Long Ridge Open Space Preserve

Went to Long Ridge OSP on Sun 2÷1÷15 for a short 6 miles hike with folks. Parking is on Hwy 35 at Upper Stevens Creek County Park, Long Ridge is across the street. No bathrooms (just find a tree) and No Water — bring your own.
Did Peter’s Trail where you walk by the Jikoji Zen Center lake — No swimming allowed, private property, water is dirty anyways. Then we did the Long Ridge Rd, we turned Left and had lunch at Roderic Annabele bench — seats 3 people, others sat on the giant rock boulders.
Did some more trails, ended up at Wallace Stegner, an author, memorial bench.
Lots of mountain bikers here, not many hikers.

One of the best scenic ridge trails I have ever hiked.
You can hike on a ridge, the scenery is grreat. I really like undulating hills and moutains in the distance.
This is connected to Stevens creek coounty park and Skyline ridge OSP, so you can combine the hiking route.

The Stegner Bench is what wooed me into curiosity. When you hear of a great view, you want to find out if its really that amazing. Well I can say it was! Well worth the trip.
We took the recommended route starting at Grizzly Flat/​Upper Stevens Creek County Park to Long Ridge trail. Heading towards the lookout where Stegner Bench sits, then continued on until we reached Peters Creek trail until you eventually come to the point where you started. The first part of the Long Ridge trail had only one uphill climb, then it was moderate after that. The Peters Creek trail was much less up and down, with wide, flat trail for most of the way. Too bad that the creek doesn’t have any water. The only confusing part of the hike was when you get to the sign where you have to go right to Peters Creek. You see a sign that says STOP private property ahead. Just continue past the little lake area and keep left. There is a gate to the right where the private property is.
I’m sure it gets a lot of traffic during the weekends. We went on a Wednesday and saw a few ppl on mountain bikes and a few hiking alone, but it was mostly very serene with it seeming we were all alone. A few gray squirrels reminded us that we weren’t. One of the things I’ll remember the most is how the wind would sweep through, and the sound of the leaves creating a wave of the most beautiful sound. It almost sounded like water. It’s a preserve so don’t plan on seeing any restrooms.

Long Ridge is one of the mid-​peninsula Open Space Preserves, and is right opposite to the Upper Stevens Creek County Park. It’s within easy reach through Route 9 in Saratoga and then Skyline Blvd. There are parking spaces on both the Long Ridge (west) and Upper Stevens Creek (east) sides of Skyline — not many, maybe 10 – 15 spots each but neither was crowded on the day.
I wasn’t expecting much due to Long Ridge’s relative low profile, but it turns out to be quite a gem in South Bay! We went there in the afternoon of a mid-​June summer day when it’s pretty warm, so I chose to stay on the shaded part of the park — on the Peters Creek trail. While most other parks in South Bay had already turned a little yellow by June, we could already see quite a lot of trees and other green plants by the trail head, The trail is overall flat (within 200-​ft elevation) and stayed closed to the creek, with a nice canopy of various trees sheltering us from the sun. In fact, the flora was surprisingly lush, almost like a tiny version of Mount Tamalpais in Marin County.
It’s extra nice that the park wasn’t crowded, but we did see quite a few mountain bikers on the way. Since the trail wasn’t that wide, we had to stop quite a few times to let them pass.
One could easily do a loop trail using Long Ridge Road but that part is exposed and we simply turned around around Ward Road.

If you ever wonder what heaven might look like, you should head on over and check out Long Ridge Open Space Preserve. This place is seriously amazingly beautiful. Like jaw dropping, crap your pants, holy cow did I just die and go to heaven kind of beautiful. The preserve is jam packed with trails that criss-​cross across sun drenched rolling hills and dip into cool lush forested valleys. You pass by ponds and cross over streams. You change elevation frequently. Nature abounds and you feel like you are hours away from any major city, yet it’s only a short drive to Silicon Valley.
These trails will delight any outdoor lover, hiker, jogger, runner, mountain biker, and horseback rider.
I am a horseback rider and train for endurance and recreationally trail ride. I can say that the trails here are some of te best I have seen. There are miles and miles of trails that can be combined in long and short loops so that riders and horses of all fitness levels can find a route that works for them. Ample trailer parking area (designated lot on map). The trail has some grassy areas that you can stop at let your horse get a snack and several areas where you can stop and let your horse drink. Several benches are along the trail in scenic overlook spot, which make for a great place to stop and eat lunch. Dont be surprised if you see lots of wildlife. Birds, squirrels, coyotes and more. On my ride we did actually see a coyote eating something. He was quite beautiful.
This preserve is one of the most beautiful places I have ever ridden or hiked at in the whole country! I’m in love!

I have been here few times for mountain biking and recently, I was there for a short hike with my family and friends to see the sunset. We parked on the side of the road and walk in for 0.5 miles to the peak where there is a nice bench for you to enjoy the sunset. Great short hike with kids or someone who are new to hiking. There is no restroom at the this place. Good mix of open and shaded trails.

Beautiful hiking spot, but rangers outnumber hikers. In the course of a 3 hour hike we were harassed by 2 different rangers at 2 different times wanting to search our bag and asking about what we were doing out there. I’m not sure why. Just remember to remain silent and not consent to an unwarranted search. It makes me sad to think that rangers used to be concerned with hiker safety, now they only seem to treat us as defacto criminals.

