Redwood City
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Purisima is often overlooked in favor of its more popular neighbor, El Corte de Madera Creek (Skeggs Point). Although Purisima does not have the abundance of trails or trails of the same high difficulty as El Corte de Madera, Purisima does offer 17 mi of trails with two thirds of them in the shade of a redwood forest. A highlight of Purisima is that it gets heavy coastal fog. It is a wonderful destination on a hot summer day as the temperature seldom tops 75 degrees, but it can also be cold and wet any time of the year. Beware that our recommended rides start at the highest elevation of the park and descend first. Many riders enjoy the 1500 foot descent only to find the trails too steep to climb back out. Know your climbing ability; it can be a long walk out. There are three main trails that all start near the highest elevation and descend without interruption to converge at the lower entrance to the park on Higgins Canyon Rd. The return ride is a sustained climb with 1500 feet of vertical and all trails have at least some very steep short sections. Whittemore Gulch Trail is the only single track and the highlight of the park with 1300 feet of elevation change at a steady 9% grade after an initial steep section. Whittemore Gulch Trail is almost entirely in the redwoods. It joins North Ridge trail for a steep final climb to the main parking lot on Skyline Blvd. Harkins Ridge Trail is the opposite, with 1400 feet of elevation change at an inconsistent grade between 0 and 22%, almost completely exposed to sun. In between is Purisima Creek Trail, that becomes progressively steeper as it climbs. The few remaining other trails are in the redwoods and average 10% grades. We have not recommended a 1000 Footer ride for Purisima, since all trails drop 1500 feet. Restrooms at all three parking lots.
Directions: There are four entrances. Our two recommended rides start at each of the two entrances on Skyline Blvd, above Redwood City and Woodside. The Medium Ride starts 2.5 miles north of Kings Mountain Rd. Ample parking and restrooms are available. A link to the Medium Ride parking location in Google Maps is here. The Big Ride starts 0.4 miles North of Kings Mountain Rd. This lot is much smaller and fills on weekends. Restrooms are available. A link to the Big Ride parking location in Google Maps is here. A third entrance with parking and restrooms is at the junction of Higgins Canyon Rd. and Purisima Creek Rd., South of Half Moon Bay. A fourth entrance on Tunitas Creek Rd. has no parking or other facilities.
