I was concerned about going ahead with the scheduled field trip for my College of San Mateo class last Saturday, October 14. The problem was that smoke had been drifting south from the big wild fires in Napa and Sonoma Counties, resulting in unhealthy air quality. I arrived early at the main Purisima Creek Redwoods Open Space parking lot on Skyline Boulevard with no idea how many, if any, of my 30 students would actually show up.
Fourteen students arrived, and because the sky was blue and there was only the slightest hint of smoke in the air they all wanted to do the entire 6 mile hike. From the main parking lot we carpooled about 2 miles south to the small parking area at the uphill end of the Purisima Creek Trail. This turnout can be hard to identify because there is no sign along the road to tell you that this is a trail head. If there isn't parking in the lot you can park along Skyline Boulevard nearby. Just make sure you are not parked on the wrong side of the white line.
I like to do this car shuttle route because it offers a good and scenic hike without the necessity of descending all the way to the bottom of the ridge before climbing back up to Skyline. This route took us downhill on the Purisima Creek Trail to the where we headed
north on the Craig Britton Trail, which is also part of the Bay Area Ridge Trail. We stopped for lunch at a bridge over a creek. We then turned right at the Harkins Ridge Trail and ascended the steepest part of the route to a scenic overlook with spectacular views of the Pacific Ocean and coast north of Half Moon Bay. On the way back we stopped for a glimpse of the legendary "Ohlone Whisper Tree", which is said to whisper to you the words you most need to hear. Much to our delight there were even some asters in bloom nearby.
TO GET THERE... The main entrance is on Skyline Boulevard about 4.5 miles south of where it intersects Highway 92.
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