Just up the hill from Silicon Valley, this rock climber’s paradise offers recreational opportunities from trail running to backpacking.
By Bridget Lyons
Apr. 10, 2024—It’s not uncommon for people to mix up the state parks of the Santa Cruz Mountains. Thanks to the foresight of early conservationists and the ongoing support of organizations like Friends of Santa Cruz State Parks, there are a lot of them, and they all boast fabulous trails through our majestic redwood, fir and oak forests.
Among these protected areas, Castle Rock State Park stands out.
Why? Because—as its name suggests—it’s got rock. Vaqueros sandstone, to be specific.
This formation is made up of coarse grains of cemented sand that our Mediterranean climate weathers in a unique way, creating outcroppings with tough outer surfaces and weak inner ones. The result is what’s known as tafoni—with cavities that can take the shape of holes, pits, pockets, and arches. Together, they form patterns that resemble honeycomb, lace, sponge, or even Swiss cheese.
Not only are these formations fascinating to look at, but they also make for good rock climbing. Amongst many recreationalists, this is what Castle Rock State Park is best known for.
Castle Rock isn’t only for climbers, however. I recently spent the day there and can attest to the variety of outdoor adventures for all abilities. Here are my top 10 activities that can be done in this 5,242-acre tract of public land. While I’ll start the list off with climbing, it won’t end there!
- Climbing and Bouldering: There are a mix of “trad” and “sport” routes—with the former following routes of varying difficulty up cracks and seams in a wall, and the latter consisting of generally easier routes that follow pre-drilled bolts. There are also a lot of what practitioners of bouldering call “problems” in the park. The majority of them are located on or around Castle Rock and Goat Rock, the two most prominent outcroppings. Sandstone is breakable when it’s wet, so the park closes to all climbing uses for at least two days after a rain. Be forewarned, on a non-rainy weekend, the rock gets a lot of use.
- Hiking and Trail Running: Several scenic and hilly loops start at the main parking lot. If you just want a quick wander (or you want to do some bouldering or rock scrambling along the way), the 1.3-mile Castle Rock Loop is perfect. If you have a few hours and want to see all the rock formations while also taking in some great views of the surrounding mountains, a roughly 6-mile loop combining the Saratoga Gap Trail and the Ridge Trail offers panoramic vistas, a waterfall and a pit stop at the park’s interpretive shelter. Finally, you can easily put together longer loops or one-way hikes/runs by linking up parts of the Skyline-to-the-Sea Trail (which is open in Castle Rock but closed at the boundary with Big Basin Redwoods State Park), the Saratoga Toll Road Trail and/or the Travertine Springs Trail.
- Backpacking and Camping: Castle Rock State Park offers two primitive walk-in campgrounds with pit toilets and metal food boxes. They are situated to facilitate backpacking trips across the park and, potentially, down the Skyline-to-the-Sea Trail to the coast (the lower portion of which is still closed). Reservations are required for both campgrounds.
- Waterfall Peeping: Yes, Castle Rock has a waterfall, aptly named Castle Rock Falls. An observation deck perched above and to the side of it allows you to admire its drop without endangering your life (it runs down a steep cliff face). The hike out is a 1.3-mile round trip from the parking lot.
- Natural History Hunting: If you’re lucky, you might spot some of the Santa Cruz Mountains’ classic animal species: deer, fox, coyote, various snakes and reptiles, vultures, hawks and even peregrine falcons. Wildflowers were just starting to appear when I visited in late March; I saw shooting stars, Indian paintbrush, and baby blue eyes. In the mycology department, I found only a few shelf fungi and some witch’s butter, but I have no doubt there were mushrooms galore up there earlier this winter. Note that picking wildflowers and mushrooms is illegal in this and all other California State Parks.
- Picnicking: There are a couple of great spots to treat yourself to some nourishment before, during, or after your explorations. One is just off of the park’s main parking lot, just past the giant piece of burl by the informational kiosk. Another is the Partridge Farm site, accessible from Highway 35 by a short road that leads to the park’s interpretive kiosk. The third is at Sempervirens Point, which is by the side of Highway 9 in the western section of the park. It offers one table and a fabulous mountain view.
- Driving: This may seem like an odd activity to include, but, since most of us access Castle Rock in our personal vehicles, we might as well appreciate our surroundings while doing so! And, because of Castle Rock’s sprawling layout (chunks of it flank both Highways 35 and 9), you can see quite a bit of terrain in the process of getting there. Trails and trail access points line both highways, so you can always park and explore, too — or get a buddy to shuttle your one-way hike or trail run.
- Horseback Riding: Equestrians can take advantage of the Saratoga Toll Road to Big Basin Redwoods State Park. There’s even a horse staging area just south of Saratoga Gap on the west side of Highway 9 to facilitate access.
- Mountain Biking: Castle Rock has about a mile of bikeable trail in the park proper and the Skyline Trail, which is part of the Bay Area Ridge Trail, runs along the entire eastern boundary of the park. You can use the park’s parking facilities (see #10 below) to ride this trail and enjoy the county park and open space lands that abut Castle Rock.
- Visitor-Friendly Parking: For many years, Castle Rock had no true entrance. That changed in 2019, and it now has a big parking lot housing flush toilets, EV-charging stations and a water bottle refill station. There are also solar-powered pay stations — parking is $10 and fees directly support Friends of Santa Cruz State Parks.
Editor’s note: Thanks to an innovative partnership model pioneered right here, Friends of Santa Cruz State Parks supports operations at 32 state parks and beaches in Santa Cruz County and along the San Mateo County coast. It does this by collecting park entrance fees, camping and other fees, and splitting those proceeds with California State Parks, then using its portion to fund educational and interpretive programs, visitor services and a large volunteer program. At Castle Rock, Friends gets 100 percent of the entrance fees.
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