Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk

This remarkable preserve, California’s oldest state park, is an emerald gem in the Santa Cruz Mountains. With more than 80 miles of trails winding through redwood groves and other lush habitats, Big Basin makes an appealing weekend getaway for people in the Silicon Valley, about an hour’s drive west. Mums and dads love letting the kids loose to dip their toes in clear streams, or watching them conjure up enough courage to kiss a banana slug (ask a local; it’s a belt-notch experience for many a Northern Californian). 

Big Basin offers a variety of campsites, including 38 walk-in sites—a short walk lets you pitch your tent in ultimate peace and quiet. Hike, mountain bike or ride horses on designated routes. Trekkers love the 10.5-mile Skyline to the Sea Trail, which runs along Waddell Creek to the ocean and nearby Theodore J. Hoover Natural Preserve. There are also plenty of gentle, scenic rambles, such as the 4-mile Sequoia loop trail (complete with a small waterfall), and 0.5-mile Redwood loop trail that takes visitors to some of the park’s tallest trees. Collect maps and hiking tips from rangers at park headquarters, and ask about guided twilight hikes and campfire programmes.

The over-a-century-old Santa Cruz Wharf is the longest wooden pier in on the West Coast—a staggering 2,701 feet long. Walk to the end to get a bird’s eye view of Steamer Lane surfing to the north. Come at dusk to watch the lights glow on the colourfully lit Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. Near the base of the wharf, hire kayaks, stand up paddleboards or motorboats. As you walk further out on the wharf, strolling past the requisite fresh fish restaurants and souvenir and trinket shops, strike up a conversation with the local fishermen angling for perch, rockfish and lingcod. Better yet, join ’em. You don’t need a licence to fish from the pier; local tackle shops can get you fully outfitted too.

The Santa Cruz Mountains were once a vibrant logging area and with logging came railways. Today, the logging has largely gone but one remnant from that bygone time is the charming scenic railway at the Santa Cruz Roaring Camp Railroads. Century-old steam engines take passengers on entertaining rides into redwood country, offering intimate views and big views of towering redwoods. All year round, trains depart from tiny Felton to make an hour-long loop through forests to the summit of Bear Mountain. Along the way, conductors share interesting stories and information about the region and its railway history.

For an entertaining treat, join a themed train ride, offered throughout the year. Consider a ride on the Starlight Evening Train, ride to a campfire supper and sing-along on the Western Moonlight Dinner Train, or root for the hero during a Great Train Robbery. Roaring Camp itself is a recreated 1880s logging camp, with sites including a covered bridge, a period opera house and a classic general store. Kids enjoy watching demonstrations in blacksmithing and making candles by hand.

Daily in summer (weekends in spring and autumn), Roaring Camp also operates a return trip Santa Cruz Beach Train, picking up and dropping off passengers in Felton and at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. 

The trains have both covered and open air passenger cars. If you opt for open air seating consider bringing earplugs or sound cancelling headphones for babies or young toddlers with sensitive ears. There’s plenty of child friendly fare available for purchase but this is one of the few attractions that allows visitors to bring their own food. 

Thomas the Tank Engine stops by once or twice throughout the year. These days are especially popular, so buy your tickets well in advance and get there early.

While Santa Cruz gets thumbs-up for its hang-loose surf scene, oceanfront amusement park, flawless beach, and classic wooden pier, there’s another giant treasure lurking just beneath the surface. Migratory whales, including grays, blues, and humpbacks, can all be spied off the coast here at different times of year, and dolphins, sea otters, and seals are observed year round. See for yourself on exciting whale-watching cruises, chartered sailing excursions, or—for staggeringly intimate encounters—on guided kayak paddles when waters are calm.

What makes Santa Cruz such a prime spot for whale watching? According to Gary Griggs, director of the Institute of Marine Sciences at U.C. Santa Cruz, the town’s location on the northern end of Monterey Bay puts it on the edge of some of whales’ favourite undersea dining rooms. “The whales are here feeding on sardines, anchovies, and plankton, which have been attracted by blooms of microscopic plants such as diatoms,” explains Dr. Griggs. What’s more, Monterey Bay’s unique geology produces an area of relatively calm bay waters, where, according to Dr. Griggs, “plankton, small fish, seabirds, whales, and dolphins congregate to share in the food.” It makes for a fascinating, lively mix, and a great opportunity to learn more about California’s fascinating and delicate ocean ecosystems.