Sonoma County Regional Parks calls Helen Putnam Regional Park a compact wilderness park southwest of Petaluma. It has nearly 6 miles of trails across grassy hillsides and through oak woodland, and ridge-top views of the city and the southern Sonoma County countryside. Wikipedia lists the park at 216 acres.
Who Helen Putnam was
Wikipedia says the park honors Helen Putnam, a former teacher who was Petaluma's first female mayor, from 1966 to 1978, and the second woman on the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors. In 1975 she led Petaluma's push to control its growth limits. Developers sued, and Wikipedia says the U.S. Supreme Court later declined to overturn a Ninth Circuit ruling that backed the city's goal to grow at an orderly and deliberate pace.
Trails
The county describes the main routes:
- The Ridge Trail has paved and dirt routes between the parking lot and Cattail Pond. Wikipedia notes it is part of the Bay Area Ridge Trail.
- The Panorama Trail has the best views, of Petaluma to the east and the countryside to the west.
- The Filaree, Pomo, Savannah and South Loop trails wind through shady oak woodland.
- The West Wind Trail links the north side of the park to the Windsor Drive trailhead, which Wikipedia says opened in 2021.
Popular loops from the Chileno Valley trailhead run from 0.6 miles on the Ridge-Pond-Ridge loop to 2.3 miles on the Arroyo-Panorama-Pomo-Filaree-Ridge loop. Hikers, cyclists and equestrians are welcome on all trails.
Know before you go
The main entrance is at 411 Chileno Valley Road, with a playground, picnic area and gazebo nearby, and a pond with bluegill and bass. The park is open from 7 a.m. to sunset. Parking is $8 or free for members, and dogs on leash are allowed. Coast live oak is the main tree, and the county says deer, bobcats, quail and raptors live in the park. Nearby, the 3,400-acre Tolay Lake Regional Park offers a much bigger day out.