Located in the Santa Cruz Mountains near Felton, Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park spans 4,650 acres of diverse natural habitats. While it’s best known for a 40-acre grove of towering old-growth redwood trees, the park also offers access to three other ecosystems: grasslands, river/riparian habitats, and the rare Santa Cruz Sandhills.
What makes the Sandhills unique?
The Sandhills are a rare geological formation, distinguished by ancient marine deposits of sand that date back over 15 million years. This area was once submerged beneath an inland sea, and remnants of this prehistoric environment are evident in its sandy soils and distinct ecosystem. The Sandhills supports endemic plants and animals found nowhere else in the world.
Unlike the cool, shaded environment of the redwood forests, the Sandhills are sunny and arid, with an open canopy that allows drought-tolerant plants to thrive. Silver-leaf manzanita and ponderosa pines, typically found at higher elevations, dominate the landscape. The stark contrast between the towering redwoods and the Sandhills’ sparse vegetation creates a striking experience for hikers.
Getting to Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park
The park is conveniently located about 45 minutes to an hour from Silicon Valley, depending on your starting point and traffic conditions on Highway 17. The drive offers scenic views of the Santa Cruz Mountains, but heavy beach traffic on weekends can add to travel time. Once you arrive, parking at the visitor center is the best starting point for most hikes, but spaces fill up quickly, especially on weekends and holidays. Plan to arrive early to secure parking and enjoy the park at its most tranquil.
Hiking to the Sandhills from the visitor center
From the visitor center, hike to the loop that takes you through the 40-acre grove of old-growth redwood trees. Both entrances to the loop lead to majestic redwoods, some of which are over 1,500 years old and exceed 250 feet in height. It doesn’t matter which side of the loop you start from – walk along the path until you reach the opposite end of the grove. From there, take the short trail that leads you out of the grove and intersects with Pipeline Road.
Walk along Pipeline Road for about one mile until it intersects with Ridge Road and take the trail up through the mixed evergreen forest until you reach the open vegetation of the Sandhills. eventually transitioning to the open, sandy terrain of the Sandhills.
The shift in vegetation is striking—the dense greenery gives way to silvery manzanitas and sunlit clearings dotted with ponderosa pines. The Sandhills are dominated by silver-leaf manzanita and are one of the few places where hikers can see Ponderosa pines below 3,000 feet in elevation.
Walking along Ridge Road, which isn’t a road but a very sandy single-track trail that traverses the heart of the Sandhills at Henry Cowell, feels similar to walking on a beach. The sand gives way underfoot as you walk through the submerged trail through elevated chaparral plant communities.
The observation deck at the Sandhills
As you continue along the trail, you’ll reach the Observation Deck, a small but lookout point perched within the Sandhills that is the highest point at Henry Cowell at 805 feet above sea level. From here, you can enjoy views of the surrounding mountains and the Sandhills’ distinctive terrain. On a clear day, you can even see the Pacific Ocean in the distance.
Biodiversity in the Sandhills
The Sandhills habitat is characterized by Zayante soil, a sandy type of soil known for its rapid water drainage, creating nutrient-poor, well-drained conditions that are inhospitable to most plant species. Specialized plant species have adapted to thrive in these harsh conditions. The ponderosa pine, finds a foothold here, along with manzanita and other drought-tolerant shrubs. Endemic plants like the Ben Lomond spineflower and Santa Cruz wallflower have evolved to survive in this environment.
I hiked the main trail that leads through the Sandhills to the Observation Deck on a sunny and mild day in January. Quite a few ravens could be heard calling and flying over the Sandhills. Annas hummingbirds flitted among the manzanitas.
The many snags at Sandhills, remnants of long dead Ponderosa pines, house granaries tended to by acorn woodpeckers.
