Looked up things to do in Avila Beach and discovered the Bob Jones Trail, glad I did. After…read morestaying many times on short getaways in Avila Beach, this was a first. We were staying at the Sycamore Mineral Springs and the trail was just steps away. The path was easy, but as we got towards the end going at a slight incline, and in the full afternoon sun, we looped back to a nice shady spot next to the stream for a respite. We then ventured back to the cafe next to the trail and enjoyed some live music and pizza.

We decided to bring our bikes to take the Bob Jones Trail! We ended up parking along Avila Beach…read moredrive where the trail met the golf course and there was a spot to exit to the road. The trail did continue down to the beach, but we didn't want that whole distance for the time we had that day. There were some neat secret spots! A playground with swings, a spot for snacks... So cool! Many families were out and about when we were there, and everyone was respectful of the shared space.

The path is more of a local residential trail & there is no parking. Most visitors will go to…read moreMontana De Oro for the other trails that may link up with this one...at least in theory since we only went halfway up, due to an approaching sunset. Here there are no facilities like in the MDO. The hiking trail is very sandy and you get decent views on the way up. The area covered by the trail is an Ecological Reserve, but it is at the end of Broderson Ave. While there is an entry on Goggle Maps for this trail head, until now, there was not yet one on Yelp. You do get a overview of Los Osos, Morro Rock, and the ocean, but this trail is more just for some moderate exercise. The lower part is very sandy and the flora is scrubby & modest at best. Due to recent severe flooding in this area, it likely closed for at least part of the rainy season. It is a bit isolated and it would be a good idea to carry some supplies just in case...like a flashlight and some walking poles.

A fun jaunt amongst hike-lovers. The terrain is reasonably safe, with lots of mud and cow pies…read more During these atmospheric rivers, I'd urge you to wear, at minimum, mid-height water proof hiking shoes. Bring water, because there will be lots of beautiful sun exposure. Great spots to take pictures of the rolling green hills against a cloud lit backdrop and the historic Waddell Ranch Estate. Will return with the kid's and plan to hike the entire loop. (As long as the crest side isn't fully flooded.)

What a great location…read more First, it couldn't be easier to find as it is at the end of Madonna Road (at Devaul Ranch Rd) in between two houses, with Laguna Lake Park across the street. Residential parking is easy to find. You can even watch someone's TV while you stretch. Second, there is a variety of hikes. Check the a map out front. Take a picture of that. You will have some forks and decisions to make and that will help. We climbed UP the Maricopa trail. The first half is a steady incline under a shady canopy. Shady in both senses of the word: a) it shields you from the sun, b) it's a sneaky place for a mountain lion to hide. You will cross some teeny-tiny bridges. The second half is under the sun. There are at least three stretches steeper than 45 degrees, so stretch first. We made it to the fork and decided to go down. We were close to the 600' elevation gain, or so I'd like to think. I'm mid-40s with premature arthritis and I'm 20-30% heavier than I should be, so it wasn't too hard, but I didn't want to push it. We went down King trail. King trail has no shade as it zigs and zags through an open meadow of knee-high fire bait. That will do a number on your calves. The decline is much more consistent that the Maricopa, and is longer. You could go UP the King and DOWN the Maricopa, but I feel Maricopa's uneven terrain is better suited for climbing. Plus, going up the King, backwards in my eyes, you would be zagging and zigging.

This was a gorgeous hike, but I recommend taking Avila Beach Dr to Cave Landing Rd and parking…read morethere. Go clockwise around the trail, so you'll start by going UP! It's steep, and the ground is loose... Sphew!!! Once you're up, though, everything feels easier (and you know your strength!). There are a couple of spots with rope swings at the top! We missed the one with the wooden bench part but loved the one we did find anyway. I used my hiking poles, and more than one person we met along the way said they wished they had some too! There were also some trail runners (how?! No clue!) who clearly did not need poles. :P So, you do you!

