We really enjoyed this 3.6 mile loop with 80% shade, well maintained trails (one creek crossing…read morebut with easy stepping stones). I appreciated the signage, especially pointing out and explaining the native flora and fauna. It was chilly most of the time this morning (48 degrees) but felt warmer in the sun. I'm sure this is a great little hike in all four seasons! We'll be back someday.

This hike in early April was beautiful, filled with wild flowers. There is a lot of traffic noise…read morefor the first part of the hike, but it gets better as you go up. Speaking of the incline, it meets my standards by starting low and going up fairly gradually. The views are incredible, and the hike back easy. It did feel longer than the posted signs claimed.

After visiting the Central Coast Zoo, we decided to walk over to the park located just outside, and…read moreit was the perfect follow-up activity. There's a large area to walk around, and you're even able to feed the ducks, which my daughter absolutely loved. She had so much fun on the jungle gyms, slides, and all the playground features available. If you're visiting the Central Coast Zoo, I highly recommend taking the kids to the park afterward to burn off some energy. You can easily make it a full day--visit the zoo, head to the park, feed the ducks, and just immerse yourself in nature. It was a beautiful day and hands down the perfect after-zoo activity. Next time, I'll definitely remember to bring snacks!

Water birds, fish and turtles live in the park. The lake is large with a scenic drive. Make sure to…read morego slow. The park has multiple spots to park your car. The entry is free. - Some locations have direct water access. Others are higher up so you can take photos. There is exercise/playground equipment for use and shade in some locations. - The park holds multiple events each year including Pride. I like having this location as a community staple.

Sweet trail on cool sunny morning. Quick and easy maybe moderate for some. Lots of trees and so…read moregreen at this time of the year.

One of my favorite hikes in North County that is dog friendly and has some wonderful views!…read more There are numerous paths you can take if you want a moderate vs hard hike. There is a short uphill part that takes you up the mountain to an obelisk, which is really cool! Especially in late February - April, everything is super green and the weather is just perfect. Since this trail is dog friendly, you will see a ton of dogs around and my three dogs always have a really great time! This trail also has sections that are biker and horse friendly, so keep that in mind if you have dogs or kids. Always look forward to coming back to this trail with my hubby and pups!!

This is a nice quick walk off of Hwy 1 with a lot of roadside parking available. It's a nice quiet…read morewalk since the highway has very few cars and there's thick vegetation around. My complaint with this waterfall is that we couldn't figure out how to get to it! The signage is bad and they need to point you in the right direction more. We were prepared to climb some rocks, as we'd heard that you have to to get to the falls, but when we couldn't figure out which rocks to climb, we just turned around. We were able to see the waterfall from a distance and heard people splashing around. Definitely not a trail to walk when muddy and definitely be prepared to climb a lot of boulders to get to the waterfall.

June 2025 As a city person, this is not a "normal easy…read moretrail" Fair warning, the trail is everywhere, no signs or one real pathway to the fall I'm not a hiker and end up turning back because I didn't think I can hope over wet boulders and climb pass a ledge to reach the waterfalls I'm sure it was worth it, I hear others swimming and having fun but I'm too old for that trail I hope you guys give this a try but be careful

Cool hike i liked it uh uhm uh meh uhm umm * Your review needs at least 85 characters. Add…read morea few more thoughts to post review.

As of Oct 17, 2020 this place is still temporarily closed due to the El Dorado fire…read more The road leading to the trailhead may close seasonally. Please DO NOT park in undesignated spots as you are likely to get towed. Adventure Pass or National Parks Pass is required for entry. Due to many search and rescue situations in the past, hikers may not venture past the waterfall at the end of this route. There is a large parking lot at the trailhead with BOTH free and PAID parking. The gravel lot to the left is free. The lined spots require a day pass which you can purchase at the general store a few miles down the road. Making it to the very top requires a little scrambling and rock climbing, but its doable. So many places to relax and enjoy nature. Overnight camping is no longer allowed, but if you want to hang out for the day and set up a little picnic there are spots and bathrooms. Upper Big Falls is currently closed until 5/21/21 due to public safety. The closure is from the observation deck up to the waterfalls itself. Do not hike or climb past the observation deck. Forest Adventure Pass Daily Pass--Costs: $5 per dayForest Adventure Pass Annual Pass--Costs: $30 Annually Forest headquarters 602 So. Tippecanoe Ave San Bernardino Ca 92408 Tel no (909) 382 2682 (800)735 2922

We decided to come here for a hike, we drove like 50 minutes from AG. The rode goes up a mountain…read morethen descents towards a series of creek passings (about 18). Luckily we took a pick up truck because the creek water level in some of them were about 3ft deep. No 4x4 is needed but definitely helps, car height is more important. When we actually got to the end of the road we went on a hike crossing a couple more creeks. When just about made it to the falls it was tough to get down if your a inexperienced hiker or kid. You have to climb down with a rope, pretty sketchy.. We just decide to hang out at one of the creeks we crossed by foot, very tranquil.

