🥾 ActiveDay trip · from San Francisco, CA

Ancient Redwoods & Coastal Elephant Seals

Walk beneath 2,000-year-old coast redwoods in the Santa Cruz Mountains, then follow clifftop trails above wild beaches where hundreds of elephant seals haul ashore — two of California’s most spectacular natural encounters in a single day.

Day 1 — Big Basin Redwoods State Park

🚗 2 hr 51 min driving📍 4 stops

🌅

Morning

🚗

Drive

San Francisco, CA → Big Basin Redwoods State Park

1 hr 15 min8:00 AM → 9:15 AM

Big Basin Redwoods State Park

★ 4.8

Walk among coast redwoods towering over 300 feet and dating back 2,000 years along the Redwood Trail, where cathedral groves carpeted with ferns and morning mist make this one of the most magical forests in California.

9:15 AM📍 See location

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Lunch

Boulder Creek Country Club Bar & Grill

★ 4.4

A Santa Cruz Mountains restaurant with American classics in a golf club setting that's more welcoming than it sounds. A reliable midday stop in the redwoods.

10:15 AM📍 See location

☀️

Afternoon

🚗

Drive

Big Basin Redwoods State Park → Año Nuevo State Park

20 min12:00 PM → 12:20 PM

Año Nuevo State Park

★ 4.8

Hike dramatic coastal bluffs above sandy dunes where hundreds of elephant seals haul ashore to rest and breed — one of the most spectacular wildlife encounters on the California coast, with guided trails weaving through seal colonies just steps from the Pacific.

12:20 PM📍 See location

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Evening

🚗

Drive

Año Nuevo State Park → Loma Mar Outpost

8 min5:00 PM → 5:08 PM

Loma Mar Outpost

★ 4.8

A hidden gem tucked into the Santa Cruz Mountains serving seasonal California cuisine with ingredients from nearby farms. Warm, unhurried, and genuinely delicious — the kind of place you'd drive back for.

5:08 PM📍 See location

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Drive

Loma Mar Outpost → San Francisco, CA

1 hr 8 min6:08 PM → 7:16 PM

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