A gorgeous redwood hike next to a creek for several miles.

Location: Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park - Fall Creek Unit

» RedwoodHikes Map for this hike: Nice map showing all the trails clearly. Thanks to Dave Baselt for sharing this.

» Official Trail Map: High quality trail map with countours and trails clearly shown.

» Redwood Hikes Map: Annotated trail map of San Lorenzo Valley that shows many parks, not just Henry Cowell. This is an excellent map sold by Dave Baselt ($6.95 in Jan 2012).

» PeasePress Map: Trails of Santa Cruz: Excellent quality map showing various parks in the Santa Cruz area.

Route: Bennet Creek Trail (0.2 miles) → right on Fall Creek Trail (?? miles) → left on High School Trail (0.1 miles) → left on Ridge Trail (1.6 miles) → continue along Truck Trail (2.4 miles) to park boundary where a private property sign blocks the trail. Return along Truck Trail (1.1 miles) → right on Big Ben Trail (0.4 miles, steep) → left on Fall Creek Trail (2.3 miles, trail stays next to the creek at all times) → right on Bennet Creek Trail (0.2 miles).

Notes:

1. A shorter version of this hike (7.0 miles, 1500 ft) is well described in a RedwoodHikes Article. The hike becomes longer (9.2 miles, 1500 ft) by additional walking along Truck Trail. From the junction with Big Ben Trail, add a 2.2 mile round-trip along Truck Trail to park boundary marked by a private property sign.
2. In winters, Fall Creek is gushing with water and a bunch of seasonal bridges get washed away. So you may have to cross some of them on foot. Call the park ranger to assess trail conditions before you make this trip.

Location: 1400 Felton Empire Rd Felton, CA 95018 . Parking area is visible in Google Maps if you zoom in sufficiently.

Directions: Along CA 17 south, exit Mount Hermon Rd in Scotts Valley. Drive 3.5 miles northwest along Mount Hermon Rd. Turn right on Graham Hill Road. In 0.1 miles, go through traffic light (Graham Hill becomes Felton Empire Rd at this intersection). Drive about 0.6 miles on Felton Empire Rd. Turn into a large parking lot marked by a sign for Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park.

Google Maps:

Parking Fees: None (last visited: Jan 2012)

Capacity: About 20 cars. At 8am, we were the first ones to park. When we finished the hike by 1:30pm, the parking lot was full.

Latitude: 37.049718     Longitude: -122.083155