Forget Sequoia National Park, Visit California's County Park With Towering Redwoods, Trails, And Fewer Crowds

When people seek ancient, massive trees, they often head to the famous Sequoia National Park and overlook lesser-known locations like Pescadero Creek County Park. This California county park is actually part of the Pescadero Creek Complex, which includes the Sam McDonald, Pescadero Creek, Heritage Grove, and Memorial parks. Equally towering redwoods, lush trails, and fewer crowds can be found in its 8,000+ acres. 

You can reach this thickly wooded park by taking a 1 hour, 20-minute drive south from San Francisco, or a 2-hour drive north from Monterey. The area endured heavy logging and was pursued by developers, until Proposition 13 prevented further non-park related development. A current restoration program is in effect on hundreds of acres, with the goal of increasing the health of the forest through the removal of copious dead matter that hinders wildlife populations. 

26 miles of trails weave through the parkland, taking you through old-growth forests with few people to encounter. A Google reviewer stated that the trails had "Great trail signs! They are all numbered so it makes it hard to get lost. The trails are in nice condition and yet there are no crowds." The park is open all year, but you'll want to check with the County of San Mateo for occasional closures.

Pescadero Creek County Park is known for its towering redwoods, yet it contains a diversity of trees, including wax myrtle, tan oak, madrone, California bay laurel, big leaf maple, canyon live oak, coast live oak, and knobcone pine. The redwoods often reach over 200 feet tall and over 40 feet around the trunk, very much like the giants at California's oldest state park, Big Basin Redwoods State Park, a little over an hour away. 

There are multiple programs designed to educate participants about these trees and the ecological makeup of this California county park. The Loma Mar Program states that the foundation of its program is "adventure, self-discovery and environmental stewardship," which it accomplishes through teaching students songs about ecological cycles and taking them on educational hiking expeditions. FieldGuides is intended for local students to learn bushcraft skills and take part in scientific exploration. Participants learn about everything from the ecology of water-borne organisms to old-fashioned, non-digital navigation. Such skills would expand one's experiences at nearby natural spaces like the hilly nature preserve of Russian Ridge.

These redwoods are important to humanity and ecology, as they are suited for containing massive amounts of carbon dioxide, and they serve as a habitat for many wildlife species, including Western gray squirrels, great horned owls, Steller's jay, and California newts. Their shade and scenery make hiking along the verdant trails a more beautiful experience.

The entire collection of parks in San Mateo County receives about 3 million visitors every year, with many coming from the under-the-radar getaway of Pescadero on the California coast. Meanwhile, the more popular Sequoia National Park and Kings Canyon see over 2 million people. Pescadero's lack of crowds is an oft-repeated feature of the park, which will make for a quiet stroll, a secluded trail hike, or a peaceful camping experience.

The thickly wooded, 6-mile Pescadero Creek Loop gives you the chance to see an especially gigantic redwood tree and old logging equipment left over from previous logging of the area. The massive trees that survived those times are a testament to the importance of preservation. Otherwise, no one would still see these majestic titans. The Tarwater Trail Loop is about 5 miles in length, and visitors will encounter second-growth redwoods replenishing the forest and providing a habitat for a larger number of species, making future treks along this trail all the more enticing.

The Brook Trail Loop is a somewhat challenging hike which takes you to elevations where you can see the ocean. You'll also hike into small, lush, redwood-filled canyons where, according to HillTromper, "even when you know they are coming, the size of the redwoods shocks; a new discovery over and over again." The park's trails serve people on foot and on horseback. As conservation efforts continue, visitors will have an increasingly wondrous experience exploring a land that might have fallen to loggers or natural biological decline.