Weekly Walker: The Forever Views of Sweeney Ridge (GGNRA)

About this column:

Local trekker, and San Carlos man-about town, Tom Davids, suggests a weekly hike. This week's adventure to Sweeney Ridge in the Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA) is a follow –up to last week’s Milagra Ridge hike. For more information, contact Tom at tom@tomdavids.com.

By Tom Davids

Directions: From Highway 280 northbound, exit at Skyline Boulevard/Pacifica/Highway 35. Continue past Sneath Lane one-half mile to the next signaled intersection—College Drive. Turn left and continue to the second stop sign at Skyline College. Turn left again, and circle around the track and past the tennis courts to parking lot 2. Turn left into the parking lot, and watch for parking signs: “Reserved for GGNRA weekends and holidays.”

Grade: Moderate. Elevation gain of 825 feet.

Trail Map: Google Sweeney Ridge Trail Map.

Distance: Seven miles.

Time: Three hours.

Special Conditions: This hike is best during sunny, clear conditions, but be prepared for wind and fog. Dogs are permitted on leash. Bicycles and equestrians are not permitted on the trail from the parking lot to Mori Ridge Trail. Watch for poison oak crowding the first mile of trail. This area is administered by the Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA).

(This week’s hike is a follow –up to last week’s Milagra Ridge hike. These two open space areas form the spine of a key defensive area during WW-II and the cold war that followed.)

On Nov. 4, 1769, members of Gasparde Portola’s expedition “once more came to climb an extremely high hill (Sweeney Ridge]), and shortly descried from the height a large arm of the sea or an extremely large estuary (San Francisco Bay). . . About a league-and-a-half or two leagues from where we were, some mountains (Mount Tamalpais and the San Bruno Mountains) were made out that seemed to make an opening, and it seemed to us the estuary (the Golden Gate) must go in by there, and as if there were a sort of harbor there within the mountains.”

Today Sweeney Ridge is much the same as in Portola’s day—absent a couple of monuments, a few groves of eucalyptus trees, and a deserted Nike missile site. The wind-swept ridge is still known for its thick summer fog, driving winter rain and some of the best views on the Peninsula.

Four trails lead to Sweeney Ridge—one from near Highway 1 in Pacifica (Mori Ridge Trail, the second from the end of Fassler Avenue in Pacifica (Baquiano Trail, the third from the end of Sneath Lane in San Bruno (Sneath Lane Trail), and the fourth from Skyline College (Sweeney Ridge Trail).

This walk starts from Skyline College at the south side of parking lot 2. Several parking spaces marked “Reserved for GGNRA—weekends and holidays” are adjacent to the trailhead. The first one-mile segment of Sweeney Ridge Trail is restricted to hikers and dogs on leash only (no bikers or equestrians).

The trail climbs steeply to join an old gravel service road. Turn right, and begin to enjoy the view. Skyline College is below, and Mount Tamalpais is far to the north. The afternoon we last took this hike, a blanket of fog lay over the Richmond and Sunset districts of San Francisco, but the sun was bright on San Bruno Mountain and on the antenna platform reaching above Mount Sutro.

After 0.6 mile, you will be at an old concrete building shown on the map as a Coast Guard site. Walking around the building, you will see San Francisco County Jail below, along with outbuildings and the jail farm nearby. From this point, you also have a good view of San Francisco International Airport and the bay and even the East Bay beyond. The San Andreas Reservoir is below to the south. If your timing is right, a 747 will be taking off to the west—between you and Mount San Bruno—almost close enough to recognize Uncle Charlie on his way to Hawaii.

From the Coast Guard bunker, the trail becomes a single track as it heads down to the “Notch.” A trail sign reminds walkers to stay on the trail and not disturb a special kind of lupine that is a critical habitat for the endangered mission blue butterfly. On your way down to the Notch, you will pass over 72 steps and drop 160 feet. And then you climb up again—105 steps—until the trail levels out a bit.

As you hike to the ridge above, a flat roof and a power pole will come into view. These are the first sightings of the Nike Base on Sweeney Ridge.

At the junction with Mori Ridge Trail, turn left. The trail becomes an old service road that you will share with bicyclists and equestrians, although we have seldom seen either in our visits to the ridge. The climb is easy as you hike up to the Nike site.  This command post controlled a Nike missile site at Milagra Ridge 6.5 miles north. The Milagra Ridge facility (SF-51) was one of the last Nike sites armed (1954) and disarmed (1974). The other site matching these dates was at Fort Berry, north of the Golden Gate Bridge.

From the Nike site, hike south on the asphalt road, passing a large brown water tank. As you hike, notice a yellow line painted down the middle of this narrow road. This is a “fog line,” which helped military personnel stay on the road during periods of dense fog. The paved road turns down to Sneath Lane, but the hike continues straight ahead on a gravel road. Near the junction is a wood bench as well as a cut log for your lunching and viewing pleasure, plus a  chemical toilet.

A short distance ahead is the location of two granite monuments. One honors the Portola Expedition: “From this ridge, the Portola Expedition discovered San Francisco Bay - Nov. 4, 1769.” A second monument honors the memory of Carl Patrick McCarthy, who between 1966 and his death on Oct. 15, 1981, personally brought 11,863 visitors to this viewpoint. On top of this monument is a granite wheel with an arrow pointing north. Around the sides are images of prominent topographical features, including the Farallon Islands, Point Reyes, Mount Tamalpais, Mount Diablo, Mount Hamilton, and others. All these distant sites are visible on a clear day.

The hike continues 1.3 miles along the ridge to a gate that restricts passage into the San Francisco Watershed, the area of controversy that remains closed to casual hikers but, as the sign states, available to hikers who plan ahead and reserve space on a scheduled hike.  Along the way, you have good views of Montara Mountain and the coast side of Pacifica, plus the entrance to the recently opened tunnel by passing Devils Slide.

At the gate, turn around and retrace your steps back the way you came You can take a short side trip by turning left on an side trail leading down to a swale and freshwater marsh. The trail runs along the east side of the marsh and gradually regains altitude to the ridge. 

By the Way…

Sweeney Ridge is 1200 feet above sea level. In addition to its broad 360-degree views (when the sky is clear) it boasts a wide range of wild flowers.