Trails
Summary
Difficulty
Distance
Alpine Pond
A family-friendly audio guide to a wildlife mecca in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
A family-friendly audio guide to a wildlife mecca in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
Easy
0.3 mi/
0.5 km
0.5 km
Alpine Pond (Spanish)
A family-friendly audio guide to a wildlife mecca in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
A family-friendly audio guide to a wildlife mecca in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
Easy
0.3 mi/
0.5 km
0.5 km
Alpine Pond (Mandarin Chinese)
A family-friendly audio guide to a wildlife mecca in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
A family-friendly audio guide to a wildlife mecca in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
Easy
0.3 mi/
0.5 km
0.5 km
Skyline Ridge Habitats
Explore 4 plant communities—riparian, forest, chaparral, grassland—in a short, scenic hike in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
Explore 4 plant communities—riparian, forest, chaparral, grassland—in a short, scenic hike in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
Easy
2.0 mi/
3.2 km
3.2 km
Alpine Pond at Skyline Ridge Open Space Preserve
Get your nature fix and add a short hike at this bucolic pond in the Santa Cruz Mountains south of San Francisco.
Get your nature fix and add a short hike at this bucolic pond in the Santa Cruz Mountains south of San Francisco.
Easy
2.4 mi/
3.9 km
3.9 km
Guides
A family-friendly audio guide to a wildlife mecca in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
Get your nature fix and add a short hike at this bucolic pond in the Santa Cruz Mountains south of San Francisco.
Explore 4 plant communities—riparian, forest, chaparral, grassland—in a short, scenic hike in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
1.4 mile trail near Vista Verde, California
A family-friendly audio guide to a wildlife mecca in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
A family-friendly audio guide to a wildlife mecca in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
Community Trips
I was trying to figure out where to go hiking -- a last minute sort of thing -- when I came across Skyline Ridge. To be honest, I wondered how great an Open Space could be so close to Highway 35. I mean, the place was practically named after a highway, right? I figured it would be full of crazies and locals (ahem, like me) and would feel downright touristy. Was I...
This time we park at the Russian Ridge Parking Lot where we had two choices: to the west is the Russian Ridge Open Space Reserve, to the east is the Skyline Ridge Open Space Reserve. We made the right decision. When we came back to the parking lot, we think it is too short and we still have too much energy. So we decided to take the Russian Ridge Trail. Oh, god!...
Short family hike in Skyline Ridge Open Space Preserve
Vista Verde, California, United States
2.4 miles
2.4 miles
We were just out for a quick hike. It was late already so we didn't have much daylight left. We started at the Russian Ridge OSP parking lot, walked to Alpine Pond and then went around the hill, taking the Ridge Trail first, coming back using the service road to make a nice little loop.The Ridge Trail is the most interesting trail. It offers great views to the West, and the section...
Hike from Alpine Pond to Horseshoe Lake.
A nice morning ride in Skyline Ridge OSP, a place I've never ridden. Lots of climbing, some nice views, and a few geocaches to grab. All in all a wonderful morning.
