Our family loves hiking, and our favorite place to hike is the redwood forest. Lucky for us, we live in Northern California where the options for redwood hikes are plenty! When people think about Northern California and redwoods, they often think of Muir Woods, and while Muir Woods is definitely a beautiful place to visit, there are a lot of other equally and even more impressive redwood hikes in the area.
To help people discover some of these parks, I thought I’d put together a list of our favorite redwood hikes in Northern California. As a general rule, the farther north you go, the bigger the trees get. And as I write this post, I still have a list of about 10 other redwoods hikes in the area that I’d like to do! I guess I’ll just have to keep adding to this post as we continue to do more awesome redwood hikes in Northern California!
Purisima Cowell State Preserve
This is one of our favorite hikes in the South Bay and one of our favorite places to see redwoods. If you are looking for an alternative to Muir Woods in the area, check out this preserve! There are several trailheads for this hike, but we usually start at the Higgins Road Trailhead.
This hike follows the Purisima Creek through beautiful second-growth redwood groves. You can cross the creek in several spots, which is super fun for the kids. Start your hike past the restrooms and stay on the Purisima Creek trail for 1.2 miles until you reach the fork for Grabtown Gulch Trail. We usually turn around at this point, but you can keep going for as long as you want.
If you wish to continue to the end of the Purisima Creek trail, you’ll reach the South Parking lot after a bit over 4 miles. If you have two drivers, one option would be to park a second car at this end and circle back to the Higgins parking lot. We’ve never done this because I don’t drive, but we have started the trail from the South lot and enjoyed the hike on that side very much too.
Sam McDonald Park
Heritage Grove Loop Trail (4+ miles)
We found this park by looking at the map and choosing a green space on it and I’m so glad we did! Then I looked up trails for the park online to chose a route that would work for our family. We chose this hike because of the Heritage Redwood Grove, and it didn’t disappoint! This hike is a mix of old growth redwood trees and mountain views, and it’s truly delightful. The map at the parking lot describes it as a 4-mile hike but we think it’s closer to 5 miles. The elevation gain for this hike is almost 900 feet.
The trailhead leaves from the Sam McDonald Park Parking lot. We chose to start the hike by going straight up the Towne Fire Road. The first half mile of the hike winds through redwood trees, some of which were quite impressive in size! At about 0.6 miles you’ll hit a junction. Walk past the horse area, and stay on the Towne Fire Road for another mile or so. Once you get out of the forest, you’ll be on the fully exposed ridge so remember to pack a hat and sunscreen!
After 1.3 miles on the Towne Fire Road, turn left at the junction with the Heritage Grove Trail to head down to the grove and follow it for about 0.6 miles to a fork and follow the trail down to the grove. If you want to visit the grove you actually need to do a 0.1 mile detour down to it, which is well signed. There is a creek right by the grove, and this is a lovely place to stop for a snack and to rest your legs. After you visit the grove, head back to the Heritage Grove Trail and continue on for about 1.5 miles back to the parking lot. This last stretch goes through a beautiful forested area and past some cool tree stumps where the kids had a great time playing!
This hike was really beautiful and energizing! We saw a California Newt and lots of mushrooms in January. I should also point out that the trail was basically empty. We only saw a handful of other hikers on this loop. Apparently, this park is not very popular, which is great for those of us looking for quiet trails!
Here’s a map of the trail. You can also take a photo of the map at the parking lot.
Henry Cowell State Park
Full disclosure: We’ve only hiked in this park once. We enjoyed the hike a lot, but didn’t love that the parking lot was quite full even though we got there early in the morning. Because the park is easily accessible and near large urban areas, you’re likely to share the trail with lots of other people, but it is still a beautiful park offering lovely redwood hikes!
A very popular attraction in the park is the Roaring Camp Railroad with its Old West-themed visitor center and steam trail rides through the redwoods.
