Deck the Trails

One of the best gifts we could ever get? Open space! And thanks to so many fantastic organizations throughout the Bay Area, we have a lot of it to enjoy. Here are three loop hikes in open spaces that’ll make your day merry and your scenery bright. Bonus: They’re all dog-friendly!

Week: 12.07.2017
Regions: Northern CA

Go, Tell It on the Mountain

Easy hiking at King Mountain in Marin

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 simple can be beautiful. This 3-mile (round-trip) lollipop loop hike makes a nice afternoon walk in the
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Keep on Truckee!

Win A Truckee Vacation

Nice and easy … that’s how your ski getaways should be! Snow doubt about it: Truckee’s your best base camp for hitting the pow, quickly! Located smack on I-80, you’re 15 to 30 minutes from 12 Lake Tahoe–Truckee world-class ski resorts plus over 100 miles of Nordic trails leaving
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A Very Muiry Holiday Hike

Hike the East Bay's New Open Space Preserve Carr Ranch

We know the North Pole is currently all the rage with elves preparing gifts, but here in NorCal there’s something exciting afoot, too. We’ve got some new hiking open space! Thank the John Muir Land Trust, the East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD), and donors for successfull
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Pulgas Pageant

Hike at Pulgas Ridge Open Space Preserve

Good things come in small packages! The peninsula’s Pulgas Ridge Open Space Preserve, quietly located off Highway 280, makes an easygoing 2.3-mile loop through oaks and up to big canyon views. It’s also dog-friendly with an off-leash area for dogs to explore. Take the Blue Oak Tr
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  1. Serene Las Gallinas

    A serene stroll alongside marshland, passing ponds and grasses frilled in seasonal wildflowers, with Mount Tam a beacon in the background … how nice. As part of the esteemed Bay Trail, San Rafael’s Las Gallinas Valley Birding Loop and Wildlife Ponds comprises about 3.5 miles of wide-open trail.

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  2. Paint Brushy

    This time of year you’ll have good reason to head for the hills—the electric-green rolling hills of Brushy Peak Regional Preserve in Livermore. This 4.5-mile loop hike is like stepping into a plein air painting.

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  3. Sponsored

    2025 POST Wildflower Walks

    Get flower empowered! POST’s complimentary 2025 Wildflower Walks guide blooms with the best places to see a variety of florals across the Peninsula and South Bay this spring.

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  4. All right, Almaden!

    Take a trip through time on this 5-mile loop in Almaden Quicksilver County Park. Explore the ruins of an old cinnabar mine and enjoy the first hints of wildflower season.

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  1. Sponsored

    Weekend in Reno Tahoe

    Weekend plans? Reno Tahoe! Just a few hours by car or a short flight away, Reno Tahoe springs to the moment with great ways to combine adventure and relaxation in its beautiful mountains-meets-desert setting.

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  2. Hiker walking along the North Bluff Trail on Santa Cruz Island, Channel Islands National Park

    Purely Wild

    Channel Islands National Park lives up to its nickname as “North America’s Galapagos.” This less-traveled national park is an undeveloped and isolated series of five dramatic and distinct islands reached by boat. Hike the largest of the islands, Santa Cruz.

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  3. Woman hiking the South Kaibab Trail in the Grand Canyon

    Truly Grand Day Hike

    One of the best spring day hikes in the Grand Canyon? See layer upon layer of the park’s grandeur—including the river—on this 3-mile (one-way) journey to Skeleton Point via the South Kaibab Trail.

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  4. A woman stands amid an array of yellow and purple flowers at Descanso Gardens in Los Angeles

    Petal Paradise

    Tulips, lilacs, and daffodils—flower power is in full bloom at Descanso Gardens in La Cañada Flintridge. Sprawling across 150 acres surrounded by mountains, the gardens are putting on their best show right now.

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