Today I want to bring you my guide to an Arastradero hike in Santa Clara County. If you love rolling hills and beautiful scenery, this is a great place to spend a day on the trails in Northern California. With stunning views, lakes, and creeks, the Pearson-Arastradero Preserve has lots of memorable San Francisco Bay Area hikes you can do. I’ve included a map, too.
Arastradero Hike
Situated between Alpine Road and Page Mill Road on the border of Portola Valley, Los Altos Hills, and Stanford University, the Enid W. Pearson-Arastradero Preserve spans 622 acres of land on the Peninsula. With 10.25 miles of trails to explore, it’s a great place for a hike in Silicon Valley.
The preserve is known for its streams, views, hiking trails, mountain biking routes, and equestrian paths. It’s also an important habitat for flora like tangled blackberry, oak, yellow fiddlenecks, and wild roses. Fauna like quail, cottontail rabbits, deer, bobcats, coyotes, and redwing blackbirds call this area home as well. You can see the iconic California poppy here, too.
An Arastradero hike is a great way to get outdoors on this part of the Peninsula and see the natural highlights of Palo Alto and the surrounding areas. The preserve varies in elevation from 275 feet to 775 feet and features a mix of rolling grassland savanna, broadleaf evergreen forest, and creekside plant habitats.
With a variety of terrain and topography to discover, there’s always something to get excited about here.
How to Get Here
Arastradero Preserve is located on Arastradero Road (go figure). It’s easy to get here from Highway 280. You can either take the Alpine Road exit or the Page Mill Road exit (the latter is closer). It’s a short drive from both to the trails. You can use the interactive map below to get driving directions.
Arastradero Preserve Parking
There’s a free parking lot and visitor center at 1530 Arastradero Road (you can’t miss it). It’s open from 8:00 a.m. until sunset. It fills up, so it’s a good idea to arrive early, especially on popular days like sunny weekends. I arrived just before noon on a Saturday and I had to wait a bit for a parking space to open up.
There’s also some street parking along Arastradero Road, but none particularly near the parking lot.
Facilities
There are restrooms, an information center, and water fountains by the parking lot. There are also a few signs with information about the Arastradero Preserve, a detailed trail map, and rules for the trails (dogs are allowed on leash, etc).
What to Bring
When I did an Arastradero hike with my boyfriend and his dog, I wore a hat and sunscreen since there was direct sunlight on most of the trails.
I dressed in layers, as the weather warmed up throughout the hike and I got increasingly hot as I walked. I also wore long trousers, as there’s poison oak along some of the trails (the paths are wide enough to easily avoid it, though).
I went with running shoes instead of hiking boots, but either would have sufficed. There had been heavy rain in the days leading up to my hike, and the trail was wet and muddy in places. There were even a number of sections with water running over them. If it had been dry, running shoes would have been the obvious choice for me.
I brought my phone with the map of the preserve downloaded on it. Mobile reception was spotty at best, so I was glad I had the map saved so I didn’t have to rely on data. I also took a picture of the map in the parking lot for backup.
As always, I brought a good supply of water and snacks. The sun got me thirsty, and it was nice to have some nibbles to go with the views from the tops of the hills.
Arastradero Hikes
Once you’re here, there are plenty of Arastradero hikes you can do. With miles of trails, you have the option of choosing one that fits the length and difficulty level you’re looking for.
That said, keep in mind that some trails are subject to closure, especially after heavy rain. Make sure to check before you go if you want to hike a specific trail. The map below has seasonal trail closures marked on it, so you can use that as a reference as well.
Arastradero Creek Loop
One of the most popular hikes in Arastradero Preserve is the Arastradero Creek Loop. This 3.7-mile route takes around 2 hours and has an elevation change of 300 feet.
To do it, you can take Juan Bautista de Anza Trail to Arastradero Creek Trail, then turn right on Acorn Trail and again on Meadowlark Trail. Meadowlark Trail will reconnect you with Juan Bautista de Anza Trail, from where you can hike back to the parking lot.
Redtail Loop Trail
Another popular Arastradero hike is the Redtail Loop Trail. This 1.5-mile route takes around 40 minutes and has a decent amount of elevation gain. That means it offers views of everything from Stanford to Palo Alto and the San Francisco Bay.
My Arastradero Hike Review
When I hiked here, I did a modified version of the Arastradero Creek Loop. I started by walking from the parking lot to Gate A. From there I hiked up the wide Juan Bautista de Anza Trail.
Just after Arastradero Lake, I veered left on Arastradero Creek Trail and followed it up to where it met Acorn Trail. I turned right on Acorn Trail and followed it past Meadowlark Trail until I reached Bay Laurel Trail.
I turned left on Bay Laurel Trail, then right on Star Trail. I followed Star Trail down to Juan Bautista de Anza Trail, then turned right. After passing Gate B, I took a left on Bonus Hill Trail, then kept left as it joined up with Meadowlark Trail.
When it met Portola Pastures Trail, I turned right to stay on Meadowlark Trail, then turned left on Juan Bautista de Anza Trail and followed it back to the parking lot.
The hike was fairly easy, and it took around an hour and 15 minutes including a break to soak up the views from the top of Bonus Hill Trail (and plenty of photo stops).
I loved the scenery along the way, not least because it changed from open grassland to an oak canopy and back. I also enjoyed seeing the local wildlife, including colorful western bluebirds, giant birds of prey, and California poppies.
The hike was easier than I anticipated, and due to seasonal trail closures it was shorter than I would usually do. Overall it was an enjoyable one, though.
As an added bonus, we made the quick drive over to Alpine Inn for lunch afterwards. This historic bar and grill in my hometown of Portola Valley was established in 1852. It’s the second oldest continually operating tavern in California.
The beer garden is vast, and it’s the perfect place to have lunch in the sunshine after a hike. It gets crowded on sunny Saturdays, but thanks to the large size of the place, the wait is usually only 20 minutes at most. It was a great way to end our hike.
Arastradero Preserve Map
You can see Arastradero Preserve on Google Maps here. The interactive map also shows a rough outline of the paths, so it’s a good starting point. As I mentioned before, it’s helpful for driving directions as well.
You can see a full map of the trails here. It provides more details about the park rules, and it has suggested Arastradero hikes at the bottom. It offers other information about the preserve, its history, and what you’ll see along the trails, too.
Arastradero Hike
I hope you’ve enjoyed this guide to doing an Arastradero hike in Palo Alto. It’s a great place to get on the trails in the Bay Area.
If you’re looking for more inspiration, you can read my guides to the best dog-friendly hikes in the Bay Area and the top Marin County hikes. Happy travels!
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