Nice hike along Bay Area Ridge Trail.

Location: Saratoga Gap Open Space Preserve — Long Ridge Open Space Preserve

» Official Trail Map: Good quality map showing various trails.

» South Skyline Regional Map by MROSD: Awesome map showing many parks managed by MROSD (Mid-Peninsula Regional Open Space Destrict). Long, interesting routes going through multiple parks can be chalked out using this map.

» Redwood Hikes Map: Bay Area Trail Map: Saratoga to Big Basin, First edition, 2010. This is an excellent map sold by Dave Baselt ($6.95 in Dec 2011). This map is useful for exploring many parks in this area. Highly recommended for avid hikers.

» Redwoodhikes Trail Map: Great map showing many parks like Purisima Creek, Huddart, Wunderlich, El Corte De Madera, Foothills, Hidden Villa and Rancho San Antonio. Trail maps for individual parks are available online for free. However, the RedwoodHikes map shows the big picture and is helpful for planning hikes that go through multiple parks.

From the parking lot at the intersection of Hwy 9 and Hwy 35, look for the trailhead for Saratoga Gap Open Space Preserve. Follow Saratoga Gap Trail / By Area Ridge Trail (2.0 miles) to reach Hwy 35. Cross over and continue along Hickory Oaks Trail / Bay Area Ridge Trail (0.8 miles) → right on Peters Creek Trail (1.9 miles) → Long Ridge Trail (2.0 miles) → right on Ward Road (0.9 miles) → loop along Ranch Spring Trail (0.9 miles) → Ward Road (0.3 miles) → right on Hickory Oaks Trail (1.1 miles) → right on Achistaca Trail (1.7 miles) to reach Hwy 9. Cross over the road and walk along Skyline to the Sea Trail (0.3 miles) to return to the trail head.

Location: Intersection of Highway 9 and Highway 35 (Skyline Blvd) . Parking area is visible in Google Maps if you zoom in sufficiently.

Directions: From Highway 85, take Exit 14 for Saratoga Ave going south. After 1.8 miles, continue along Big Basin Way (Highway 9) for 7.3 miles to reach the junction with Highway 35 (Skyline Blvd)

Google Maps:

Parking Fees: None (last visited: October 2010)

Capacity: About 20 cars.

Latitude: 37.258513     Longitude: -122.121955