Trail - Sanborn and Castle Rock Parks - Skyline trail and Saratoga Gap trail
2008-11-30
11:00 am
Past |
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| Aerial photos
| Website
| More details |
| Area |
San Francisco |
| Elevation |
n/a |
| Change |
372.00 m ( 1200 ft )
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| Distance |
11.27 km ( 7.00 miles ) |
| Difficulty |
Strenuous |
| Lat / Long |
37.24, -122.10 |
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| Special instructions Bring a bag lunch! We'll be stopping at scenic spot along the trail for lunch. |
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Directions Take 280 or 101 south to 85. Take 85 south to the Saratoga Ave. exit. Turn right and follow Saratoga Ave. southwest to Saratoga. Continue straight as it becomes route 9 west and go to Skyline Blvd (route 35), at the top of the ridge. Turn left onto Skyline and drive southeast for slightly over one mile. Turn left onto a dirt parking lot. The parking lot has no markings except for a trail sign at the far end, but there is a trail crossing sign on Skyline Blvd shortly before the parking lot. This parking lot is usually almost empty. |
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Notes This hike will be mostly in woods that should still have some colorful fall foliage. We will follow skyline ridge for a ways with short side trips to sandstone rock outcroppings known as tafoni (Summit Rock and Indian Rock) that we will scramble up to look out through the treetops for nice views of the San Jose area. Then we cross Skyline Blvd to Castle Rock State Park. We descend to Castle Rock Falls (80 feet tall), climb to Goat Rock for some views toward the ocean, and return to our starting point via a similar route. These parks are popular with rock climbers, and can get busy in warm weather.
We will probably have lunch on a grassy hill near Goat Rock with views of the ocean.
The trails are mostly well maintained and easy, but the planned route includes a few short sections where the trail is rocky. If that is a problem we can alter the route to one that is easier but slightly less interesting. There will also be an option for some hikers to wait where we cross Skyline Blvd 1.3 miles before the end of the hike and be picked up by someone who does the full hike.
The best views are from the tops of the rock outcroppings that some people may find difficult to climb (mostly about 10 feet high). Sturdy boots are recommended for scrambling up the rocks.
If people are more ambitious, we can extend the hike modestly with side trips to Castle Rock, and out an unofficial trail to several more rock outcroppings used by rock climbers.
For more descriptions of the two parks, see:
http://www.bahiker.com/southbayhikes/castlerock.html
http://www.bahiker.com/southbayhikes/sanborn.html
Note that we will use a different trailhead from the what those pages list. |
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| More details |
(Hikers have been notified by email) |
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