Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park

Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park is the most accessible old-growth redwood experience near Monterey Bay, and the reason is the Redwood Grove Loop: a flat, 0.8-mile trail that circles a 40-acre stand of ancient coast redwoods beside the San Lorenzo River in Felton, about 15 minutes inland from Santa Cruz. The trees are the real thing, many of them well over a thousand years old and towering far above the trail, and the loop is short enough for small children and easy enough for almost anyone. Along the way you can step inside the Fremont Tree, a giant hollowed by ancient fire (bring a flashlight to look up inside it), see family circles of young redwoods sprouting from old stumps, and read the stories of the logging era that spared this grove. Self-guided brochures and an audio tour explain the ecology. Beyond the grove the park opens into thousands of acres of mixed forest, river canyon and sandhills habitat, with longer trails for hikers and a riverside path; a visitor center and nature store sit by the trailhead. The location is a bonus: Roaring Camp Railroads runs right beside the park, so you can combine a steam train climb up Bear Mountain with a walk in the grove in one easy morning. A modest vehicle day-use fee applies (payable by QR code or text). Fit: families (flat, short and awe-inspiring), first-timers who want to see big redwoods without a long drive or hike, couples on a Santa Cruz Mountains day, and outdoors lovers who want a gentle forest walk.

The grove has been a tourist destination since the nineteenth century, when visitors came by train to see the big trees, and it was protected long before most redwood forests. Today the park covers far more than the grove: trails climb to an observation area in the sandhills, follow the river and link to the Fall Creek unit to the north. The grove itself, though, is the reason most people come, and it rewards slow walking.