Marin Headlands 24k loop

It is easy to be seduced by the Sierra, to think of them as not only the pinnacle of out-of-doors enjoyment, but also as the only possible place for such enjoyment. The fact that they are a 4ish hour drive distant really puts a damper on that.

Fortunately for those of us who live in the San Francisco Bay Area, truly sublime trails are only a fraction of an hour away.

Today, case in point, a lovely jaunt with the Berkeley Running Club up in the Headlands. Above, two of our crew cruise along Middle Green Gulch, with cloud islands to the north and the Pacific hiding underneath. OK, those aren't really cloud islands, the picture framing just gives them that appearance; BUT! Redwood Peak in the East Bay was a genuine cloud island today, viewed from Cardiac Hill.

Above, pausing for a group photo on top of Cardiac Hill. This, the aforementioned cloud island, and a brand new water fountain are one's reward for scrambling up the Dipsea Trail. Speaking of which, the Quad Dipsea race is coming up soon... are you people mad? :)

A few miles to go, flying down the Heather Cutoff trail (aka 57 switchbacks). The clouds were chilly but the sun was warm.. its a great combination, until the sun goes away. Below, enjoying hard-earned fish'n'chips and a pint at the Pelican Inn.

All of these photos were shamelessly borrowed from the BRC Meetup page. Thanks Chris and Drew for snapping.

Purisima Creek Redwoods 32k lollipop loop

Trip Date: 28 Sept 2013

In a reckless, vaguely frustrated mood, last week I registered for the Skyline-To-The-Sea 50k trail run. I normally run about 10k on any given day, or about 30k-40k per week. Hmm. Better get some more trail under my legs.

I scoped out a loop in Purisima Open Space that I estimated at about 30k, including the lovely Craig Britton Trail, a twisty single track that starts up on a Manzanita covered ridge before dropping down into a canyon, and cavorts along redwood groves and creeks. The view from the ridge is lovely, the coastal range foothills and meadows spilling down to the Pacific:

The lollipop stick was a dead end piece of trail I'd never visited, out past Bald Knob and on to Irish Ridge Trail. Beyond that lies an unmaintained trail called Lobitos Creek Trail.

The trailhead elevation is about 2000', and Bald Knob elevation is 2102' by the map. Piece of cake, right? Umm, no. There is a natural law which states

"Beginning at point A, any trail connecting point A and point B in the Santa Cruz Mountains must first descend to the bottom of the nearest valley before reaching point B."

No exceptions here... Purisima Creek bottoms out around 600' in a beautiful forested canyon. From there I took Grabtown Gulch Trail up to Bald Knob Trail. Who the *__* names these trails? (Ohh, history does).

Bald Knob is a bald faced lie. The summit is completely forested. Its not all recent, either. This tree looked to be as old as Yoda:

I used 360 Panorama to make this image. Even so, its tough to tell in 2D that you are looking up a few hundred feet. From the summit I dropped down Irish Ridge. As I dropped, my legs cried out

"why are you doing this, its steep as shizz and its a fire road to boot, please don't do this."

and my spirit responded

"shush, we have to see where this trail goes, and what is at the end of it.."

The spirit won, but I wish that the legs had. At the end of Lobitos Creek Trail is a progressively narrowing series of overgrown patches, interspersed with signs warning of lack of trail maintenance. Like this one:

No pot of gold. No magical canyon or creek. Maybe I just didn't go far enough.

Coming back up Lobitos and Irish Ridge extracted a heavy price, with several sections too steep (for me) to run and other sections baking in the sun. Then it was a mostly gentle descent along Borden Hatch Mill Trail, back to the Purisima Creek bed.

On the way back to the car I followed Whittemore Gulch Trail, a lovely single track that eventually switchbacks pretty hard to help you on your way to point B. Or point A. It doesn't matter, the rule is commutative. I ran out of food and water with a few km to go (my specialty) and had to stop a few times to ease the burn in my legs. Perfect opportunity to enjoy the view:

That forested peak is Bald Knob :) and the drop down to 600' happens after the middle ridge. At the right edge you can see the cloud bank hanging over the Pacific.


Summary: basically a great loop in Purisima Creek Open Space Preserve. Lots of single track, but also a bit of jeep track. Great views of the Pacific and of the coastal Redwoods. Leg-abusing climbs.

Would I do it all again? Absolutely. I'd skip Irish Ridge and Lobitos Creek, but the trek out to the un-bald Bald Knob is superb.

Parting Shot: There is another natural law, at least in the Bay Area:

"Beginning at point A, any road connecting point A and point B in the Bay Area (on a weekend) must pass through a region of stopped traffic on the freeway before reaching point B."

Where were all you people today?? Never mind, I don't really care. Just keep it up... the trails don't need the traffic.