“McGarvey Flat”
Huddart Park
"This is God's country. I can't believe that they pay me to be here."
-County Ranger
Priscilla Alvarez from "San Mateo County Parks" by Svanevik and Burgett
Directions: Through the town of Woodside on Woodside Road to Kings
Mountain Road. Continue about three miles to Huddart Park on your right.
Grade: Moderate, with an elevation gain of about 400 feet.
Distance: About four miles.
Time: One to two hours.
Special Conditions:
Some parts of the trail are open to equestrians.
Bring a waterproof sheet to sit on if you intend to picnic.
Check at the entrance gate for current park closing time.
The entrance fee is $4, free for seniors during midweek.
Huddart County Park is part of the San Mateo County Park System (650-363-4021).
This week's lunch spot is about two miles from the
trailhead in a deep canyon along a creek that is rushing in the winter season
and under a tree canopy through which the sunlight barely penetrates. McGarvey
Flat has been recently improved with two hitching posts, a new picnic table,
and a new bridge crossing over the creek. There are also a few scattered log
benches that have served picnickers for decades. If you come in the winter,
bring something waterproof to sit on.The view from this site is down into McGarvey
Gulch, which was heavily logged during the late 1800s by San Francisco lumberman
and Woodside resident James M. Huddart. The park as we know it was actually
a gift from Mr. Huddart. When he died on March 31, 1935, he left a will that
transferred the remainder of his property to the City and County of San Francisco.
He further stipulated that if San Francisco didn't want it, the land would be
given to the state for a park. Well, San Francisco rejected it and title went
to the state, which after a couple of years concluded that it wasn't interested
in maintaining the property. So the state donated the land to San Mateo County,
which came close to refusing the gift because of a question over water rights.
When all was said and done, San Mateo County accepted the property, and Huddart
County Park opened in 1948.
From the entrance station off Kings Mountain Road, drive to the first intersection
and go straight (left) a short distance to the next junction and turn right.
At the lower end of the large Meadow Picnic Area is a small parking lot next
to the restroom building. Park there and find the signed trailhead. Take the
Zwierlein Trail (also marked for the Phlegler Estate) that begins a gradual
descent to the junction with Richards Road in .7 mile. Don't go to Richards
Road, but turn left at the Dean Trail (also marked for the Archery Range in
1.6 miles). Dean Trail continues west over mostly level terrain with several
picnic areas on the left and McGarvey Gulch on the right.
As the trail climbs a bit, split rail fencing separates you from the forested
picnic areas, and soon you will pass over an asphalt road that leads to the
Toyan Group Camp area, a popular campout setting for youth groups. The trail
crosses Toyan Road and continues uphill to Archery Fire Road. It levels out
above and parallel to Kings Mountain Road. Soon Dean Trail switchbacks, climbs
100 feet, and re-crosses the Archery Fire Road. You are then hiking along the
north side of the ridge high above McGarvey Gulch. One-eighth mile beyond Archery
Fire Road is a junction with the Chinquapin Trail, which leads to the upper
reaches of Huddart Park.
Our walk continues along the Dean Trail, which levels out and moves down into
the gulch. This portion of the trail is an old logging road, and throughout
the gulch are large stumps that remind us of the huge redwoods that grew in
this area before the loggers came in the 1860s. Now the area is reforested with
second-growth redwoods, and up into the gulch, big-leaf maples are taking hold.
The Dean Trail crosses to McGarvey Gulch, where the water rushes during the
winter months. As you turn from the bridge, McGarvey Flat lies below. A sign
reminds us that we are 1,380 feet above sea level.
This is our destination--one of the Peninsula's best picnic areas.
After the picnic, you can retrace your steps or continue a quarter-mile along
the narrow Dean Trail to the junction with Crystal Springs Trail. Turn right,
and descend through a mixed redwood-madrone forest with a touch of chaparral.
In three-quarters of a mile from the Dean Trail, you will cross the road to
Toyan Group Camp. Continue on the Crystal Springs Trail down to McGarvey Gulch
Creek, just up from Richards Road. As you cross the creek, look for a sign marking
the Dean trail, and climb up to the picnic area and parking lot.
For more information on this and other county parks, pick up a copy of the new
book, "San Mateo County Parks," by Michael Svanevik and Shirley Burgett,
published by San Mateo County Parks and Recreation Foundation.
Your comments and hiking suggestions are always welcome.
Written by Tom Davids