Trails, Parks and Environmental Links

San Francisco Bay Area

Public Land Agencies and Land Trusts

California State Parks (Bay Area Region)

Official guide to California state parks in the greater San Francisco Bay Area, including Alameda, Contra Costa, San Francisco, San Joaquin, Marin and Santa Cruz counties. Search for a park by name.

Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge

Founded in 1972 and administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge exists to preserve wildlife habitat, protect threatened and endangered species, protect migratory birds, and provide opportunities for nature study.

East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) Recreation Areas

EBMUD manages thousands of acres of open space with over 85 miles of trails and numerous reservoirs in the East Bay and Sierra Nevada, including Lafayette and San Pablo reservoirs.

East Bay Regional Parks District

East Bay Regional Park District has over 50 parks and numerous regional inter-park trails covering more than 91,000 acres in Alameda and Contra Costa counties.

Marin County Parks

Marin County Parks includes 13 parks and preserves ranging from beaches and lagoons to a wooded nature preserve, and a variety of pathways.

Marin County Open Space District

Since 1972, the Marin County Open Space District has acquired and manages over 30 preserves within the county.

Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District (MROSD)

Manages thousands of acres of preserves in the Santa Cruz Mountains and San Francisco Peninsula.

National Park Service

The NPS lands in the Bay Area include Muir Woods , Pt. Reyes National Seashore , and the Golden Gate National Recreation Area.

Palo Alto Division of Open Space and Sciences

Manages four preserves from the SF Bay to the Santa Cruz Mountains foothills.

Peninsula Open Space Trust

A land conservancy covering the Santa Cruz Mountains, San Mateo Coastline and San Francisco Bay.

Presidio Trust

Manages (in partnership with the National Park Service) The Presidio of San Francisco, a National Historic Landmark District that is part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area.

San Francisco Recreation & Parks Dept.

The Recreation and Park Department's mission is to rejuvenate the human spirit by providing safe and pristine parks, quality programs and employees that demonstrate our commitment to customer satisfaction.

San Mateo County Parks & Recreation Division

The Division operates 19 separate parks, three regional trails and numerous other county and local trails encompassing 14, 119 acres. The parks, trails and facilities are located throughout the County and represent a wide variety of natural settings including a coastside marine reserve, a bayside recreational area, coastal mountain woodland areas, and urban sites.

San Francisco Bay Trail

A work-in-progress, that when completed, will encircle San Francisco and San Pablo Bays with a continuous 400-mile network of bicycling and hiking trails, linking the shoreline of all 9 Bay Area counties and 47 cities.

Santa Clara County Parks

SCC Parks encompasses thousands of acres of open space, including mountain and urban parks.

Santa Cruz County Parks

Website has limited information about the County's parks (under construction)

Santa Cruz (City) Dept. of Parks & Recreation

The City of Santa Cruz has a variety of parks ranging from Lighthouse Field (waystation for migrating Monarch butterflies) to the 650-acre redwood forests of Pogonip.

City of San Jose Parks, Recreation & Neighborhood Services

The City of San Jose manages several regional parks, including Alum Rock and Almaden Lake parks, in addition to numerous neighborhood parks.

Sempervirens Fund

Sempervirens Fund is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) land conservancy working to protect redwood forest lands in the Santa Cruz Mountains and to make that land available for public enjoyment. Sempervirens has added over 87,000 acres to area State Parks.

Sonoma County Regional Parks Department

The Regional Parks oversees parks ranging from the spectacular Sonoma coast to a variety of multi-use regional trails.

Sonoma Land Trust

The Sonoma Land Trust provides permanent protection of land and its resources, offering stewardship, education, and advice for the preservation and enhancement of agricultural, natural, scenic, and open lands.

Sunnyvale Baylands Park

This regional park provides open space for the South Bay. Over seventy acres of developed parkland offers active recreation, pathways and picnic areas for families and large groups. An additional 105 acres is protected as a Wetlands Preserve where seasonal wetlands provide habitat for plants and wildlife.

City of Walnut Creek Open Space

Walnut Creek Open Space includes Acalanes Ridge, Lime Ridge, Shell Ridge Open Space Recreation Area/Old Borges Ranch, and Sugerloaf.

