Tromp Blog

Tribute Tables Celebrate State Parks in Coastal San Mateo County

Tribute Tables are a thoughtful gift to mark milestones, celebrate relationships and honor a loved one. Each table is custom-engraved and is tax deductible. Photo: FOSCSP

Dedicating a picnic table at your favorite park or beach makes a perfect and enduring gift for a graduation, birthday, or memorial to a loved one.

10 Ways to Play at Castle Rock State Park

Castle Rock State Park, which sits along the crest of the Santa Cruz Mountains between Saratoga and Boulder Creek, offers commanding views. Photo by Mike Kahn.

Just up the hill from Silicon Valley, this rock climber’s paradise offers recreational opportunities from trail running to backpacking.

The Garden Museum of Santa Cruz’s Seabright Neighborhood

Native butterflies love wildflowers. Credit: Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History.

The wildflowers go off in the Garden Learning Center that surrounds the Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History.

The Wildflowers of Coyote Ridge

The fields of goldfields and poppies at the Máyyan 'Ooyákma-Coyote Ridge Open Space Preserve stretch for miles. Photo by Michael Hawk.

A conversation with Dr. Stu Weiss about the Máyyan 'Ooyákma-Coyote Ridge Open Space Preserve, and why it is one of the Bay Area’s premier wildflower hot-spots.

Product Launch: Find & Protect Wildflowers with BloomTracker

The new BloomTracker by Hilltromper. Photo: Mike Kahn

Hilltromper announces an online resource that tells you where your favorite flowers are blooming right now, and helps preserve these wonders of nature.

Fossils in Santa Cruz Mountains and Beaches

Wayne Thompson, paleontologist advisor for the Museum. Credit: Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History.

Learn about the traces and remains of ancient creatures that regularly surface in Santa Cruz, and about the rock formations millions of years old that harbor them.

Day Trips & Sips: Downtown Los Gatos & the John Nicholas Trail

Katie MacCafferty literally jumping for joy under the redwoods on the John Nicholas Trail. Ben Lilly photo.

One of Silicon Valley’s most charming downtowns offers excellent coffee options, great beers & wines, and proximity to an unforgettable trail in the redwoods.

Six Romantic Things to Do in San Mateo County

The historic Filoli estate encompasses what has been called "the most beautiful formal garden in America." Credit: Mike James courtesy Filoli

For Valentine's Day 2024, a romantic day trip on the Peninsula can include a historic estate, gardens and parks, San Francisco Bay waterfront views and world-class wines.

Day Trips and Sips: A Coastal Hike and Barnyard Fun in Half Moon Bay and Pescadero

The accessible Cowell-Purisima Beach Coastal Trail features gorgeous views atop steep cliffs. Photo by Alina M. Darkhovsky/Shutterstock.

A visit to the Cowell-Purisima Beach Coastal Trail and the Harley Farms Goat Dairy, with a nice Cantina lunch and wine tasting at Sante Arcangeli Family Wines.

Santa Cruz Mountains AVA: California’s Lesser Known Wine Region

Wine tasting at Mindego Ridge vineyard, Alpine Road, La Honda. Credit: Mike Kahn

When we think of wineries near the Bay Area, Napa and Sonoma tend to dominate the conversation. But did you know that there are wineries producing world-class wine in the Santa Cruz Mountains?

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