A Taste of Hennessey

Hiking Hennessey Unit in Napa Valley

Napa’s liquid refreshment comes in more ways than wine, thanks to the Napa County Regional Park & Open Space District. Moore Creek Park is located just 30 minutes east of Napa’s great grapes, and rewards with a bounty of scenic countryside on a 6.5-mile loop hike bordering St. Helena’s gorgeous Lake Hennessey. The trails of the Hennessey Unit switch between singletrack and broader dirt paths, ascending a 964-foot ridge, before descending to hug the lake’s shore.

The landscape is varied, with wildflowers, grassy hills, Douglas fir, and oaks. Start the hike by crossing Chiles Creek (you will get wet!), then continue for a moderate incline to a shaded crest lined with madrone and moss-draped oak. Benches overlook the lake and distant vineyards. The trail descends, switches back, and meanders by the lake. Frogs make their presence heard, and fishermen launch their poles to catch trout. Footbridges and California poppies round out the charm as you finish the loop. If you’re lucky, you might even see one of the resident bald eagles rumored to nest in the area.

BONUS BUBBLES: Pair your hike with a refreshing sampler of sparklings at Domaine Chandon’s terrace. Twenty minutes down the road, the first-come, first-served tables sprawl under cover of indigenous oak beside a trickling creek.

From the Moore Creek Park parking lot at 2602 Chiles Pope Valley Rd. outside St. Helena, take the Chiles Creek Trail by the far edge of the parking lot to Alta Hennessey Trail, up and down the ridge. At the bottom, take a sharp left on the lake’s Shoreline Trail, back to Chiles Creek Trail where you began. Find a map of the location here. Domaine Chandon is located at 1 California Dr. in Yountville. Hike and winery

Trending Stories NorCal

View all Stories
  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.

    View
  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.

    View
  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.

    View
  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.

    View

Trending Stories SoCal

View all Stories
  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.

    View
  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.

    View
  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.

    View
  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.

    View