Portola Redwoods State Park covers 2,800 acres in San Mateo County, where Peters Creek and Pescadero Creek come together. State Parks describes 18 miles of trails along winding creeks, with coast redwoods among ferns and huckleberries and waterfalls on Fall and Pescadero creeks. The visitor center, with couches and a fireplace, feels like a wilderness lodge.

Trails to know

  • Old Tree Trail: a 1.2-mile round trip to a redwood estimated at 1,200 years old and more than 300 feet tall.
  • Peters Creek Loop: an 11.9-mile round trip to the Peter's Creek Grove, which State Parks counts among the most remote and scenic redwoods in the region.
  • Tip Toe Falls: a small waterfall on Fall Creek.
  • Old Haul Road: the only route in the park open to bikes and horses. It runs through Pescadero Creek County Park to Memorial County Park, a 10-mile round trip that State Parks calls one of the Bay Area's most scenic beginner rides.

Fees and hours

Day use is $10 per vehicle ($9 for seniors 62 and older), from 6 a.m. to sunset. The visitor center is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. In severe weather the park may close.

Plan ahead

  • There is no cell reception in the park or the surrounding area, so State Parks does not recommend relying on rideshare.
  • The nearest gas station is at Sky Londa, 14 miles away; the nearest groceries are in Sky Londa and La Honda.
  • Dogs are limited to campsites, picnic areas, paved roads and the Upper and Lower Escape Roads, not trails.
  • Leave no food out. Jays, ravens and crows drawn by crumbs eat the eggs and chicks of the endangered marbled murrelet, which nests in old-growth forest here.

Camping

The park has a 55-site family campground, four group sites and a trail camp for backpackers.

History

Danish immigrant Christian Iverson settled here in the 1860s, and the Iverson Trail carries his name. The park is also home to the site of the Page shingle mill, the namesake of Page Mill Road. It opened as a state park in 1945.