Explore the best rated trails in Hillsborough, CA. Whether you're looking for an easy walking trail or a bike trail like the Lincoln Hill Pathway and NWP Railroad Trail. With more than 95 trails covering 710 miles you’re bound to find a perfect trail for you. Click on any trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
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The Quarry Lakes Regional Recreation Area provides users with a wide variety of recreational activities. In addition to its several miles of biking, walking and equestrian paths, the park also...
The Creekside Loop offers a scenic, albeit short, route around Larkspur's Creekside neighborhood. Half of the trail follows Magnolia Avenue—where it is appropriately also known as the Magnolia Avenue...
A half mile of the East Bay Greenway is currently open from the Coliseum BART Station (at 75th Avenue) to 85th Avenue in Oakland. The paved trail parallels San Leandro Street with traffic signals and...
The Sweeney Ridge Trail is one trail of many in beautiful Sweeney Ridge, a prime bicycling and hiking area in San Mateo County. Inaccessible by automobile, the trail must be reached by any of its...
The Great Meadow Bike Path provides an important 1.5-mile transportation route from the main entrance of the University of California at Santa Cruz to the busy campus core. The trail is surrounded by...
The Barberry Walkway runs parallel to Barberry Lane between Corda Drive near Meadowfair Park and Dina Lane. There are plans to extend the walkway along the outskirts of the park to Quimby Road.
The Matadero Creek Trail, also known as the Page Mill-Arastradero Connector, offers beautiful views of the San Francisco Bay and Santa Cruz Mountains as it winds its way through gently rolling hills...
Oakland's Lake Merritt Trail closely follows the lake's shoreline for a pleasant, paved trip with beautiful views and connections to several parks and attractions right in the heart of the city. The...
The Bon Air Road Sidepath, as its name suggests, closely follows Bon Air Road in scenic Larkspur and Kentfield. The main trail begins at a junction with the Creekside Loop at Magnolia Avenue and runs...
The Ygnacio Canal Trail begins at a junction with the Contra Costa Canal Trail. Most of the trail runs along the Ygnacio Canal, a narrow irrigation channel where ducks live. The trail is paved, except...
Running from Solano Community College on the southwest edge of town and into the town of Fairfield, the Fairfield Linear Park Path provides convenient bike access to the action on campus and in the...
The area surrounding the Iron Horse Regional Trail has an important history as part of the San Ramon Valley's agricultural and ranching past. Today, the Iron Horse Trail connects two counties and...
The Highway 87 Bikeway follows State Route 87 between Willow Street in the north and Santa Teresa Boulevard at W. Valley Freeway (SR 85) in the south. Basically, the trail forms the missing link...
The trail through the Cal Park Hill Tunnel offers a quick, smooth ride through the hill that separates San Rafael from the ferry terminal in Larkspur and southern Marin County. As part of the 70-mile...
The Embarcadero Bike Path is an important connector between the local commuter rail, schools, and a commercial area on Palo Alto's west side and the outskirts of Stanford University. The paved...
The Baine Avenue Trail is a short rail-with-trail along an active Union Pacific Railroad corridor in the heart of Newark. The unpaved trail is most useful as a neighborhood connector or short...
The Upper Silver Creek Trail courses through Silver Creek Linear Park, offering a nice play area and picnicking at the southern end and tennis courts and a basketball court at the northern end....
The Baquiano Trail is one trail of many in beautiful Sweeney Ridge, a prime bicycling and hiking area in San Mateo County. The trail climbs 550 feet from a junction with two hiking trails in the west...
The San Francisco Bay area's Charles F. McGlashan Pathway was once known as the Tennessee Valley Pathway, but was renamed to honor a former Marin County Supervisor and a passionate active...
For years, only one of the four bridges across San Francisco Bay, Dumbarton Bridge, accommodated bikes and pedestrians. Now Bay residents can celebrate the opening of another cross-bay connection,...
About 35 miles south of San Francisco, the Cowell-Purisima Trail offers a beautiful escape into nature which can be enjoyed by both walkers and bicyclists. Travelers in wheelchairs can also access the...
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This segment of the California Coastal Trail (also known as the Half Moon Bay State Park's Coastside Trail) runs parallel to the Pacific Coast along what used to be the Ocean Shore Railroad. The...
The Sandra Marker Trail runs for a mile on an east-west course through Larkspur, linking the Redwood Highway/San Clemente Drive Paths in the east with the popular NWP Railroad Trail in the west. Both...
The Embarcadero Bike Path is an important connector between the local commuter rail, schools, and a commercial area on Palo Alto's west side and the outskirts of Stanford University. The paved...
Beginning in 1904, the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway (AT&SF) carried freight through the city of Richmond, reaching its height during World War II when Richmond became a national leader of...
The Los Alamitos Creek Trail runs along its namesake creek between McKean Road and Almaden Lake Park, where the trail is also known as the Lake Almaden Trail. From its southern endpoint to Camden...
The Bol Park Path is a charmer that threads through a peaceful Palo Alto neighborhood in the hills south of San Francisco. At its heart is Bol Park, a strip of playground and lawn laid alongside...
