We met at 10 AM at the main parking lot on Woodside Road. Because parking was getting quite tight, next time we do this route we will meet at 9:30 AM instead. We then carpooled south on Woodside Road, uphill on La Honda Road (Hwy 84), and then north on Skyline Boulevard (Hwy 35) to the uphill entrance to the park.
From there, we walked downhill on the Alambique Trail through a forest of second-growth redwood and Douglas fir, with some beautiful irises and wild rose along the way. We noted many dead tanbark oak that were killed by Sudden Oak Death Syndrome (SODS). One of these trees had many holes that were filled with acorns by a colony of acorn woodpeckers. We then headed north on the Bear Gulch Trail to our lunch stop at The Meadows. Here we were out of the forest in a green and open meadow with beautiful views. Some of us rolled cut sections of a downed tree into the shade to sit on while eating lunch. After lunch I
The ecological diversity of this park was further revealed as we continued downhill on the Meadow Trail, which passes through groves of coast live oak, white oak, and black oak. Continuing downhill on the Meadow Trail, we turned north on the Redwood Trail and the Madrone Trail. We stopped to watch newts swimming in the concrete pond at Salamader Flat. This pond was constructed more than a hundred years ago to provide water for the Folger estate.
From the Madrone Trail we turned right on the Bear Gulch Trail and continued downhill to the historic Folger Stable, built in 1905. We visited the small museum in the stable. This recently restored stable is the ultimate in equine luxury.
TO GET THERE... from Highway 280, take Woodside Road west and south. The park entrance is about 2 miles beyond the town of Woodside.
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