Jane Huber - San Francisco: Including North Bay, East Bay, Peninsula, and South Bay

60 HIKES WITHIN 60 MILES: San Francisco

Copyright 2020, 2013, 2007, and 2004 Jane Huber

All rights reserved

Printed in China

Published by Menasha Ridge Press

Distributed by Publishers Group West

Fourth edition, first printing

Editor: Kate Johnson

Cover design: Jonathan Norberg and Scott McGrew

Cartography: Steve Jones

Interior design: Jonathan Norberg

Interior photos: Jane Huber except where noted on page

Proofreader: Emily Beaumont

Indexer: Rich Carlson

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Huber, Jane, 1965 author.

Title: 60 hikes within 60 miles : San Francisco.

Other titles: San Francisco

Description: Fourth edition. | Birmingham, AL : Menasha Ridge Press, [2019] | Includes index.
Summary: Huber finds the 60 best hiking spots within roughly an hours drive from central San Francisco. By keeping its focus on the immediately local area, this new edition highlights even more of the lesser known hiking parks and open-space preservesespecially those surrounding the Bay Areas most densely packed cities of San Jose, San Francisco, and Oaklandwhile still including major tourism draws, making it perfect for city natives and visitors alike. Provided by publisher

Identifiers: LCCN 2019018569 | ISBN 9781634041263 (pbk.) | ISBN 9781634041270 (ebook)

Subjects: LCSH: HikingCaliforniaSan Francisco Bay AreaGuidebooks. |

TrailsCaliforniaSan Francisco Bay AreaGuidebooks. | San Francisco

Bay Area (Calif.)Guidebooks.

Classification: LCC GV199.42.C22 S269443 2019 | DDC 796.5109794/61dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019018569

MENASHA RIDGE PRESS An imprint of AdventureKEEN 2204 First Ave. S., Ste. 102 Birmingham, AL 35233

Visit menasharidge.com for a complete listing of our books and for ordering information. Contact us at our website, at facebook.com/menasharidge, or at twitter.com/menasharidge with questions or comments. To find out more about who we are and what were doing, visit blog.menasharidge.com.

Cover photo: Panoramic view on a sunny day in winter from the Mary Bowerman Trail in Mount Diablo State Park (). Dreamframer/Shutterstock

Back cover photos: (left to right) , Golden Gate Park: Stow Lake

DISCLAIMER This book is meant only as a guide to select trails in the San Francisco area and does not guarantee hiker safetyyou hike at your own risk. Neither Menasha Ridge Press nor Jane Huber is liable for property loss or damage, personal injury, or death that may result from accessing or hiking the trails described in this guide. Be especially cautious when walking in potentially hazardous terrains with, for example, steep inclines or drop-offs. Do not attempt to explore terrain that may be beyond your abilities. Please read carefully the introduction to this book, as well as safety information from other sources. Familiarize yourself with current weather reports and maps of the area you plan to visit (in addition to the maps provided in this guidebook). Be cognizant of park regulations, and always follow them. While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information in this guidebook, land and road conditions, phone numbers and websites, and other information can change from year to year.

Dedication

For my mom, who taught me about lady's slippers and wrens

TABLE OF CONTENTS

OVERVIEW MAP

MAP LEGEND

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Thanks once again to all the Bay Area Hikers who generously shared trail conditions and observations. Special kudos to my Patreon patrons for their support.

Cheers to everyone at Menasha Ridge Press for their help, and a tip of the map to Scott McGrew for his fine cartography. Kate Johnson edited the project, and her suggestions made a better book.

Im so lucky to have two cartographer friends who are incredible mapmakers with deep knowledge of Bay Area trails: Ben Pease and Dave Baseltthanks.

My husband, Hans Huber, has always been my biggest supporter and continues to help me whenever and however I need him. Our son, Jack, is a determined and tough hiker who warms my heart with his love of nature. Dorothy Greco continues to be an excellent sounding board and all-around great sister.

Jane Huber

Buckeye butterfly resting on coyote brush

FOREWORD

Welcome to Menasha Ridge Presss 60 Hikes Within 60 Miles, a series designed to provide hikers with the information they need to find and hike the very best trails surrounding metropolitan areas.

Our strategy is simple: First, find a hiker who knows the area and loves to hike. Second, ask that person to spend a year researching the most popular and very best trails around. And third, have that person describe each trail in terms of difficulty, scenery, condition, elevation change, and other categories of information that are important to hikers. Pretend youve just completed a hike and met up with other hikers at the trailhead, we tell each author. Imagine their questions, and be clear in your answers.

An experienced hiker and writer, Jane Huber has selected 60 of the best hikes in and around the San Francisco metropolitan area. From greenways and urban trails that make use of parklands to flora- and fauna-rich treks along the cliffs and hills in the hinterlands, Jane provides hikers (and walkers) with a great variety of optionsall within roughly 60 miles of San Francisco.

Youll get the most from this book if you take a moment to read the Introduction, which explains how to read the trail listings. The section will help you understand how useful topos are on a hike and will also tell you where to get them. And though this is a where-to rather than a how-to guide, readers who havent hiked extensively will find the Introduction of particular value.

As much to free the spirit as to free the body, let these hikes elevate you above the urban fray.

All the best,

The Editors at Menasha Ridge Press

PREFACE

I remember my first Bay Area hike well. On my premier trip to San Francisco, I accompanied two friends on what they promoted as a walk on the beach. When I showed up with sandals on, they laughed and sent me back for sneakersthis was to be a walk to the beach. We drove across the Golden Gate Bridge, then wound uphill through woods on a tiny, curvy road. We finally stopped at a parking lot (Mount Tamalpais, Pantoll) and began hiking on Steep Ravine Trail.

I grew up near High Point, the tallest elevation in New Jersey (all of 1,803 feet), and I spent my youth walking along country roads and romping through rural woods. Even when I left New Jersey for six years of city living in Boston and New York, I always walked whenever possible, usually several miles daily. None of this walking had prepared me for Steep Ravine, a footpath plummeting through a wooded canyon, where I had to stop and rest (going downhill) because my quads were quivering. I marveled at the foreign sceneryunknown tall trees and lush shrubsand was suitably impressed by the throngs of happy people on the trail, but in no way did the experience pique my interest in hiking.