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1. Kirk Creek Trail to Stone Ridge Trail, Ventana Wilderness

Liz Thomas
Professional hiker and guidebook author

If you want a little taste of everything Big Sur has to offer, the Stone Ridge Trail is a strenuous backpacking trip you won’t want to miss. You’ll enjoy wild coastal views and old-growth redwoods characteristic of hiking in Northern California, moss-covered oak forests, meadows, and crystal clear streams. Set up a short car shuttle to do it as a 13.2-mile one-way hike or make it an out-and-back trip.

Dramatic coastline of Big Sur in a setting sun.
The Stone Ridge Trail is popular for backpacking, birding, camping… and coastal views. Photo by Saurish Srivastava licensed from Unsplash

How to backpack the Stone Ridge Trail

Start at Highway 1 near the Kirk Creek Campground. Take the Kirk Creek Trail (often called the Vicente Flat Trail) up above the ocean for an unobscured view of the Pacific (unless it’s foggy, of course). You have the option of camping at Espinoza Camp or Vicente Flat Camp. I prefer the latter, as it has more reliable water and flat spots among old-growth redwoods.

Cross the stream and climb from spooky moss-covered oaks to open high meadows. Descend on the steep and sometimes slippery Twitchell Elevator Use Trail through Limekiln State Park back to Highway 1. Along the way you’ll get views of grassy hillsides, with Cone Peak above, and the Pacific Ocean below. Note that you’ll come out on Highway 1 about 2 miles from the Kirk Creek Campground.

To avoid the knee-busting descent, turn the trip into an out-and-back after reaching the grassy meadow.

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