Adventures Archives

Ferment & Forage with the Little River Inn

Paulina DaoJuly 6, 20183946 views

The Little River Inn recently extended an invite to attend their first ever Ferment and Forage Experience celebrating the gathering food from the land and sea. I grew up picking blackberries on bushes at summer camp and eating vinegar ants right out of the ant hill. After hearing countless stories of how friends foraged for mushrooms and the like in my metaphorical backyard, I wanted to learn how.

The Little River Inn brought Kevin from Countryman Forager, folx from Freedive Shop, Emma from Rising Tide Sea Vegetables, and the Inn’s own manager and resident fermenter, Cally, for foraging and cooking demos. If you’ve ever been curious about eating in the wild, this event is an excellent stepping stone.

Best Redwood Hikes in the Bay Area

Paulina DaoMay 31, 20186115.6K views

Summer in the Bay Area means the tourists and out-of-townere are coming. Muir Woods sits at the top of everyone’s bucket list of San Francisco must dos. With its groves of old growth redwoods, it’s hard not to see why. This NPS unit is family friendly and accessible for all.

However, access these days is getting more tough. Muir Woods now requires shuttle or parking reservations to reduce congestion on this small, impacted area. (Foot or bike traffic is not affected by this change.)

If redwoods are on your list, but reservation systems and crowds and boardwalks are not, I’ve compiled a list of redwood hikes in the Bay Area varying lengths and degrees of difficulty that are equally amazing or better than Muir Woods.

Read on for the full list of best redwood hikes in the Bay Area.

Hiking Bear Creek Redwoods Open Space Preserve

Paulina DaoApril 24, 20181721 views

Earlier this month, I had the chance to check out Bear Creek Open Space Preserve in Los Gatos. Up until recently, I didn’t know that this spot existed right off bustling Highway 17. It’s a chunk of land under the care of Midpeninsula Open Space Trust that’s currently not accessible to the public, except by permit.

Hiking the Dool-Middle Ridge-Meteor-Sequoia Loop, Big Basin Redwoods State Park

Paulina DaoApril 23, 201811.2K views

Big Basin Redwoods State Park is one of my go to hikes when I’m bumming around the Bay Area on the weekends. I never really venture away from the Berry Creek Falls loop though. It’s such a good one.

When my friend Brie vetoed Berry Creek Falls in favor of the Dool-Middle Ridge-Meteor-Sequoia Loop, I was skeptical.

My 5 Favorite Bay Area Hikes

Paulina DaoApril 5, 20180730 views

The folks at Arc’teryx Stanford Center asked me to share a few of my favorite Bay Area hikes and nonprofits at their spring launch event. There’s nothing I love more than talking about outdoor adventure, so I happily obliged.

For this roundup, I only wanted to include hikes within an hour of the Bay Area. These are all places you can go and get in mileage but still make it back in time for dinner and drinks with friends.

These are the best Bay Area hikes that I return to time and time again.