Trail and Park Organizations

Arastradero Preserve Stewardship Project

The Stewardship Project works with the City of Palo Alto to in managing this 609-acre preserve through native plant restoration projects and working with students from local schools and universities. See also:

Acterra: Action for a Sustainable Earth (formerly Bay Area Action) (parent organization)

Bay Area Open Space Council

The Bay Area Open Space Council is a collaborative program of public and non-profit agencies and organizations, providing regional leadership and expertise for the preservation and professional management of important open spaces in and around the cities of the San Francisco Bay Area.

Bay Area Ridge Trail Council

The Bay Area Ridge Trail Council plans, promotes, and constructs the Bay Area Ridge Trail, a 400-mile multiple-use trail connecting parks and preserved open spaces along the ridgelines surrounding California's San Francisco Bay.

Berkeley Partners for Parks

Berkeley Partners for Parks (BPFP) is a citywide nonprofit devoted to supporting parks and open space in Berkeley through encouraging citizen involvement.

Berkeley Waterfront

Planning, land use, water access, and economic issues relating to the Berkeley shoreline and marina

Citizens for Lafferty Ranch and Open Space (Sonoma County)

Works to secure public access to Lafferty Ranch, a 270-acre property atop Sonoma Mountain owned by the City of Petaluma.

East Bay Regional Trails Council

Composed of public agencies, equestrians, hikers, bicyclists, and conservationists who are committed to furthering the protection of the scenic and recreational resources of the East Bay.

Friends of Stevens Creek Trail

The Friends of Stevens Creek Trail is a local community group whose goal is to raise community awareness and support for the completion of a trail in the Stevens Creek Corridor.

Landpaths

LandPaths was formed to increase public access to open space lands in Sonoma County, and to conduct environmental education and land stewardship programs. Landpaths forms partnerships between landowners and experts in land management and restoration. LandPaths then assists those landowners and partners in defining and implementing practices which maximize resource conservation, while allowing managed public access.

Marin Trails

A guide to the Marin outdoors, including hikes, mountain biking, wildflowers, and more.

Santa Cruz Mtns. Trails Association

Trail maintenance and construction primarily in Castle Rock SP, Big Basin SP, and the Skyline to the Sea Trail. Hikes on many weekends

Sierra Club - Loma Prieta Chapter

The Loma Prieta Chapter serves San Benito, Santa Clara and San Mateo counties, with four regional groups serving local areas. Conservation action, education and outdoor activities (primarily hiking).

Coalition for the Outdoor Recreation Plan (CORP) - Sonoma County

CORP works to advocate for an extensive, diverse, and sensible system of trails in Sonoma County. They aim to realize the vision of an extensive system of trails and parks linking city residents with the surrounding natural and rural countryside.

Tamalpais Conservation Club

Formed in 1912 to safeguard the natural environment and hiking access on Mount Tamalpais (Marin), the TCC works with the four regulatory agencies whomanage Tam to promote better trail maintenance, trail signing, and cleanup through regularly scheduled trail days each month. The club also supports efforts for better control of invasive exotic plants such as broom, pampas grass, eucalyptus, and ivy. The TCC is a strong supporter of recreation, including hiking, biking and equestrian use on the mountain provided these activities are practiced in an environmentally sound and socially responsible manner.

Other Trail, Park and Outdoor Recreation Resources

Almaden Cycle Touring Club

ACTC is based in the South Bay Area and sponsors numerous rides and events.

Badger

Geo-data for the San Francisco Bay Area. Online maps and aerial photos.

Bay Area Backcountry

Bay Area Backcountry web-page is "an ever changing collection of apocryphal, misleading, and just plain wrong information about some nice places to camp and hike around the San Francisco Bay Area.

Bay Area Barns and Trails

BABTT's mission is to preserve for future generations equestrian stables, pastures, trails, horse camps throughout the Bay Area. Provides support for education, land acquisition and advocacy efforts.

Bay Area Hiker

Hikes ranging geographically from around Robert Louis Stevenson State Park to the north, to Mount Diablo in the East Bay, Henry Cowell State Park to the southwest, and Henry Coe State Park to the southeast.

Bikeable Trails of the Baylands: From Dumbarton to Sunnyvale

Large areas of the south bay, currently used for commercial salt production, may be returned to natural salt marsh as compensation for the environmental damage from the planned expansion of SFO. This map is a guide for the people planning this transition and for people who enjoy riding bicycles.

Ceres - Recreational Resources by Geographic Area: Bay-Delta Bioregion

California Resources Agency site with maps, environmental information and links to individual counties.

Henry W. Coe State Park, California (buddha-nature maps & books)

Unofficial Coe site from a former employee. Includes photo tour, location map, recreation guide, trip reports, and more.

