In Rancho del Oso Big Basin Redwoods State Park there is a magical trail with breathtaking views of the coastal valley and Pacific Ocean. Starting at Waddel Beach, the Skyline to the Sea Bypass trail is a 1.75 mile long trail overlooking end of the popular 33 mile Skyline to Sea Trail. In less than two hours this loop will take you through a sampling of all that Rancho del Oso has to offer.

Due to growth and erosion, the Skyline to Sea Bypass has become a single-track trail, making it unsafe for traffic by hikers and joggers. California State Parks Foundation volunteers in partnership with park staff have been working on restoring this one of a kind trail since October. Lead by volunteer, Bob Fox, more than one third of the trail has already been restored. “We are attempting to open it up because it has become so overgrown and the tread here really needs a lot of work to make it safe for people to hike both up and down the trail”, said Bob.

Opening the trail is back breaking work. After a significant hike up the trail, the process includes shoring, widening, brushing, creating drainage, tree removal, and more. It has taken 36 volunteer 3 workdays to make the incredible progress so far. The hard work of first-time volunteers and returning volunteers alike is priceless to a long-term project like this. “It’s really impressive to see the number of folks who come out here with the foundation and are willing to work really hard in the parks and help upgrade and maintain them.”

So far about a mile of the trail has been opened up to be 3 to 4 feet wide. But there is still a significant amount of trail left to widen. Want to make a lasting impact on this amazing trail? Join our next workday on February 21.

Special thank you to ExtremeTerrain for helping fund the January 31 trail repair workday at Big Basin Redwoods State Park.