Wildflowers at Soberanes Canyon and Rocky Ridge Loop, Garrapata State Park
Stats: 5 miles | 1,850 feet gain
Hours: 2-4
Trailhead: Soberanes Canyon Trailhead
Type: Loop
Date Hiked: May 2023
It was May 2023, and I was very undecided where I wanted to go for my birthday hiking trip. It was very early in the backpacking season because the Sierra had accumulated a record-breaking amount of snow the past winter. The Sierra was pretty inaccessible still with road damage and a lingering snowpack, so that limited me to coastal destinations. In the end, my boyfriend and I settled on doing a day-hiking staycation in the Monterey area. Staying a night in Monterey allowed us 2 days to explore the northern side of Big Sur and Point Lobos.
I was scrolling through Alltrails and stumbled upon the Soberanes Canyon trail in Garrapata State Park. The scenery in the photos looked very diverse, and recent reviews reported many wildflowers. To make it a loop, we added on the Rocky Ridge trail, which goes up to a ridge and then circles back down with views of the ocean.
We had a slow start on Saturday morning so traffic was not in our favor. After a bunch of slowdowns, stopping for lunch, and getting gas, we didn't end up setting out from the Soberanes Canyon trailhead until around 4 PM. Sunset is at 8 PM so we still had plenty of hours, but I couldn’t recall ever starting a day hike so late. Our late start meant we were hiking in the afternoon sun and finishing in the golden hour sun, which turned out to be a huge benefit as it made this hike even more jaw-dropping.
Since it was so late in the day, there were few people on the trail. The solitude was noticeable and super pleasant. Almost immediately after starting on the trail, we had views extending into Soberanes Canyon. There was an isolated but huge patch of cacti covering the hillside here, which I thought was a unique sight for a hike relatively close to the Bay Area. Even though the mountains surrounding the valley are short at less than 2k feet, I found them visually more interesting than the rounded grassy hills found closer to the Bay Area.
Before I had time to even fully take it all in, we entered the forest and it felt like we had started a different hike. There were suddenly large redwoods and creek crossings and ferns. Soberanes Creek was full and it looked like California was finally getting a small respite from years and years of drought.
The Soberanes Canyon trail ends after about 1.5 miles and after that the loop starts on the Rocky Ridge trail. So far we had gained little elevation, but the Rocky Ridge trail climbs steeply towards a ridge that contains Doud Peak. This section was once again exposed and we had views all around us as we got higher up the hill. The trail was indeed sandy and slippery like a lot of the reviews had mentioned, but it was not an issue with how slow I was going. I was stopping every few seconds to take photos. I couldn't belive just how many wildflowers there were, especially lupines.
The lupines crowded both sides of the trail and dotted the hills. Even though they are native to California, they have invasive tendencies and grow aggressively. In a way the purple clumps looked like a disease, but they were also beautiful and whimsical and vibrant. It looked like they would fit right into a Dr. Seuss book.
Even though the skies were cloudless when we started, a layer of fog sat on the ridge. The strong wind blew tendrils of it around us as we got closer to the top and the views faded in and out, but soon the fog won and we could not see a thing. At the ridge, you can split off to the right on to the Peak Trail to get to the official highest point, Doud Peak, but we continued on the Rocky Ridge trail instead. The Rocky Ridge trail takes you downhill all the way back to the trailhead. Doud Peak is further back from the ocean and I read that the views are blocked by the ridge in front of it, so it didn’t seem worth visiting since we were crunched on time and in the thick of the fog.
The Rocky Ridge trail is officially closed and has been closed for a long time, which means it has not been maintained. I could see evidence of that, since some areas were severely eroded by heavy rain and the trail was quite overgrown, but overall I didn't find it to be un-hikeable or sketchy at all.
As we made our way down the Rocky Ridge trail, we had unobscured views on both sides of us. Golden hour set in, and I grew a little anxious about hiking down quickly enough, but that was quickly offset by my excitement for the views. The lighting changed constantly, which made for a very exciting hike down. Fog flowed like a river over the mountains and lupines were everywhere waving wildly in the wind. Once we rounded a bend and I saw Highway 1 snaking along the coast, I could relax knowing that we were almost back to the trailhead. I took my time taking photos in the last, most beautiful half-hour of light.
We got back to the trailhead at 8 PM, a full 4 hours since starting the 5 mile hike. It shouldn't take you as long, unless you are obsessed with taking pictures of everything like me. Then we crossed the highway to Soberanes Point, which has a 1-mile loop walk where you can catch the sunset. We were a little late for sunset, and the ominous clouds wouldn’t have allowed for one anyway, but we enjoyed the views of the rugged coastline and bluffs.
I normally feel like I need to drive several hours into the mountains and backpack miles and miles to see scenery that would impress me. But this hike blew my mind. It’s a good reminder that I should spend more time exploring the famously beautiful California coast, which is a tad closer to the Bay Area than the Sierra and definitely worth the drive. The Sobaranes Canyon and Rocky Ridge loop is now my favorite coastal hike close to the Bay Area, and I would recommend it to anyone!