We parked at Cave Landing lot at 2:30pm, it was hot in mid June, not ideal temp for hiking but we…read moremade the best of it by taking breaks in the shade. This was a short but challenging hike with rewarding views all around. We hiked counter clock direction with the extreme steep downhill part at the end. This was a wise decision because if my graduating daughter saw that steep grade at the start, she would have quit on the spot. My son and I christened our new hiking boots, his Keen Targhee 4, mine Altra Lone Peak 6. It took us 1.5 hours to complete 3 miles, with a longish rest stop at the swings. I told the family that next time we drive by this hill along 101N, we can be proud that we have hiked it.

It's harder than you think it's going to be... I live in the CO Rocky Mountains and thought this…read morehike looked little. It loops around the top and has some good vertical. It's a true intermediate hike to the summit. Very pretty.

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.

Such a cute walk! My pup enjoyed the scenery while I enjoyed the beautiful views and homes!read more

Nice park with ocean views and ocean access. Staircase that leads down to the beach. Worth a stop…read moreif you're visiting the area. Street parking.

Very fun experience playing at the dunes! Took my 2 dirt bikes and also rented ATVs with my…read morefriends. SUPER affordable camping prices. Would recommend to people who's okay with camping in the car/RV that don't mind the sandy inconvenience. 4WD/AWD and basic low traction driving knowledge is necessary to get to the camp areas. Ocean view is nice to wake up to and the sound of the waves is super relaxing.

Driving on the beach just feels weird to me but my daughter really wanted to visit so we went to…read moresee what this experience was all about. The Oceano Dunes cover 1,500 acres and are a huge draw for ATV's, Razors, four wheel drive and motorcycles. It is open daily from 7am - 10pm for day use. The beach area can handle normal cars and trucks. We arrived late in the day and there was not a ranger in sight. There is a small fee of $5.00 to take your vehicle on the beach. We paid by the honor system since the fee station was closed. After we paid, we went ahead and drove down the driveway onto the sand. Speed limit is 15 mph. We did not go far but found a great place to park and take in the views. The second time we went back for sunset and parked in the paved parking lot instead. Everyone that was there was having a great time with campfires, waves rushing in and out, dogs and kids running around. The temperatures were perfect, just a light hoodie was needed. Overnight camping is available but does require a reservation especially during high season. My grandfather spent many summers with his buddies camping here and fishing away the days. It did feel good to be here knowing this was one of his favorite getaways. This is definitely a unique experience.