Redwood Grove Loop Trail (~0.8 miles+)
This trail is under a mile long and it meanders through the only remaining old-growth grove in the Santa Cruz area. The grove is truly beautiful and peaceful (except for the loud hoots of the steam trains!) even though the trees are not as big as those in nearby Big Basin SP. Because this park has an expansive trail system, you can connect this trail to several others in the park for a longer loop. Given the volume of hikers here, the trees are largely fenced off for their protection. Check out the map here.
Hendy Woods State Park
The forest at Big Hendy looks lot like the Humboldt Redwoods, but in a slightly smaller scale, and it is a lot closer to the Bay Area than the bigger groves farther north. We’ve camped in this park, but we’ve also visited as a day trip from San Francisco. Even though the drive is a bit long for a day trip (2 hours each way), there’s so much to do in the area that the trip is always worth it!
Big Hendy Loop (1.5 miles)
The Big Hendy Loop includes the Discovery Loop and the Upper Loop for a total of 1.5 miles and it is mostly flat. This is a great hike for the entire family as there are many logs you can climb, as well as a handful of foot bridges and boardwalks. Our kids love this hike and they always find something new when we go there!
The hike starts at the picnic area and you should take the All Access Trail into the woods. Shortly after you start, you’ll be surrounded by impressive old-growth redwoods! Start hiking the Discovery Trail and then follow the sign to the Upper Loop at the intersection. The Upper Loop is really where the magic happens, especially on the way back where the trees really start to resemble those of Humboldt Redwoods! Once you are ready, return to the parking area using the All Access Trail.
When we hike in Hendy Woods, we don’t always follow a set trail, but we prefer to explore and stay near the bigger trees. The park is small enough that you won’t get lost so feel free to explore the trails. Also, you are very unlikely to encounter many other people on the trail, which is always an added bonus!
Little Hendy Loop (~2 miles)
We hiked Little Hendy Loop when we camped in the park and loved it! The highlight of this trail is an old-growth grove that’s almost as impressive as Big Hendy with some very large trees.
We started the hike from the campground, but I believe you can also reach it via the Big Hendy Loop if you are looking for a longer hike and a good way to see more of the park. Make sure you get a trail map when you go in the park, that way you can easily make up your own hike!
If you are planning a trip to Hendy Woods SP, you might want to check this post too.
Humbold Redwoods State Park
We had been wanting to visit Humboldt Redwoods SP for years, and we finally made it there at the end of 2020. This park is stunning! Here you can admire the trees even from the road as you drive through the Avenue of the Giants and make stops along the way. But the best way to really admire these giants is to go for a hike in the forest. These are two of our favorite hikes in this park:
Rockefeller Loop Trail
This was our favorite! If you only have time to do one hike in the park, we strongly recommend you choose the Rockefeller Loop.
The parking area is very small, and you’ll be blown away as soon as you step out of your car into the forest. This old-growth forest is spectacular! The trees are so tall, you can’t see where they end. Because these trees are so large, they cast big shadows on the forest floor. Not much grows below the tree tops other than ferns. Whenever we saw a fallen tree, we could spot the open space on the sky that it used to occupy. Speaking of fallen trees, this trail also goes between the cut ends of a huge fallen tree!
When hiking this loop, keep an eye out for a little detour to the river (this actually connects to a different trail too). Our kids loved skipping rocks on the river, and walking across the huge log that crossed the river.
Exploring the Rockefeller Grove was the biggest highlight of our time exploring Humboldt Redwoods State Park. It’s hard to explain what we felt walking next to these ancient giants. Our son described it as “feeling at home,” and I agree. The feeling of joy and appreciation at seeing these trees was transcendental.
Founders’ Grove
Founders’ Grove is the park’s most visited grove because of how expansive it is (the big redwoods extend as far as you can see in every direction!), and also because the entrance is located close to the road. Despite being popular, we didn’t see a single person on the trail while doing the loop. The park was probably this quiet because we were there in November!
Highlights of this trail include: Founders’ Tree, which you see shortly after starting the hike, setting the tone for the hike; and the massive fallen 362-foot Dyerville Giant. The trail is also filled with fallen logs, and at points you walk between the cut ends of huge fallen tree. It was really amazing to walk in between these log walls that were way taller than any of us!
