On a beautiful fall weekend, we headed up north of San Francisco for a pair of awesome oceanside hikes. This first one, the Tennessee Valley Loop, was the shorter of the pair, but with some steep inclines it honestly felt tougher! This hike promised some fantastic ocean views, and as it turned out, we had perfect weather and the views lived up to the hype!
Miles/Elevation:
5.5 miles
1,292 feet vertical gain
About Golden Gate National Recreation Area:
Named for the stretch of water which enters into the San Francisco Bay, the Golden Gate National Recreation Area is a National Parks Service run area protecting natural environments and historic locations. At just over 82,000 acres, this “park” has tons of open space and places to enjoy the outdoors. Even with all that space, it can feel busy at times. This is because Golden Gate hosts over 17 million visitors a year!
While all the land in Golden Gate is all technically a part of the same park, the area is functionally split into many different parks and locales. Examples include the Marin Headlands just north of the Golden Gate, Muir Woods National Monument, Alcatraz Island, the Presidio of San Francisco, Rancho Corral de Tierra, and many more. Together, these unique and wildly different places create one of the greatest urban parks in the world!
Getting To The Trailhead:
Follow Highway 101 north from San Francisco or south from San Rafael to the Highway 1 exit. After a quick few minutes on 1, turn left onto Tennessee Valley Road. Follow the road until you reach the parking lot at the end.
Tips:
- Be ready for some steep climbs. Many of the trails simply climb straight up hills.
- There is almost no shade on this hike. Wear sun protection and aim for cooler days.
- If you go on a weekend, arrive early to get parking.
The Tennessee Valley Loop:
The Fox Trail:
After a short walk down the Tennessee Valley Trail, which is actually a paved road to start, take a right onto the Fox Trail to really begin the hike. The Fox Trail is actually a gravel fire road, and be ready to share it with mountain bikers.
Help keep nature pristine. Follow Leave No Trace!
Almost immediately after beginning the Fox Trail you will start climbing. Basically this entire trail is a climb, and over the course of the next mile or so you’ll climb about 800 vertical feet. It’s definitely steep, and since we weren’t in great shape when we hiked here it was tough. This is not helped by the fact that the road basically just goes straight up hill! However, take it at a slow and easy pace and you’ll make decent progress.
Always follow basic trail etiquette when you’re hiking!
The scenery on the Fox Trail continually improves as you go. The Fox Trail travels through rough coastal chaparral, and really that’s what you’ll be hiking through throughout the day. However, soon after the beginning of the climb you will start catching your first glimpses of the ocean, and by the end of the Fox Trail, the ocean will be in full view.
For more awesome coastal hikes, check out our list of the best hikes in Big Sur!
After a bit over a mile of tough climbing, you will reach the top of the climb and the end of the Fox Trail. This is the highpoint of the day, but there is more climbing still to do later! Enjoy the view at the top, and then continue on down the Coastal Fire Road towards the Pacific!
The Coastal Fire Road:
From the top of the climb, veer left to follow this fire road towards the Pacific Ocean. Here, the ocean will be in full view as you descend steeply towards it! The views are epic the entire time on this segment of the hike, and you’ll be facing them the whole time!
The trail is in fact another fire road, and this one also basically goes straight down the hillside. It’s steep and pretty slippery, so be careful to not lose your footing. The road is also rutted and washed out in places adding to the challenge.
For the best Bay Area hike, check out this route form Muir Woods to the summit of Mt Tamalpais!
At the bottom of the coastal fire road you will reach an intersection. Going right would take you to Muir Beach, but to continue on this loop, take a left to head back towards Tennessee Valley!
The Coastal Trail:
Once you’re off the fire road, the hiking really gets good! No longer will you be on fire roads. Here, the trail is actually a trail. You will be on packed dirt single track hundreds of feet above the ocean with panoramic views over the Pacific! It’s pretty sweet!
The coast here is extremely rough, and while it’s not as dramatic as parts of the Big Sur coastline to the south, it’s still fantastic. Before long though, you will begin descending and losing your views. One of the bummers about this loop is the climbing on the second half of the hike, and you will be making your way towards that now!
The trail descends about 200 feet down into a ravine towards Pirates Cove. On the descent, the grade really isn’t too bad, though the climb up the other side is rough. Near the bottom of the ravine, the trail is very washed out, so you will need to watch your footing.
At the very bottom of the ravine, there is a branching trail that leads to Pirates Cove proper. We followed this side trail for 30 feet or so, but quickly realized it’s a bit of an endeavor to actually reach the water. It’s very steep, and I hesitate to actually use the word trail to describe it. Pirates Cove is certainly a possibility for you though if you’re feeling adventurous! I’ll add that we were also tired and dreading the upcoming climb, and really didn’t want to go down more!
Montara Mountain is a great coastal hike near Half Moon Bay!
From the bottom of the ravine near Pirates Cove, you have a 400 foot climb to do which all occurs in roughly a quarter of a mile. This is by far the steepest climb of the day, and it’s not easy!
Much of the trail up from Pirates Cove actually has stairs built into the dirt, and that’s definitely a good thing here! Without the stairs to provide support, this would be a seriously nasty hill to scramble up. Towards the top, the stairs end and you are simply faced with a steep dirt trail. It can be slippery here, but you should be all right!
Atop this final climb of the day, you will once again be graced by panoramic views over the Pacific Ocean. Here, you will also have some of the best looks to the south over Tennessee Beach and towards the city of San Francisco. This trail really is beautiful throughout!
The Tennessee Valley Trail:
Hike the Spine Trail for more great coastal views!
From the top of the final climb above Pirates Cove, it’s smooth sailing back to the trailhead. Follow the Coastal Trail as it descends about 400 feet down into Tennessee Valley, and then merge onto the Tennessee Valley Trail which will take you back to the trailhead. The Tennessee Valley Trail is a road, largely paved, and once you’re on it you should cruise all the way back to your car!
Topdown Lifestyle Rating: 9/10
This trail has awesome views from almost start to finish, and there are even some cliffs and ledges that you can get pretty close to, but despite that I’m going with a 9/10. This is an awesome trail, but big chunks are on roads, mostly gravel but some pavement, which is kind of a bummer. There aren’t many 5 or 6 mile hikes better than this one, but there are some, and for that reason it’s a 9/10.
Pros:
- Great ocean views
- Vey good trail quality
Cons:
- Very busy
- Lots of fire roads
Alternative Hikes:
Wolf Ridge and Marincello Trail Loop
Tennessee Valley to Rodeo Beach
Rodeo Beach, Coastal Trail, and Miwok Trail Loop
When To Hike The Tennessee Valley Loop:
This is a place you can visit all year long, and you could get great weather any day of the year, or you could get rough weather any day of the year! That’s kind of the great thing about the northern California Coast, and the terrible thing! You’ll get amazing days in winter, and you’ll get nasty days in summer!
I would mostly say the best time to visit is a day calling for clear weather in Stinson Beach or Muir Beach, but to be more general, spring or fall are probably the best times of year to visit. Summer generally brings lots of fog, and winter brings rain and storms. Fall especially is a beautiful time to visit, but anytime of year, check the weather, and look for sunshine!
Links For Further Reading:
Tennessee Valley Golden Gate Loop Trail | Map, Guide – California | AllTrails
Tennessee Valley – Golden Gate National Recreation Area (U.S. National Park Service)
Tennessee Valley Loop Hike | Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy
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