Local Eval.: A rather challenging scenic 1.4 hour all downhill hike on historic ole Stagecoach Rd…read more [where Stagecoaches used to run] with some complications. This past Saturday morning we had a hiking mission, to park one car at the bottom of Stagecoach Rd., which is typically deserted [where we also discovered a mysterious dark pedestrian/bike tunnel under the 101], and our other car at the top, of the West side of Cuesta Ridge. While most hike up to TV tower road, we wanted to enjoy only a one way downhill historic route. Most of the dirt road had amazing views, including forrest, trees, mountain streams, flowers, & views of the train tunnels built long ago by Chinese laborers by hand. Almost right as we started, we ran into 2 mountain bikers, & 2 vehicles [e.g. a Jeep] going up the steep grade, and we had a nice long friendly chat with a local biker, & the driver of the Jeep. They both reassured us that the way down was clear & scenic. As we made it about 1/3 of the way down, we realized that we had forgotten the bottom car's keys in the top one. Ugh! What to do? I decided to continue enjoying our trek & hopefully find another way back up as we descended. Not sure if Uber was an option at the edge of SLO. My i-watch claimed that we went 2.5 miles & took about 1.4 hours. Of course we took a few stops to gaze at the views & admire wild flowers, streams, & more. As we reached the bottom of the valley & saw lots of cows, and then some houses, I was hopeful. We then happen to meet some nice people & one kindly offered to drive us back up, the way we came. My honey was quite terrified with passenger side views of the shear drop! Once we drove back to the bottom to rescue our other car, we found 2 friendly police cars were right next to our car & another. The other car may have been speeding [which is quite common & dangerous down the steep grade]? While we were happy to see them, I would imagine that the others were not. Fortunately, both our car & we were intact! What a "historic", thrilling, & yet another, successful scenic local adventure almost in our glorious "backyard"! Near the summit, you will find an plaque dedicated to the engineers that built Cuesta Grade, from the ASCE in 2004. If you do turn off for hiking/biking on Stagecoach Rd., try not to drive up/down Stagecoach Rd.. Not only can you fall off the cliff, but there are falling rocks. It is a wide steep path...but use CAUTION! "Alltrails.com" has info. on these Cuesta Trails & I also posted some pics. In the past, before the ole 101 was build, many a Stagecoach, went flying down this steep grade, since brakes failed. People were advised to walk down, like we did over a hundred years later! The local Tribune Newspaper had a fairly recent article & pics on some of the history. It was: "From stagecoach robberies to railroads, SLO's new train tracks signaled end of an era" by D. Middlecamp on 8/29/19, which went on to say..."About a dozen people pose for a photo with a six-horse stagecoach outside the Ramona Hotel in San Luis Obispo on May 5, 1894... The last stagecoach over the Cuesta Grade departed as the Southern Pacific Railroad arrived in town...San Luis Obispo was finally connected to the larger world by rail. The Santa Lucia Range had terminated the line five years earlier in Santa Margarita. The 17 miles of track Southern Pacific built over the Cuesta Grade would be the highest elevation and most expensive 17 miles on the Coast Line between San Francisco and Los Angeles. Estimates vary but the track cost the railroad between $1.5 and $3 million to build. The original tunnels removed 1,100,000 cubic yards of rock from under the Santa Lucia Range. A later expansion removed more rock, making the amount of earth moved similar to the amount removed for the footing of the Hoover Dam. The Sept. 21, 1950, edition of Engineering News-Record called the work "a world's record for hand-drilled tunnels that may well still be unbeaten today."... Freight wagons, which required six or eight horses, could take eight hours to cross the grade with the teamster jamming his foot on the brake on the road down. Old Stage Coach Road was built with Chinese labor and a $20,000 county bond in 1876. It was an improvement over the bottom-of-the-canyon padre's trail between the Mission and Santa Margarita." Read more here: sanluisobispo.com/news/l... There is tons of history surround this, and nearby areas. You may want to Goggle the history of Santa Margarita, Ah Louis & his Chinese cohorts who built the railroad tunnels, SLO Mission, Chumash, Spanish, Pozo,& the first Motel in the USA. Link: http://historic101.com/Cuesta/main.htm While there is the aforementioned plaque, there is now no commemoration of how Chinese immigrants somehow carved the railroad, tunnels, & more [except for the statue honoring the Chinese at SLO's rail station].

From the 101, Cuesta Ridge has two separate trailheads. East Cuesta starts on the east side of 101…read moreand goes east (duh!) while West Cuesta starts at a dirt parking lot on the west side of 101 and goes west (double duh!). We hiked on West Cuesta to the TV towers which equated to 5.5 miles roundtrip with 950' elevation change. The road starts with paved asphalt then turns to dirt. The dirt portion was well maintained with sand and gravel in many sections. The gate to the road was open and we were passed by a dozen pick-up trucks. The traffic noise from the freeway quickly disappeared. The ridge is high enough to see the region (which is why KSBY-TV's tower and satellite dishes are there) including Morro Rock, Atascadero, and SLO. Without blocking trees, continuous views of the landscape occurred. Even with the drought, the vegetation was still green. The Forest Service says a "Botanical Special Interest Area" exists near here which might be why plants still thrived and why we spotted a forest grove with a different color- likely Sargent cypress trees.