Map of bike paths / walking paths in the Redwood City, Foster City and Palo Alto area

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Recreational trails for walking, running and cycling around Palo Alto, Redwood City & Foster City, California

The Mid-Peninsula cities of Foster City, Redwood City, Palo Alto, and other nearby communities, are located south of the San Francisco Metropolitan Area and northwest of San Jose in Central California. This area sits between San Francisco Bay and the Santa Cruz Mountains to the west and has a relatively mild climate, though there can be strong winds along the waterfront of the bay and it can get hot in the summer.

Bay Trail

The Bay Trail, also known as the San Francisco Bay Trail, is a 500-mile long system of local paved and unpaved trails and walking paths that encircle San Francisco Bay. