Junipero
Serra County Park,
San Mateo County Parks,
San Mateo County
In brief:
2.1 mile loop at a small park a short distance off US 280.
Getting there:
• From southbound Interstate 280 in San Mateo County, exit Crystal Springs
Road. Stay in the right lane and at the light, turn right onto Crystal Springs
Road. Drive about 0.5 mile, to the park entrance on the left side of the road.
• From northbound Interstate 280 in San Mateo County, exit San Bruno
Avenue. Go under the freeway and turn left back on 280 southbound. Exit Crystal
Springs Road, stay in the right lane and at the light, turn right onto Crystal
Springs Road. Drive about 0.5 mile, to the park entrance on the left side of the
road.
Trailhead details:
Once past the entrance kiosk, bear left and park in the lot near the De Anza Trailhead.
More parking in various lots throughout the park. $4 entrance fee; self-register
if kiosk is unattended. Designated handicapped parking spots in each parking lot.
Some trails and picnic areas may be wheelchair accessible for short distances
with assistance. Maps available at the De Anza Trailhead information signboard.
Restrooms near parking lot. Park hours are 8 a.m.-5 p.m. in winter, and until
8 p.m. April through Labor Day weekend. There is no direct public transportation
to the park. A few SamTrans buses service nearby neighborhoods.
Gas, food, and lodging:
Gas, pay phones, restaurants, and stores available in nearby San Bruno and Millbrae;
just about any highway exit near the park has facilities and businesses. No camping.
Rules:
Trails are open to hikers and equestrians. No bikes on trails, although they are
permitted on the paved park roads. Dogs are not allowed.
Distance, category, and difficulty:
This 2.1 mile loop hike is easy. The park is small, with limited
elevation changes.
The Official Story:
SMCP's
Junipero Serra page
Park office 650-589-5708
Map Choices:
• Use AAA's San Francisco Bay Region Map to get there.
• Map
from SMCP
• Afoot and Afield: San Francisco Bay Area, by David Weintraub (order
this book from Amazon.com) has a great map and descriptions of a Junipero
Serra hike.
• Trails of the Coastside and Northern Peninsula (map) is a good guide
(available from Pease Press).
• Peninsula Trails, by Jean Rusmore, has a simple map and trail descriptions
(order
this book from Amazon.com).
• View photos of this hike.
Junipero Serra is a small park, 
squeezed
on all sides by a freeway and residential communities. The trails are nicely maintained
and well-marked, and travel through the park's plant communities, but nothing
can mitigate the noise pollution you'll encounter as you hike. Traffic noise from
Highway 280 is a constant accompaniment on Junipero Serra's west side, and on
the east you'll hear and see traffic on 101. Airplane traffic from SFO in the
skies above the park is also heavy. If you can get beyond the noise, Junipero
Serra is a nice place for a picnic and/or short walk. There are barbecue pits,
picnic tables, and restrooms. The park's reservable group picnic areas boast volleyball
nets and large shelter buildings. If you visit just to hike, you could easily
cover all the park's trails in a few hours. Live Oak Nature Trail, a self-guided
loop, is perhaps the park's nicest path, and is recommended for hikers seeking
to learn about bay area plants. One work of caution: Junipero Serra is one of
those parks where people sit in their cars in the parking lot on weekdays. I've
never had a problem, but it can be kind of unsettling if you're alone. You may
want to hike on weekends or with a friend.
For the featured hike, start at the De Anza Trailhead,
at
the far end of the parking lot. Turn left on Live Oak Nature Trail. The
trail, closed to cyclists, initially follows at a level pace along El Zanjon Creek.
Identification posts along the trail point out wood mint, horsetail, willow, California
coffeeberry, vetch, honeysuckle, buckeye, and toyon. The dominant tree is coast
live oak. In spring, you may see California buttercup, forget-me-not, hound's
tongue, and iris. Live Oak Nature Trail turns away from the creek and climbs slightly,
through a transition between woodland and grassland. At 0.24 mile, you'll reach
a signed triangle shaped junction. Stay to the right, on Live Oak Nature
Trail.
After a few more steps under tree cover, the trail
emerges into grassland, with broom, toyon, poison oak, and coyote brush on the
sides of the path. A bench provides a rest stop. You may see milkmaids and mission
bells in spring. At 0.30 mile, Live Oak Nature Trail meets Buckeye Trail at a
signed junction. Turn left on Buckeye Trail.
The trail, 
open
to equestrians and hikers, climbs gently through grassland infested with broom.
At 0.34 mile, Buckeye meets Quail Loop Trail at a signed junction. Take the
first path to the left, Quail Loop Trail.
Quail Loop Trail is closed to cyclists. The path
ascends slightly, through a mixture of grassland and chaparral. Highway 280 is
audible, and occasionally visible. Monterey pine and eucalyptus loom off the sides
of the trail. At 0.61 mile, Quail Loop meets a path that heads out of the park,
at a signed junction. Bear right.
You might hear or glimpse hawks and Steller's jays
in this area. Quail Loop Trail begins to enter a meadow, where you might see California
poppy, buttercup, iris, footsteps of spring, wild radish, and mustard blooming
in spring. At 0.66 mile, Quail Loop Trail crosses Meadow View Trail (which is
shown on the map as a service road). Continue on Quail Loop Trail.
As you climb past the meadow, you'll have long
views of the nearby residential neighborhoods, and the airport. Poison oak shrubs
are common. 
Quail
Loop Trail heads toward a forest of Monterey pine and eucalyptus, and meets Meadow
View Trail again at 0.78. Bear left and remain on Quail Loop Trail.
The trail bisects a tiny redwood grove, then continues
on through mostly grassland. Drawing close to the park boundary, Quail Loop Trail
makes a tight turn and heads west through eucalyptus. Picnic areas are visible
on the left. At 1.02 miles, a path sets out toward Bay View Shelter on the right.
Continue on Quail Loop Trail.
Monterey pine, cypress, and eucalyptus tower over
grassland. In spring you might see swaths of miner's lettuce mixed in the grass.
At about 1.06 miles, the trail crosses a road, then at 1.16 miles it crosses the
road again. Both times continue on Quail Loop Trail.
The trail switchbacks under eucalyptus, then emerges
back into grassland, were you might see blue-eyed grass in spring. 
Quail
Loop begins to descend into oak woodland. At 1.65 miles, Quail Loop Trail passes
Willow Shelter and crosses the road one last time. In spring, ceanothus blooms
near the junction. If you want to continue on Quail Loop, walk uphill a short
distance on the road, and look for the trail continuation on the left (I missed
this). Continue straight on De Anza Trail.
The trail runs through the woods above the parking
lot, then meets Live Oak Nature Trail at 1.73 miles. (If you're ready to stop,
turn left and walk downhill to the trailhead.) I wanted to hike the rest of Live
Oak Nature Trail, so I decided to hike on. Turn right and continue on De Anza
Trail, heading uphill. At about 1.76 miles, you'll meet Quail Loop Trail again.
Turn left. Lovely ferns grace the understory. At 1.90 miles, you'll return
to a previously encountered junction. Bear left on Buckeye Trail. Descend
through familiar territory, and then at 1.94 miles, you'll reach another previously
encountered junction with Live Oak Nature Trail. Turn left.
The other leg of Live Oak Nature Trail passes through
snowberry, Monterey pine, madrone, California bay, monkeyflower, and ceanothus.
Coast live oaks shade the path, where you might see mushrooms in winter, and soaproot
in bloom during the late spring. At 2.04 miles, you'll return to the junction
with De Anza Trail. Turn right and retrace your steps to the parking lot.
Total mileage: 2.07 miles
Last hiked: Wednesday, March 21, 2001
Go to Bay Area Hiker Home page
squeezed
on all sides by a freeway and residential communities. The trails are nicely maintained
and well-marked, and travel through the park's plant communities, but nothing
can mitigate the noise pollution you'll encounter as you hike. Traffic noise from
Highway 280 is a constant accompaniment on Junipero Serra's west side, and on
the east you'll hear and see traffic on 101. Airplane traffic from SFO in the
skies above the park is also heavy. If you can get beyond the noise, Junipero
Serra is a nice place for a picnic and/or short walk. There are barbecue pits,
picnic tables, and restrooms. The park's reservable group picnic areas boast volleyball
nets and large shelter buildings. If you visit just to hike, you could easily
cover all the park's trails in a few hours. Live Oak Nature Trail, a self-guided
loop, is perhaps the park's nicest path, and is recommended for hikers seeking
to learn about bay area plants. One work of caution: Junipero Serra is one of
those parks where people sit in their cars in the parking lot on weekdays. I've
never had a problem, but it can be kind of unsettling if you're alone. You may
want to hike on weekends or with a friend.
the far end of the parking lot. Turn left on Live Oak Nature Trail. The
trail, closed to cyclists, initially follows at a level pace along El Zanjon Creek.
Identification posts along the trail point out wood mint, horsetail, willow, California
coffeeberry, vetch, honeysuckle, buckeye, and toyon. The dominant tree is coast
live oak. In spring, you may see California buttercup, forget-me-not, hound's
tongue, and iris. Live Oak Nature Trail turns away from the creek and climbs slightly,
through a transition between woodland and grassland. At 0.24 mile, you'll reach
a signed triangle shaped junction. Stay to the right, on Live Oak Nature
Trail.
open
to equestrians and hikers, climbs gently through grassland infested with broom.
At 0.34 mile, Buckeye meets Quail Loop Trail at a signed junction. Take the
first path to the left, Quail Loop Trail.
Quail
Loop Trail heads toward a forest of Monterey pine and eucalyptus, and meets Meadow
View Trail again at 0.78. Bear left and remain on Quail Loop Trail.
Quail
Loop begins to descend into oak woodland. At 1.65 miles, Quail Loop Trail passes
Willow Shelter and crosses the road one last time. In spring, ceanothus blooms
near the junction. If you want to continue on Quail Loop, walk uphill a short
distance on the road, and look for the trail continuation on the left (I missed
this). Continue straight on De Anza Trail. 