On Wednesday night I drove to San Bruno to meet my friend Marie for a night hike at Sweeney Ridge—part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA). We started from the Sneath Lane trailhead and walked along the paved Sneath Lane Trail to the top at Sweeney Ridge trail. It was foggy higher up so we couldn’t see anything except mist, but lower down under the “fog line” I was able to get a shot of the city lights below us. The only wildlife we encountered was a banana slug that seemed a little out of place slithering along the pavement. We did see a dismembered fawn’s leg along the trail—probably the remnants of a coyote or mountain lion kill.
My mountaineering friend Emilie invited me to go on a day hike with two of our friends at Huddart Park, a county park in San Mateo near Woodside, California. I haven’t done much Peninsula hiking and have never been to Huddart Park, so I thought it would be nice to start the new year with a hike in a new area.
The weather was nice and foggy with a little mist—perfect for hiking in redwood trees. With the moisture came lots of fungi, moss, lichen, and banana slugs. We even saw two rough-skinned newts cruising around with each other. We did have to dodge some horse apples, but the trails were remarkably root-free and not too muddy. Some trails where even paved, which was a bit odd, but minimized my normal stumbling on every rock and bump.
Overall it was a nice park, worth the small entrance fee, and a pleasant way to start the new year!
Elevation Gain/Loss: ~1,760 ft; low point 666 ft, high point 2,010 ft
Trails Traveled: Dean Trail, Chinquapin Trail, Archery Fire Road, Dean Trail, Crystal Springs Trail
Terrain: Well-maintained single and double track, some trails with asphalt. Good sturdy trail signage. Only a few obstacles—a couple downed trees, a few locked horse gates.
Flora & Fauna: Redwood forest and mixed evergreen with lots of madrone and tan oak. Lots of moisture, fungi, banana slugs, fog, spider webs, newts.
Facilities: Bathrooms with water at various picnic areas in park. $5 entrance fee. Maps available.
Rambling is, well, about my ramblings — corporeal and rhetorical. It’s a place for me to add the story line of my outdoor adventures to my photos, and share that story with those who care to read it, hopefully enjoy it, and maybe learn something or inspire action in myself or others in the process.
Posts