This is a laid back hike which may be good or bad, depending on what you are looking for.
We all had a good time.

The views here depend on where you’re hiking in the park. There are a lot of wooded trails where you can’t see the rest of the Skyline, but most of the trails in the southern half provide a great view of the mountains to the sea.
This may be a good park if you’re looking to hike away from crowds. I don’t know how busy it is generally, but I didn’t see a single person during three hours of hiking here.
It’s also relatively flat, so most people should be able to handle the trails without too much effort. I did six miles, and it was probably the easiest hike longer than five miles that I’ve ever done.
Since the views are above average and the hiking is not difficult, I recommend visiting at least once. The main parking area is across from Upper Stevens Creek and also close to other parks, so this is a great area to visit if you want to do a lot of hiking in one day.

This is a great place to visit if you enjoy the outdoors, fresh air, hiking, biking and scenic views. Parking available at the top of highway 9 and 35. There are another 2 parking spots heading north on 35, one about 2 miles up the road ‘side of the road parking’ and the other is the grizzly flat parking area.
Pick up a map and start your trek. There are a lot of mountain bikers here, so keep an eye out for them. Most are cautious when passing you on the trial, but you still need to watch for them as some of the trails are narrow ‘single track’.
Starting from 9/​35, you can cross over 9 and take the single track to 35. Then crossover the highway up the fire road and onto the longridge trail. Proceed until you make it to the look out bench for great views of the Santa Cruz coastal area. You will often see a fog inversion layer in valleys below the mornings. If you still want to hike a little more, take the Peters Creek loop and head back to the car. Bring lots of water, sunscreen and maybe an energy bar/​snacks as hit gets really hot in the summer.
There is another hiking trail that heads towards Castle Rock if you head south from the main parking lot of ⁹⁄₃₅. There are no bikes allowed on these trails, so you don’t have to worry about getting hit by them or moving to the side of the trail. Great views of the entire south bay.
This is by far my favorite local place to bike and enjoy the outdoors.
Burn some calories from all of those restaurants you visited on Unilocal

I came hiking here twice on this ~4.6 mile loop, and each time I found it to be such a nice treat. You get to sample both forest settings and open ridge views in along the way. If you hike in the clockwise direction once you reach the valley on the entry trail from the parking area, you make the ridgetop in about 1.1 to 1.5 miles without breaking much sweat because the grade is mostly level. As a bonus there’s a bench on the ridgetop looking westward towards the ocean and the mountains in between. There is also a steep rocky grade though on the end which can be tough on the knee as a downgrade, so next time I will consider either doing the loop counter-​clockwise or taking a connector path which will bypass that tough grade.

As I drove to one of the many trails for the first time I slowed down dramatically, not only because of the adorable cottages in the area and quaint summer homes, but due to the gorgeous greenery, trickling water, and soothing creeks. My dog also loved the scenery and kept sniffing the glorious scents of the woods.
I stopped several times to take pictures but was disappointed that the beauty of the preserve could not be captured by a lens.
I did not have a plan or a map when I arrived but found an uphill trail surrounded by trees and a gorgeous view of Sunnyvale. My dog tire easily on this particular path, and that is saying a WHOLE lot! I hiked for about forty five minutes and turned around when my dog refused to go any further because of the heat, I recommend going early morning in the summer and spring.
I plan on going back a bit more prepared and attempting another path.

My all-​time favorite Santa Cruz mountains hike. The bridge over Peter’s Creek is very pretty, and continue along the orchard trail to Jukoji Pond. Up a short hill and you are on the Long Ridge, with great views of the ocean. Stop by Stegner’s Bench for a rest or picnic, and then continue back through a madrone forest.
A bit of everything.

Long Ridge OSP makes for a great 2 hour circuit (or less), stopping for lunch or just a cool drink at the lovely Wallace Stegner bench with jaw-​dropping views into Big Basin, the Peters Creek watershed, and the Santa Cruz Mts more generally. You’ll want to take long, penetrating looks here that cameras cannot capture in two dimensions. Peters Creek Trail is fun and friendly, and the Jikoji Pond of the nearby Zen retreat is a nice place to admire from afar. While idyllic, this is a location where you will never feel lost nor totally removed from the Bay Area. It’s just good to know that it is there when you need it — Stegner said it perfectly, but you’ll have to visit his bench to read what he had to say. Finding it online is nowhere near as satisfying …

The brochure for Long Ridge says it has «something for everyone». Indeed, if you take the Peters Creek-​Long Ridge loop, you’ll feel you’re in the every-​preserve: dappled by variety but short on superlatives. Follow shady Peters Creek valley to gorgeous Jikoji Pond (private property so you only get a fleeting glimpse), then up onto Long Ridge where you get views down grassy hillsides towards the ocean for a while before the generic oak forest closes in, and finally dropping back to Peters Creek again near the trailhead.
There are also several extended hikes you can put together here – like a 10-​mile loop that crosses Skyline Boulevard into adjacent Upper Stevens Creek County Park. Also, being at the headwaters of Pescadero Creek, you can actually hike down into Portola Redwoods State Park from here.