There are over 100 miles of trails ranging from easy to strenuous in this State Park. Here’s a park brochure including a trail map to help you plan your next hiking adventure in Humboldt!
Redwoods National and State Parks
This park is the crown jewel of Redwood parks! The park is made up of one National Park and three State Parks, covering an area of 139,000 acres, and featuring some of the most beautiful old growth temperate rainforests in the world. The National Park Service offers online maps for the different areas of this park to help you plan your visit.
Big Tree Loop with the Prairie Creek and Cathedral Tree Trails (3.5 miles)
If you only have time to do ONE hike in Redwood National and State Parks, I strongly recommend you do the Big Tree Loop with the Prairie Creek and Cathedral Tree Trails. This 3.5-mile loop will absolutely blow your mind from the moment you set foot on the trail and cross the first bridge! The trees on this trail are unbelievable, and I’ve seen my fair share of redwoods to know what I’m talking about!
Most people do this loop via Foothill Trail instead of Cathedral Trail, but the latter is definitely better. Cathedral Trail meanders through rolling hills and has some of the largest trees we saw while exploring Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park. Once you get to Big Tree, you can choose which trail to follow back to the parking lot (Cathedral vs. Foothill), and here you’ll also find a funny series of signs pointing in every other direction to a variety of big trees!
Trillium Falls Trail (3+ miles)
This 3.15-mile hike was a total stunner! This hike features a beautiful hillside redwood forest that leads to a waterfall, and then loops back. There is a 300-foot gain in elevation, but totally doable if you are in moderate hiking shape.
We were the first people in the parking lot and didn’t see a single soul during the entire hike. I guess you could say that’s a perk of winter hiking, right? But we heard this trail is quite popular during the warmer months so be prepared for that.
Another perk was the silky fog that blanketed parts of the redwood forest. It felt like we were entering an enchanted forest! I also love the low winter sunlight and how it peeks through these towering trees in the morning!
Click here for the trailhead location on maps.
Boy Scout Tree Trail (5+ miles)
On the first day of 2022, we got up early and headed Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park for a hike. This park is about an hour drive from Prairie Creek SP, right by Crescent City. We chose to do the Boy Scout Tree Trail even though we knew we probably wouldn’t make it all the way to the tree that gave this trail its name. This trail is 5.3 miles out and back with a climb of about 750 feet. We hiked close to 2 miles out before the kids were ready to turn around, and it was so worth it because the forest here was beautiful all around. Also, because we started the hike early in the morning, we were treated to the most stunning sun rays peeking through the trees.
This hike was gorgeous! The forest felt ancient, lush, very alive… we could almost hear it whispering words of wisdom in between our steps. We honestly can’t wait to go back to this part of RNSP to see more and do more hiking. It was so incredibly beautiful and rewarding! Nature has its way of teaching humility, and nowhere does it do it better than in these ancient redwood forests!
Click here for the trailhead location on maps.
Lady Bird Johnson Grove Trail (1.5 miles)
Another good popular hike in the Redwood National and State Parks is the Lady Bird Johnson Grove trail. This is a short 1.4-mile trail on a ridge about 1,200 above sea level. What makes this trail unique is that this is a redwood upland environment, with relatively “small” trees and lots of shrubs. Because of its elevation, we found some patches of snow leftover from the snow storm that passed through a couple of days before.
We enjoyed this short hike, but felt it lacked the wow factor of the other hikes we did. If you are visiting RNSP for the first time, I’d definitely recommend any of the other hikes I shared above over this one. If you opt for this hike, know that the second half of the trail—after reaching the park dedication site—is a lot more interesting, with old growth trees. We read the trail was wheelchair accessible, but I think it’d be challenging on a manual wheelchair as it starts with a gentle climb, followed by a slight descent. I think you could definitely take a sturdy stroller here if you wanted to.
It was certainly nice to find a trail named after a woman, not just because she was a First Lady, but because she was a conservationist who was a big advocate in protecting the land and creating the Redwood National Park!
Click here for the trailhead location on maps.
I hope you found this post helpful! For more hiking ideas in the San Francisco Bay Area, check out this post.
