2018's Top 10 Adventures in Northern California

New year's resolution: get outdoors more! Sounds good to us. We've rounded up some favorite adventures from 2018. Whether you check off one of these adventures or all ten, it's a great way to start the new year. Happy 2019!

Week: 12.27.2018
Regions: Northern CA

Coming Up Roses

Hiking Mt. Rose Summit in Lake Tahoe

Looking to spice up your hiking life? Give your partner a rose—Mount Rose! The 10-mile out-and-back peak hike goes up to one of the grandest views in all of Lake Tahoe. Get ready for a solid hiking day! The first few miles are a nice steady incline traversing sagebrush, lodgepole
Read the full story

It's How You Roll!

Bike Ride to Wineries on Sonoma Valley's Backroads

Lush vineyards aren’t the only things rolling in Sonoma Valley these days. Casual cruiser biking is one of the best ways to see the sights and taste the wines! The key: Pedal the country roads and paved bike paths that start right from the historic plaza. Rent a bike at one of th
Read the full story

2019 Local Hiking Calendar!

2019 Bay Area Hiking Calendar

Out with the old, in with the New Year—and a new calendar! Download your complimentary 2019 Hiking Calendar from Peninsula Open Space Trust (POST) and try a different hike every month of the year (New Year’s resolution: a hike a month!). The POST Hiking Calendar gives you the bes
Visit our sponsor Peninsula Open Space Trust

Purisima Charisma

Hike Purisima Creek Redwoods on the San Mateo Coast

Hike Purisima Creek Open Space Preserve
Hundred-foot redwoods, a shaded canyon, and views overlooking Half Moon Bay. This 10-mile loop hike in Purisima Creek Redwoods Open Space Preserve is a roller-coaster of uphill and downhill along with easygoing stretches through some of the Bay Area’s most beautiful landscape.
Read the full story

America's Best Urban Hike

Hike San Francisco's Grand Walk, Sutro Baths to Crissy Field

Woman walking down the stairs overlooking the ocean on the Coastal Trail in San Francisco
Many years ago we dubbed it the “Grand Walk” and said it was one of the most scenic and stunning trails in the West. We were wrong. This is the most scenic urban hike in America!
Read the full story

This Is Paradise

Camp at Paradise Lake in Tahoe National Forest

Granite mountain-scape, superb sunset views, crystal lakes, and shoreline campsites … the trip to Paradise Lake in Tahoe National Forest lives up to its idyllic name.
Read the full story

Cal Secret Spots

Explore UC Berkeley's Secret Spots

In its bustling urban setting, UC Berkeley’s campus may seem like an open book, but it’s actually home to spots that are off the beaten path, even for students. Find less-known gems at Cal, including several that are outdoors.
Read the full story

All in for Alamere

Hike to Alamere Falls in Point Reyes

If you’re crazy about the ocean, the beach, and waterfalls, Bolinas’s Coast Trail is bound to become one of your all-time favorite spring hikes. It’s got one killer cliffside view after another and a classic climax: Alamere Falls, a 50-foot tumbler that launches off a cliff into
Read the full story

Goat Yoga!

Do Yoga with Baby Goats at Lemos Farm in Half Moon Bay

Downward dog, meet goat. As in Goat Yoga at Lemos Farm in Half Moon Bay. The fifteen or so baby goats roaming the barn-turned-yoga-studio here are the yogi partners you never knew you needed. During the 45-minute session you’ll flow with these furry friends as they nibble at your
Read the full story

Carson Calling

Find the Hot Springs at East Fork Carson River

Along the banks of the East Fork Carson River, brushing the California–Nevada border, sits a series of hot spring pools surrounded by high desert. The springs have for years been a sanctuary for rafters and kayakers making their way down the river, but ambitious hikers and backpa
Read the full story

Peak Pacifica

Hike to Pacifica's Montara Peak from Gray Whale Cove

Lingering wildflowers and sweeping Pacifica views … this 1,900-foot peak hike up Pacifica’s Montara Mountain has it all, including a beach ending! Start at the Gray Whale Cove trailhead on the southeast side of its namesake parking lot (arrive early, parking fills quickly here).
Read the full story

Trending Stories NorCal

View all Stories
  1. Man hiking up a trail at Montara Mountain, with a view of the Pacific and Grey Whale sand beach in the background

    From Beach to Summit

    No need to decide between a beach and a mountaintop—this hike includes both! Explore the stunning coastal scenery on this 6-mile out-and-back up Montara Mountain and into Rancho Corral de Tierra.

    View
  2. Picnic and a Pedal

    West Marin has all the right stuff for an afternoon getaway: bike paths, babbling brooks, canopy forests, and secluded picnic spots. Combine a picnic and a pedal at Samuel P. Taylor State Park by biking the easygoing Cross Marin Trail.

    View
  3. Sebastopol Food & Wine Roll

    One apple farm, three charming towns, multiple wineries, and infinite natural beauty. Savor a perfect autumn day in Sonoma County by biking the West County Regional Trail from Sebastopol to Forestville via Graton. It’s a 17-mile (round-trip) adventure. 

    View
  4. Go, Tell It on the Mountain

    Want to be king of the mountain? Head to King Mountain, the 108-acre open space preserve just above Larkspur in Marin. Despite its lofty name, hiking King Mountain proves that simp

    View

Trending Stories SoCal

View all Stories
  1. Woman walking in the Venice Canals of Los Angeles County

    Canal Contemplations

    With its incense-scented boardwalk, bohemian shops, skateparks, and abundance of body builders, Venice is happily eccentric, and artistic. Exhibit A: Its network of European-style canals with charming bridges, offering a tranquil tour of the town’s history.

    View
  2. Sponsored

    Yes, Seattle!

    Ready to try something new this winter? Seattle’s ready for you! Beautiful by nature with its Puget Sound setting, surrounding mountains, and nearby national parks, winter in Seattle can be a magical and festive time. Ever been in a hot tub boat?...

    View
  3. Wine Down, Dine Out in Lake Chelan

    The fertile soil around Washington State's Lake Chelan is ripe for more than just the amazing apples. Vineyards here yield high quality grapes, and some of the country’s best less-discovered wineries. Locals know it, and you will too when you start choosing from the more than 30 wineries in the region.

    View
  4. What's Up, Winthrop!

    It’s not just its location close to Washington State’s spectacular and less visited national park (North Cascades) that makes Winthrop such a winsome mountain town. This lively enclave in the Methow Valley bristles with a whimsical blend of Wild West charms, contemporary culture, and a mosaic of outdoor adventures—from river to lake to waterfalls, and beyond.

    View