The Arroyo Mocho Trail is a part of a network of multi-use trails in Livermore and which also links with the city of Pleasanton. The trail provides access to neighborhoods, schools, numerous parks,...
The Lafayette-Moraga Regional Trail links its two namesake communities via a former logging railroad corridor that largely parallels St. Mary's Road. Uniquely, mules hauled lumber on the corridor...
Joe's Trail at Saratoga de Anza parallels the south side of the active Union Pacific Railroad tracks that travel through a residential area of Saratoga, a California community just south of the San...
Named for the Ohlone Indians who once lived in the area, this trail doubles as a commuting corridor and a recreation destination for the cities of Berkeley, Albany and El Cerrito. While the Ohlone...
This innovative road-to-trail project opened for public use in March 2014. The trail, which features stunning Pacific Ocean views, makes use of a former portion of California's State Route 1, which...
The Pacheco Hill Path is a straight shot along US 101 between Marinwood and Novato. In the north, the trail ends just outside of Hamilton at the entrance to the Loma Verde Preserve. Several bus stops...
The San Tomas Aquino Creek Trail offers a paved route running approximately 5 miles through Santa Clara along its namesake waterway. In the north, the trail connects to the Highway 237 Bikeway (a...
The trail through the Cal Park Hill Tunnel offers a quick, smooth ride through the hill that separates San Rafael from the ferry terminal in Larkspur and southern Marin County. As part of the 70-mile...
The Petaluma Trails consist of 5 trails, each one through a unique and scenic part of historic Petaluma. There is a two-mile circular loop through Shollenberger Park and a one-mile trail that links...
The Montgomery Hill Trail is a short dirt trail traversing Montgomery Hill Park, an undeveloped green space in San Jose. The trail offers nice views of the surrounding area and links Yerba Buena Creek...
Oakland's Lake Merritt Trail closely follows the lake's shoreline for a pleasant, paved trip with beautiful views and connections to several parks and attractions right in the heart of the city. The...
As it winds up to the eastern peak of Mount Tamalpais in Marin County, this picturesque trail offers an exhilarating combination of far-reaching views, history and challenge. The trail follows the...
The Matadero Creek Trail, also known as the Page Mill-Arastradero Connector, offers beautiful views of the San Francisco Bay and Santa Cruz Mountains as it winds its way through gently rolling hills...
The Umbarger Road Parkway parallels its namesake road for just over 0.5 mile between Plumas Drive and Tuers Road in a narrow strip of greenspace surrounded by suburbia. The similar Barberry Walkway is...
The Novato Boulevard Path is a multi-use trail that can be used recreationally, but is more useful as a commuting route. Closely following its namesake road, the path is completely separated from the...
The Delta de Anza Regional Trail is 15 miles long, running between Willow Pass Road at Route 4 near Concord and Main Street (Rt. 4) at E. Cypress Road in Oakley. The eastern end in Oakley intersects...
If you are attracted to the rolling, wine country landscapes and historical architecture of Sonoma Valley, the Sonoma Bike Path won't disappoint. Located in the heart of historic Sonoma, just over an...
The Embarcadero Bike Path is an important connector between the local commuter rail, schools, and a commercial area on Palo Alto's west side and the outskirts of Stanford University. The paved...
The Mill Valley/Sausalito Multiuse Pathway is a convenient connection between neighborhoods, schools, shopping, restaurants, and both a skate and dog park. The short dirt section at the north end is...
The Visitacion Valley Greenway is a recreational gem tucked into a residential neighborhood in southern San Francisco. The paved pathway connects a series of small parks that offer a plethora of fun...
The Crystal Springs Regional Trail is a developing network made up of three distinct portions: the San Andreas segment, Sawyer Camp segment and Crystal Springs segment. The two northern segments are...
This innovative road-to-trail project opened for public use in March 2014. The trail, which features stunning Pacific Ocean views, makes use of a former portion of California's State Route 1, which...
Nestled between Alum Rock Canyon and the Mt. Diablo foothills, Alum Rock Park west of San Jose is California's oldest city park. From the early to mid-1900s it was a popular resort and spa, complete...
The Contra Costa Canal Trail forms a horseshoe shape route, traversing through the urban and neighborhood landscape of Martinez, Pleasant Hill, Walnut Creek and Concord. The trail follows the canal of...
The Highway 237 Bikeway parallels State Route 237 between McCarthy Boulevard in Milpitas and Calabazas Creek in Sunnyvale. The trail consists of two main segments: the first is between McCarthy...
The Redwood Highway/San Clemente Drive Paths combine to parallel their connecting roadways on the edge of Corte Madera. The combined trail is more scenic than your average sidepath: to the east, views...
The Golden Gate Park Bike Path winds through San Francisco's famous city park, providing both a retreat from urban life and an important link in the city's growing bike network. The paved trail passes...
Joe's Trail at Saratoga de Anza parallels the south side of the active Union Pacific Railroad tracks that travel through a residential area of Saratoga, a California community just south of the San...
The Lafayette-Moraga Regional Trail links its two namesake communities via a former logging railroad corridor that largely parallels St. Mary's Road. Uniquely, mules hauled lumber on the corridor...
