Armstrong Redwoods: An Underrated California State Park
Trail Summary: An easy and beautiful hike, this lesser known gem is a must see in Sonoma County
🥾 Trail: Pioneer Nature Trail, Armstrong Redwoods State Natural Reserve, Guerneville (Sonoma County).
🅿️ Fee: $10 per vehicle, $9 per vehicle for seniors, and free to pedestrians and cyclists and open daily from 8 a.m. until one hour after official sunset.
📅 Best times to visit: Year round but the now is a great time with lush greenery and a paved path option with rains.
📏 Difficulty: Easy. The Pioneer Nature Trail from the park entrance is a 1 mile out and back and can be extended to 1.7 miles by going on a loop that includes the picnic area.
🏔️ Elevation: Flat.
👧 👦 ♿️ friendly: Very kid friendly with a featured bridge crossing and easy trails. The Pioneer Nature Trail is ADA accessible.
🦮 Friendly: READ IN FULL - Dogs must remain on the paved road and are not allowed on any trails in Armstrong Redwoods State Natural Reserve. The paved road is parallel to the trail so it’s still a great redwood experience on a paved trail with a dog!
🎒 Gear: Wide and short trails make this one with minimal special equipment required! Cell phone signal was minimal for me. Bring the tripod for family photos at this one!
🕶️ Shade: Fully shaded.
🛂 Tips: A great day trip to tie in with Sonoma Coast state park or Bodega Bay. I also checked out a small waterfall hike in the Armstrong State Park- it’s honestly just OK at best and I’ll have a trail review of it later on. I highly highly recommend getting here early when the park opens: no crowds (I filmed on a Sat & there was no one here) and you can drive past the visitor center parking lot and park directly at the back near the Redwood theatre and discover trail, which makes for the most impressive loop