WEEKLY WALKER

By Tom Davids

A Loop Hike into Big Basin Redwoods State Park

Howard King Trail - Skyline Trail Loop

"After a day's walk, everything has twice its usual value."

- George Macauley Trevelyan

Directions: Highway 92 west to Half Moon Bay. South on Highway 1 for 30 miles to Waddell Beach. Park in the large beachside parking lot or adjacent to the Rancho del Oro gate on the east side of Highway 1.

Grade: Strenuous. Elevation gain of 1,600 feet.

Distance: 22 miles.

Time: 9 to 10 hours.

Special Conditions: No dogs allowed. No safe water to drink but plenty available if you bring a filter or purifying tablets. Watch for poison oak, but trails are clear. Plan another hour if you hike to park headquarters. For information, call 831-338-8860.

This week's walk is an ideal tune-up for your coming summer activities. It's long--22 miles--strenuous--an elevation gain of 1,600 feet, but it is loaded with the best that Big Basin has to offer. You may know Big Basin as a pleasant family camping area among the redwoods, with regular visits to the snack shop and a stroll along the Nature Trail.

For years we made regular visits to Big Basin--our four children in tow--and we always had a good time. As the kids grew up, we backpacked to the several trail camps--Sunset, Herbert, Twin Redwoods, Alder, and Waterman Gap. And as our appetite for long hikes grew, we began to explore the western or Rancho del Oro side of the park. Since then we have taken many hikes into the park from Waddell Beach at Highway 1 and have often extended our hike to the Middle Ridge. Late spring is an ideal time to hike into the canyon. Water over the falls is still high, and the new growth on trees and brush offers brilliant tones of green.

This hike starts at the western end of the Skyline-to-the-Sea Trail. The first half-mile borders the Theodore S. Hoover Natural Preserve, a freshwater marsh that is a protected habitat for more than 150 species of birds. A seasonal ranger station (open on weekends) and horse camp are located beyond the marsh. At the horse camp, the trail splits with the hikers' trail heading left up the hillside and the service road (for bicyclists, equestrians, and local residents) continuing along the valley floor. After 1.5 miles, you will pass by Alder Camp and then Twin Redwoods Camp. Camp Herbert is another 1.5 mile ahead. The trail (service road at this point) is mostly level and wide, meandering alongside West Waddell Creek. Tall redwood trees provide a shady canopy; streamside vegetation includes sycamore, alder, and maple trees. For information and reservations to backpack to these camps, call 831-338-8860. The cost is $10 per campsite per night (six campers). Dogs and fires are not allowed.

Continue along the Skyline-to-the-Sea Trail for another 2.5 miles to the creek crossing. Wooden bridges are in place, and a rack is provided for bicycles, which must stop here. The trail is now a single track as it climbs to the 600-foot level and the junction with Howard King Trail.

Turn onto the Howard King Trail--named after a noted photographer whose images of the park are legend and who helped organize a campaign to raise money to purchase this (Mount McAbee) section of the park in the late 1960s.

For the next hour, the trail climbs steadily upward through the forest with filtered views of the Waddell Creek watershed. As you near maximum elevation, the trail levels out and views open to the west and through Rancho del Oro to the Pacific Ocean.

The trail crosses Hihn Hammond Road several times during the next three miles and follows the road for one brief stretch. Along the way, you will find a bench that overlooks the East Waddell Creek Watershed--a nice resting place for lunch. Eventually, the trail crosses Hihn Hammond Road for the last time and soon intersects with the East Ridge Trail. The junction ahead directs you back west in the Skyline-to-the-Sea Trail, or you may hike down to the park headquarters, about a half-mile east. We went west on the Skyline-to-the-Sea Trail, steadily dropping elevation for a half-mile to a short connection trail to Sunset Trail. Turn right on this trail, then left on the Sunset Trail. The next three miles create a pleasant forest walk with many large redwood trees and occasional views to the south and west. When you reach the Timms Creek Trail junction, take care to turn right and continue on the Sunset Trail. Shortly before passing below Sunset Trail Camp, the trail crosses a sandstone-type of rock slab--the hottest and most exposed part of the hike.

The next mile takes you alongside a series of falls and cascades. First is Golden Falls, named for the coloring of its sandstone escarpment, followed by Silver Falls. The elevation drops rapidly, but there are steps and a secured cable to assist you. The trail in this area is usually damp to wet so take it slow. Below Silver Falls is a pleasant creek sidewalk, in almost total shade with several varieties of ferns thriving in the moist ground. Watch for the five-finger fern growing on a rock slab over the creek. The fern has a long, slender, black stem growing from a scaly base that was used in Indian basketry to make a black pattern. Each of these stems end in a pattern of usually five to seven smaller stems that look like fingers. Before long you are at the top of Barry Creek Falls, a 70-foot curtain of water that crashes to the rocks below, creating a mist that continuously enriches the under-story of shade and moisture-loving plants. The wood platform and bench overlooking the falls is an ideal place to rest before your final six-mile hike back to the bench.

After leaving the falls, continue downstream, and at the next junction, turn right, crossing West Waddell Creek, then scramble up and pass by the junction with Howard King Trail. Your loop hike is finished, and your trek back is a repeat from some hours ago. Chances are you are now hiking in the late afternoon, and the sun's rays on the fresh growth of green will be especially dramatic.

The final two hours of hiking will probably leave you tired and foot-sore, but any pain will soon be forgotten and the memory of a fine day spent in the woods will linger on.

CORRECTION: A couple weeks ago I listed the web site for the Friends of Sweeney Ridge, but got it wrong. This is the correct address: www.pacificalandtrust.org/sweeneyridge/sweeneyridge.htm

Your comments and hiking suggestions are always welcome.

E-mail to: trekertom@aol.com.

Footnote: Check out the Weekly Walker Web site at www.weeklywalker.com.