The San Francisco Bay Trail is a colossal effort to create a 500-mile multiuse trail encircling its namesake bay. Along its course, the trail will link 47 cities through 9 counties, providing numerous...
The Sweeney Ridge Trail is one trail of many in beautiful Sweeney Ridge, a prime bicycling and hiking area in San Mateo County. Inaccessible by automobile, the trail must be reached by any of its...
The San Lorenzo River Parkway Trestle Trail is the first completed segment of the Coastal Rail Trail, which will eventually run 32 miles from Davenport to Watsonville. The segment from Santa Cruz to...
The Highway 87 Bikeway follows State Route 87 between Willow Street in the north and Santa Teresa Boulevard at W. Valley Freeway (SR 85) in the south. Basically, the trail forms the missing link...
I started inline skating at Ross (very bumpy start in the parking lot makes for an uncomfortable start). It was smooth sailing, even over the first wooden bridge, until college of marin’s parking lot. The pavement hasn’t been kept up, so it’s pretty bumpy, enough for me to want to go around it next to the trailers until I reached the stree. After crossing it was ok until the second wooden bridge which only Has splintery guard rails. Then it is increasingly bumpy until about the middle school. I turned around there, only Got Half the workout i hoped for.
Huge sections of the asphalt are completely broken down, would be a great trail if they fixed this!
Easy walk with stunning views of the GG bridge and the entrance to SF Bay. I’ve been visiting SF all my life; why I never heard about this walk until a child told me of it is a total mystery.
This is for commuters, not appropriate for a family ride.
I parked at the south end on roadside. Nice short walk if you’re looking for a hilly route. Lots of cattails on southern stretch.
We walked the section between shafter bridge and Samuel P Tayler campground. There was plenty of parking when we pulled in around 10am but there were several cars waiting when we got back around noon. The trail to the campground is gravel and flat. Nice simple path for easy biking. I wouldn’t do it with a road bike but a city bike or something with larger tires would be fine. Walking was also nice. The other nice feature are the restrooms near the campground.
So obviously I'm not from around here. A transplant from DC where the traffic is much worse and so is every driver (skill/courtesy) in the Capital Region.
I did several laps starting at the North Trailhead Sawyer Camp Trail (vicinity E. Hillcrest Blvd) down to the Intersection of Skyline Blvd & 35/92 and back. Most everyone was courteous and aware, which is a plus and something alien for me (DC trails are notorious for self-absorbed, totally unaware, and rather rude walker, joggers, cyclists, et al (EXCEPT Indianhead Trail in MD - an AWESOME rail-to-trail to clock in 26 mile laps if you're preparing for long-distance rides).
That said, the volume of folks on the trail, combined with the twisty-turny route (fun but not if you're supposed to be down in the aerobars) is probably not the best place to put miles on the saddle if you're training for distance cycling (sic Ironman) on a TT/triathlon bike... but road bike, mountain, or cyclo-cross sport bike would be preferred.
The trail surface varies from smooth paved, to a slightly ribbed potions that aren't that bad. Uh, at least 6 bathrooms (clean with good locks). I didn't see (wasn't really looking for) any water stations. It's somewhat hilly but not a lung-buster. Lot's of free speed (downhills) and even the false flats any momentum can be maintained.
The scenery is great and whatever flowers were blooming were a good offset to my odor-de-triathlete. Lots of tree canopy cover and a nice breeze to keep cool. One rather large deer crossed my path... good thing to keep at least one hand on the brakes.
All in all, a great place to road/mountain bike = five stars (three stars if you're riding a Tri-bike =)
I literally grew up on this trail, back when it was unpaved, and was just some weird, seldom-used backwater ie., prior to the early 1980s or thereabouts, at which point it started getting much more developed & popular. I have seen (quite large!) blue herons on (or adjacent) to this trail many times, and in 1995, I once saw a bobcat (at night, between Vasona dam and Lark Avenue). There are many turtles, and about 40 years ago, I once saw a Northern Pike (just behind Vasona dam). I've witnessed scores of salmon spawning at the Camden Avenue dam.
Gorgeous day in Half Moon Bay - what a terrific opportunity to explore this trail! It appears that many enjoy its wonders as well...pretty remarkable, considering this is the middle of the week! There were walkers, bikers, and dogs on the path - everyone was very respectful of passing each other and sharing the width of the path.
Nice to have the ocean 'on your shoulder' as you move up and down the path, as well as seeing all the wildlife - hawks, herons, rabbits to name a few!
A challenging walk up the hills, but beautiful views! Worth the time!
We regularly ride the section of the trail between Oak Knoll Ave and Yountville. It's an easy, flat ride, about 7 miles one way. The views of the vineyards and hills are stunning along this entire section. There are rest spots along the way, and there's a free bike tool kit and air pump at the end of the path (or beginning depending on your direction of travel) in Yountville. Though the trail is next to highway 29, it is protected, and is separated from the highway with a good amount of trees and plantings in many sections. Train tracks are also between the trail and the highway, and the Napa Wine Train passes by regularly during peak season. It's a fun, family-friendly mixed-use path.
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