great trail to hike in the Sonoma/Marin/Napa area (3-5hr length).

So many choices! Muir Woods, Point Reyes, Jack London Forest,,,

Also, if you know a good hike in the Santa Cruz Mountains, you can go ahead and recommend one.

Thanks

[mayorhaggar]

For one thing it might be raining a lot. We're supposed to get a ton of rain in the next few days so even if you go hiking on a non-rainy day, everything might still be muddy. When it rains a lot in the Bay Area the North Bay area usually gets drenched and often gets flooding and landslides, I bet some of that happens during the upcoming storm.

In any case Mt. Tam might work, there are several trails of differing length and difficulty though I haven't been yet. Muir Woods is pretty small and though it's good for tourists and people who aren't used to hiking, it's not hard at all. I don't know if there are maybe other trails that go from there that are longer. Pt. Reyes I went to once and from what I remember it was mainly grassland so it wouldn't really be the same as hiking in the woods. I don't remember if there are any big trails there, I was in a car driving around.

I think I went hiking in either Big Basin or Henry Cowells Redwoods park near Santa Cruz, lots of nice big redwoods. I don't think it was a very tough hike though.

There are supposed to be some neat mountain trails on the Peninsula but I've never been hiking around there.

[StandingLenticular]

Thanks!

Yeah, I saw the same thing about Muir Woods. Looks amazing, just pretty confined. Are there any longer Redwood trails further north, say....near the Russian River area?

[bmw335xi]

Muir Woods is a little too busy and touristy for my taste. Almost next door is Mt. Tamalpais. This is my favorite area to hike in the Bay Area. Beautiful views and easy parking.

[sjnative]

There is no one best trail.

You first need to decide what environment- coastal redwoods or the more arid grassland?

Another question would be- how long of a hike do you want? How many miles?

The former would be found not only in the north bay but also in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Big Basin is very touristy around the park headquarters but you get away from that as you go further out.

Speaking of BB, the Skyline to the Sea trail is really good. It's generally an extremely fast 1-day hike or a slower 2-3 day hike. You can pick it up at Castle Rock park or at BB.

The latter of the two kinds of parks- the grassland type- would definitely include Mount Diablo, though that's a busy park as well.

..how long of a hike? Redwoods or grassland?

[StandingLenticular]

Redwoods would be nice. I saw that Sky to sea trail and thought that would be a good overnighter in the summertime.

How's this for picky?

A trail that starts in the Redwoods, and climbs to a peak/overlook with great views of either ocean or city.

Does something like this exist?

[theh]

This is a really beautiful hike at Mt. Tam that I really enjoy and is about the right length (well, maybe on the short side...I was REALLY pokey on this hike because everything was so pretty, so it took me about 3 1/2 hours) and fits your description: Dipsea and Steep Ravine You can make the hike longer by taking the sidetrip mentioned on the site to Stinson Beach--a very scenic and beautiful beach, worth the trek.

It has a really nice mixture of both ocean views and lush, redwood forest. The only thing is it's backwards--starts with ocean views and ends in a redwood forest. But, it's a loop, so you could also always do the hike backwards. Here are some pictures I took on the hike if you're interested: H's Adventure Book: Mt. Tamalpais (http://hviola.blogspot.com/2010/08/mt-tamalpais.html - broken link)

[nullgeo]

Originally Posted by StandingLenticular

Redwoods would be nice. I saw that Sky to sea trail and thought that would be a good overnighter in the summertime.

How's this for picky?

A trail that starts in the Redwoods, and climbs to a peak/overlook with great views of either ocean or city.

Does something like this exist?

If you are curious about the Russian River area and want to experience the redwoods, you can drive into Armstrong Woods State Natural Reserve just outside of Guerneville, which is the most significant town along the Russian River west of Hwy 101. There are nice (and easy) trails in the Reserve. It is a very impressive stand. I'm confident you will find great enjoyment and be left in awe. And, if you are up for it, there is a 2.5 mile drive at the back of Armstrong Woods, which is very steep and winding, to Austin Creek State Recreation Area's Bullfrog Pond Campground, which is very wilderness-feeling with lots of outstanding hiking in the Sonoma hills.

Guerneville and the Russian River is a drive of about 70 miles (90 minutes) north of San Francisco. There won't be any views of the Bay and city from there, of course. However, the river road itself is a great drive, Guerneville is a quaint-ish stopping point with some shops and restaurants (and plenty of bars ), and the redwoods are sensational in a pretty flat area for easy hiking while looking up till you get a crick in your neck.

I just looked up the Austin Creek SRA in the middle of typing this and find notice that the road up to Bullfrog Pond Campground closed on Dec. 1st due to service reductions (economy bites the State!) Too bad. It is sensational up there. You drive up above the valley redwoods to a rolling Sonoma panorama of mixed light woods and mountain meadows -- the views west toward the ocean are flat out religious feeling. Maybe if you research the area and State websites there might be other day access to hiking even though the campground itself is closed.

Enjoy

Armstrong SNR
Armstrong Redwoods SNR
Austin Creek SRA
Austin Creek SRA

[andyadhi01]

Originally Posted by StandingLenticular

This Christmas will be my first time in the Bay area (besides conferences for work in which I didn't get to look around a lot).

We're probably staying in the North Bay area (Sonoma City) and we're looking for a great trail to hike in the Sonoma/Marin/Napa area (3-5hr length).

So many choices! Muir Woods, Point Reyes, Jack London Forest,,,

Also, if you know a good hike in the Santa Cruz Mountains, you can go ahead and recommend one.

Thanks

If you have time to hit only one trail in Marin then I would strongly recommend the Matt Davis-Steep Ravine loop in Mt. Tam.

Bay Area Hiker: Matt Davis-Steep Ravine Loop

This is one of the most beautiful trail in the bay area and has little bit of everything... dense redwood forest, waterfall, creeks, open grassy areas with stunning views of the ocean and SF and the hike begins and ends in the super beautiful Stinson Beach. STRONGLY recommended!

Point Reyes is nice but not worth driving that far just for a good hiking trail.

There are many great trails in Santa Cruz mountains but my favorite is Castle Rock state park.

Bay Area Hiker: Castle Rock State Park

If you want to watch redwoods there are good trails in Big Basin and Purisima Creek.

Unfortunately though, it will very likely rain and even if it stops for few hours the trails will be muddy. The scenery won't look as pretty as it might look on a clear, sunny day (which is rare).

[andyadhi01]

Originally Posted by StandingLenticular

Redwoods would be nice. I saw that Sky to sea trail and thought that would be a good overnighter in the summertime.

How's this for picky?

A trail that starts in the Redwoods, and climbs to a peak/overlook with great views of either ocean or city.

Does something like this exist?

That would be the Matt Davis-Steep Ravine loop. If you start clockwise then you go on the Steep Ravine first which goes through an awesome redwood forest and once you climb to the top and go about 1/2 mile on Matt Davis trail you will get beautiful panoramic views of the ocean and can see most of SF. But again, this will happen only in good weather. The area is prone to thick fog in summer and its the rainy season now.