When I began this review a few weeks ago, I planned a two-part series. However, several readers have brought more accessible walks to my attention, so this is now a three-part series. Incidentally, my recuperation from foot tendon surgery is going well. I'm off crutches after four weeks and into a walking boot until the first of January. Veralyn and I hope to be back on the trail shortly after the first of the year.

Sawyer Camp Trail - Crystal Springs Reservoir - This perennial Peninsula favorite is another level paved multi-use trail with great views in a wilderness setting. Restroom facilities are located along the trail. You can take the trail all the way to Hillcrest Road, a distance of six miles one way, but the trail gets faily steep on the north end. Our favorite hike on this trail is from the entrance at Crystal Springs Road and Skyline Boulevard to the largest and oldest laurel tree in California--named after Willis Linn Jepson--a distance of seven miles round trip This trail can be quite crowded on weekends (it is used by some 350,000 visitors a year), but it offers a nice getaway with good views of the watershed within a quarter mile of the trailhead. Dogs are not allowed. Check our Web site for a complete description.

The Bog Trail - San Bruno Mountain - This is a short .4-mile nature trail, located just east of the parking lot, designed to introduce the visitor to the riparian environment. A pamphlet is available for a self-guided tour. This park includes 14 species of rare or endangered plants as well as two endangered butterflies--the San Bruno elfin and the Mission blue. Dogs are not allowed. For directions and more information, check our Web site and pull up San Bruno Mountain Saddle Trail.

Chickadee Trail - Huddart Park - My friend Celia Hartnett, coordinator for Friends of Huddart and Wunderlich parks, e-mailed me about one of the best trails for wheelchairs, strollers, and small children. This is the Chickadee Trail in Huddart Park. "It is a three-quarter-mile level loop that passes through three different ecosystems--chaparral, oak woodland, and redwoods--a designated nature trail with wonderful things to see, smell, and hear along the way! A trail guide--in English or Spanish--is available at the ranger entrance station."

Weiler Ranch Trail and Plaskon Nature Trail - San Pedro Valley Park, Pacifica. Linda also reminded me of these two trails at San Pedro Valley Park in Pacifica. Check our Web site under San Pedro Valley Park--The Hazelnut Loop Trail--for directions and information on this park. The Weiler Ranch Road Trail extends one mile into the valley. It is hard-packed dirt and could be muddy during the rainy season, but it's a level, wide service road with occasional benches and good views of the broad valley. This is also a significant historic site. In 1769, Spanish explorer Captain Gaspar de Portola camped in or near the valley. From this point, he climbed to Sweeney Ridge and discovered San Francisco Bay. This valley was also an important mission outpost that provided food to Mission Dolores in San Francisco.

The Plaskon Nature Trail is a short trail, less than one-tenth of a mile, located behind the Visitors Center at the south fork of San Pedro Creek. It is a pretty trail under a canopy of trees along the creek.

Footnotes:

Regarding accessibility to Milagra Ridge, a reader e-mailed me to call GGNRA (415-556-0560) or Fort Funston (415-239-2366) for the combination to the gate lock. Open the gate for wheelchair access.