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California’s Bay Area residents don’t need to drive 180 miles to Yosemite National Park<\/a> to get their nature fix. Fortunately, the region’s hills and coastlines are peppered with smaller but beautiful wilderness areas, many\u00a0within an hour’s drive of San Francisco.\u00a0Among these are a few dozen open space preserves.\u00a0These lands are\u00a0set aside to protect ecosystems\u00a0like\u00a0coastal prairies, redwood forests, oak woodlands, and bayland salt marshes, among others \u2014 and\u00a0one\u00a0certainly worth checking out is\u00a0Coal Creek Preserve<\/a>.<\/p>\n About\u00a0an hour’s drive\u00a0south of San Francisco and a little less than an hour west of San Jose,\u00a0the preserve is located in a hilly area on the eastern slope of the Santa Cruz Mountains.\u00a0At around 500 acres, this preserve is smaller than others nearby. But it packs a lot of nature into its compact space: bright wildflowers in spring;\u00a0\u00a0juicy blackberries in summer;\u00a0oak and maple trees that turn fiery colors in autumn;\u00a0and seasonal waterfalls in winter.\u00a0Its hills are thick with wildlife too, including rattlesnakes (watch out), coyotes, deer,\u00a0bobcats, mountain lions, raccoons, skunks,\u00a0and golden eagles.\u00a0<\/p>\n A handful of hiking trails weave through the preserve. Most are\u00a0on the shorter side\u00a0but can be combined to achieve a longer route. Some trails, like the Alpine Road Regional Trail<\/a>\u00a0and the Coal Creek Double Loop<\/a>, allow dogs, equestrians, and mountain bikers. The 2.4-mile Coal Creek Double Loop is a popular route with a 500-foot elevation gain leading to some lovely\u00a0views of the surrounding Bay Area. Note that this trail and others in the preserve can get very muddy after rain, especially during the winter.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n Hiking to the Coal Creek Preserve’s seasonal waterfall<\/p>\n Coal Creek Preserve certainly can’t compete with\u00a0California’s “waterfall mecca”<\/a>\u00a0in the Shasta Cascade region,\u00a0a few hundred miles to the north. But seasonal waterfalls are visible from some of the preserve’s trails in the rainier winter season, and they’re an easy day trip for folks in the Bay Area.<\/p>\n