An hour south of San Francisco, in the hills of San Mateo County, sits a redwood forest most visitors drive right past on their way to better-known names. Pescadero Creek Park covers 8,020 acres of the Santa Cruz Mountains and delivers the same cathedral-old trees you'd find at Sequoia or Redwood National Park, minus the tour buses.
The park is actually a complex of three county parks — Sam McDonald, Memorial, and Pescadero Creek. The standout for first-timers is Heritage Grove in Sam McDonald, a 37-acre stand of old-growth redwoods. Beyond the big trees, the forest mixes Douglas fir, Santa Cruz cypress, canyon live oak, and knobcone pine, with deer, coyotes, and the occasional mountain lion moving through. It's also a refuge for endangered species: the marbled murrelet, a secretive seabird that nests here, plus steelhead trout and coho salmon in Pescadero and Alpine Creeks. That's why fishing is off-limits.
One strange quirk sets this park apart from any other redwood grove in the state: it sits over gas and oil reserves. Old drilling attempts failed, but natural gas and crude oil still seep up near Hoffman Creek, Tarwater Creek, and Jones Gulch Creek, staining rocks black and producing the odd whiff of petroleum mid-hike.
Hiking is the main draw, with more than 26 miles of trails shared by walkers and horseback riders. There's something for every pace: a short hour-long loop through Heritage Grove or a climb up Mount Ellen, mid-length options like the Ridge Loop and Towne Trail, or full-day efforts such as the Butano Ridge Loop and Pomponio Trail, which take six to eight hours. Bonus for the ambitious — the trail network links up with Big Basin Redwoods State Park and Portola Redwoods State Park, so you can string together a multi-park redwood itinerary on foot.
Overnight hikers can camp at two rustic trail camps, at Shaw Flat and along the Tarwater Trail. These are stop-offs for through-hikers, so expect vault toilets and no water source — pack everything in. A $10 permit from the ranger station is required, and open fires are banned.
For anyone flying in, San Francisco International (SFO) or San Jose Mineta (SJC) both put you about an hour's drive from the trailheads. If you've always wanted to stand under 300-foot redwoods without queuing for a parking spot, this is the low-hassle alternative.