We parked on a residental street on cul-de-sac off of Highland…read more Trail started off nice flat for maybe 10 minutes then it splits. Their are signs posted throughout the trail. This trail was at an incline. Small pockets of flat trail and backup climbing. I asked another hiker if trails meet together, and yes. However, they do, but their are several areas to enter/exist out of the trail. We learned that we existed out of the wrong area and asked these group of high schoolers how to get to Highland. They all said they were not from the area. We asked handful of other hikers & same not from the area. So we ended up going back up the trail, and once on top of the trail, we turned Left. 30 minutes and we were at the area we started off. Trail is mod to difficult. Beautiful scenery. Highly recommend early in AM hrs.. Just know 1st time read the signs on the trail because if you dont you will end up like us existing on the wrong street.

Beautiful hike. The trail is steep but that affords you the opportunity to get over 1,000 in a…read moreshort amount of time, for amazing views of SLO. This is a challenging but very doable hike. Highly recommend.

This trail is managed by PG&E as it abuts the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant, so there is a…read morecheck-in/out procedure and the trail is not open all the time. However, my wife and I hike this trail every year when we celebrate our anniversary (in October) or our birthdays (in November) nearby and love the return to it. This year we only went as far as Lookout Point before we had to turn back due to a reservation elsewhere (a kayak tour of Morro Bay). But we usually hike all the way to the end. Spectacular views of the coast and the rock formations jutting out into the ocean. Birds galore on the rocks and often seals in the water. Sometimes we have spotted whales far offshore. PG&E maintains the trails nicely and the walk is easy, though several miles long to the end. Along with the many hiking trails in next-door Montana de Oro, this is not to be missed by any hiking enthusiast on the central cost.

Wow. This might be one of my favorite trails I've ever hiked…read morein my life. My cousin and I recently re-visited the Montana De Oro State Park area. Last time, we had hiked Valenica, Oates, and Hazard Peaks, which you can read about here: http://tinyurl.com/8mjdzhha This time, we wanted to hike Point Buchon Trail through Diablo Canyon, which only accepts a limited number of hiking reservations per day. Luckily, we made it on time, and were able to register in person at the kiosk on the trail. (Technically, Point Buchon trail is owned and operated by PG&E, and is not a part of Montana De Oro State Park, but the road is the same, and the parking areas are right next to each other.) My cousin had mentioned some "cool rocks," but that barely even begins to describe what we saw here. There were spectacular geological formations around every single bend in the trail. The views were indescribable. I've never seen anything like this in my life, even though I am originally from Southern California. Most of the "cool rocks" are the remnants of eroded coastlines (the ruins of ancient beaches). There are numerous arches and caves, and even a sinkhole. Watching the waves come in through the sinkhole was one of the most interesting things we saw that day. We had originally planned to go down into some of the caves, but the tide was way too high for that. In fact, the tide was the highest I've ever seen in my life. Once we were nearing the end of the trail, from up on the cliffs near the power plant, we saw some waves that we estimated to be about thirty feet high. Down on the beach, back on the calmer side of the trail, we found all kinds of tide pools and tiny shells. While I was busy taking pictures of sea snails inside of pink abalone shells, my cousin was jumping rope with a giant piece of bull kelp. My cousin said we hiked eight miles, but I swear it only felt like one. Time flies. This trail was pretty easy to hike, but for an added challenge, it would be easy to add on any of the nearby three peaks in Montana De Oro. Point Buchon Trail is a must-see. If you haven't been here yet, I highly recommend checking it out at least once!

Ended up taking the long route to Pirate's Cove (parked near homes and took the trail) which we…read morelater found out is the Shell Beach Bluff Trail. We enjoyed this scenic trail, which had multi-million dollar homes to our right, and the beautiful ocean to our left; and a somewhat steep incline up to the dirt parking lot and Cave Landing trailhead. Good thing the weather was perfect and there was a lovely breeze; otherwise I would've stopped walking and demanded to go back to the car. Once we got to the trail, it was a fairly easy short walk to get to the cave. After taking in the stunning views from the cave, we trekked to the cove. Be cautious going down, as it's a steep dirt path and a couple flights of stairs. Also note that clothing is optional, and you may run into people in their birthday suits on this secluded beach.

While visiting SLO, I was looking for an ocean hike to complete and found this hike on All Trails…read moreso I went for it. I took the long way traversing through a million dollar neighborhood of gorgeous homes lining the street. Once I was in the dirt I could see the cove from above. The beach is beautiful and not crowded. Of course, clothing is optional but I didn't come for the beach. I came to see the cove. You have to hike down to the cove as it sits on the water, but no biggie. Hiking back up and out for some may be challenging for some so just go at your own pace. When I arrived there was a guy playing a guitar so that was nice, not too many peeps around which allowed me to take a couple of pics. The cove itself is picturesque but the graffiti sucks!! Why must people have to paint on rocks in nature?? I just don't get it!! Go paint on abandoned buildings etc. I stayed for a few minutes then I walked out on the rocks and took in the views of the mighty Pacific Ocean. So gorgeous! I could have sat there all day. You can also access this cove and beach by driving directly to it and then following the path down to it, but I preferred the mini hike instead. Remember to Leave No Trace always.

So pretty and peaceful. Very nice to walk around and look at tidepools and wildlife.read more

Love this beach so much! Go here every time we visit friends, relaxed beach with great views…read more Bathrooms are just okay but close to the beach which is very convenient. Parking lot can be busy but wow I love this beach!