Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District

The district is doing a good job overall, but I was disappointed on my last group hike when the docent started spouting off opinions on controversial matters. He should have stuck to the flora and fauna. I wrote the district and complained about the docent taking advantage of a captive audience but never received a reply. Such arrogance is not becoming to a tax-​supported organization.

So far I have been on only six hikes with Open Space, but I love it. THe docents are very passionate about nature and they provide a lot of useful information for hikers.
I especially enjoy the people I meet through the hiking meets, it is nice to make friends a passion for nature that matches my own.
I look forward to many more hikes through openspace and urge anyone who loves nature to give them a try.
They have many different types of hikes, easy, moderate, and strenuous.
The website also provides a lot of info on the preserves in case you prefer to go solo.
For dog owners, they provide a list of all the preserves that allow dogs too.
I just signed up for next years docent training class, I hope to become a dog hiking group docent. Maybe I will see you there.
Check it out, you won’t be disappointed.

I have done about 4 – 5 hikes through Open Space and loved all of them. I really don’t like hiking alone so this a great way to go with a group and lose that fear of getting lost *that’s my biggest fear… get lost while hiking*
What I love the most is that they have hikes every Saturday and Sunday and they do all the great trails along highway 35.
All the docents have been very friendly and knowledgeable of the trails and nature. I’ve learned many things about insects, trees, flowers, birds and what not through their hikes.
If you get easily annoyed with kids… I wouldn’t recommend doing the easy kid friendly hikes. I’ve done a few of them and noticed that kids seem to make the hikes longer and they keep talking forever. I love kids, but not while I’m trying to enjoy a relaxing hike. To avoid kids… do the moderate hikes and make sure the little hand is not listed on the hike info!
Keep checking their website for the updated calendar:

If you love Fungii, bring Liza and get schooled on what mushrooms are really about. If you love Redwoods, you’ll love it here. I am a Bay Area Native and I had no idea this place existed before today. BANANA SLUG! I heart Banana Slugs!
Our Unilocalers Rock! we did 8.8 miles roundtrip. Boy my everywhere hurts but it was well worth it! Thanks to the whole crew!

Flying over the Bay Area you may be startled by the massive swath of largely unspoiled open space that stretches from the city and the peninsula suburbs’ ragged edges westward to the roiling Pacific and south to the northen reaches of Monterey Bay. How did all this land, with spectacular views and gorgeous topography, survive the rapid urbanization that swept the east side of the peninsula, including the explosive growth of the Silicon Valley complex? MROSD is one major reason why. Created in 1972 in northern Santa Clara County and expanded into San Mateo county in 1976, this organization has secured over 50,000 acres of open space, nearly all of it west of the Skyline ridge and south of the city to northernmost sections of Santa Cruz County. Most of the land is organized into a series of Open Space preserves, including such beautiful places as Los Trancos and the Purisima Creek reserves. Hundreds of miles of trails for hiking, biking, horseback riding, walking, and just breathing are forever locked away from rampant development. These preserves link many other city, county, and state parks and preserves. Many other organizations and of course hundreds of individuals can take credit for the miraculous preservation of these huge tracts of land, but MROSD is an experiment by the people of the Bay Area, especially on the peninsula, who deserve the thanks of everyone who enjoys a quiet afternoon in a warm sunny place within the sight, sound, or scent of the gorgeous Pacific ocean. To learn more, go to
. Another good resource is the book Peninsula Trails by Rusmore, Spangle and Crowder, which can be found in many Bay Area bookstores.