Cyberhikes

CyberHikes is dedicated to providing information about California Hiking trails. Focuses on Bay Area and central California hikes.

East Bay Barefoot Hikers

Organizes short to medium length unshod hikes in regional parks such as Redwood, Briones, Tilden, Las Trampas and Mount Diablo State Park.

East Bay Bicycle Coalition

EBBC is a volunteer organization dedicated to promoting bicycling as an everyday means of transportation and recreation.

GORP-SF Bay Area

Includes information for some individual parks, including Point Reyes National Seashore, as well as general information about outdoor recreation in the Bay Area.

Grizzly Peak Cyclists, Inc.

Berkeley based group of folks who enjoy bicycling.

Marin County Dog Parks

A guide to taking your dog to Marin Parks

Marin Cyclists

Regularly scheduled road and mountain rides. Non-members welcome.

Peninsula Access for Dogs (PADS)

PADS is an organization devoted to increasing the amount of open space and park land accessible to dogs on the San Francisco Bay Peninsula.

Pine Ridge Association (Henry W. Coe State Park)

Coe's official cooperating association. PRA activities include guided walks, evening programs in the Visitor Center, and annual events such as the Mother's Day breakfast, the Coe Backcountry Weekend, and the fall TarantulaFest. The Pine Ridge Association publishes a newsletter (The Ponderosa), maps, interpretive leaflets and books, and free informational handouts.

Portola Trail Guide

Trail guides and maps for SF Peninsula parks and trails.

REBAC - Regional Bicycle Advisory Committee

REBAC's mission is to make bicycling a legitimate form of transportation in the nine-county Bay Area.

ROMP - Responsible Organized Mountain Pedalers

Organized mountain bike rides, advocacy and information about cycling in the SF Peninsula and South Bay Area.

Santa Clara County Horsemans' Association

SCCHA is made up of a diverse group of horsepeople who enjoy activities such as trail riding, camping, gymkhana, parade riding, and other riding disciplines. Club members are actively involved in local land use planning and trailbuilding.

Santa Rosa Cycling Club

Organized rides and Sonoma County cycling information.

Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition

SVBC is an advocacy organization striving to create an environment in the South Bay in which bicycling can flourish.

Skyline Cycling Club

The Skyline Cycling Club is a social recreational bicycle club in the San Francisco South Bay Area.

Top Seven Hikes in Marin County

Excerpts from the book, Hiking Marin, 121 Great Hikes in Marin County, ©1995 by Don and Kay Martin. Includes hike descriptions and maps.

Trail Run (Sun Shine Day Dream).

Information on trail running in the Bay Area, including a brief guide to a variety of Bay Area parks and trails and an Introduction to Trail Running in the Bay Area

Trails of the Diablo Valley

Site dedicated to the trails of the Diablo Valley and surrounding area, including Mt. Diablo State Park.

Trails Online

In progress.

Valley Spokesmen Bicycle Touring Club

Based in Dublin, California (approximately 15 miles east of Oakland), the club conducts both local and non-local rides. Emphasis is on road cycling, however some mountain bike rides are available.

Virtual Parks

Panoramic photos and maps for Bay Area and California parks.

Weekly Walker

Collection of great hikes in the San Francisco Bay Area written by Tom Davids. New walks added weekly.

Western Wheelers Bicycle Club

Western Wheelers Bicycle Club, Inc. is a nonprofit organization based on the San Francisco Peninsula that hosts a variety of rides every month to suit cyclists of all abilities.

Other Environmental Organizations

Bay Area Action

Bay Area Action (BAA) is an environmental education and action nonprofit based in the San Francisco Bay Area whose mission is to help people discover and strengthen their connection to and concern for the natural environment through education and hands-on, action-oriented activities. BAA aims to build broad-based coalitions, empower citizens, and develop leadership skills among its members.

California Native Plant Society - Santa Clara Valley

Features The Blazing Star -- the online version of the Santa Clara Valley CNPS chapter's journal, as well as a guide to what's in bloom. The Santa Clara Valley CNPS works to preserve native flora in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties.

Magic

Promotes an ecological approach to value through classes, services and projects, including Planting for the Second Hundred Years, an oak regeneration program on Stanford University lands, and Fruition, a program to distribute surplus fruit trees to schoolchildren.

See the Trail Center Calendar & Activity Guide for more local recreational and volunteer opportunities.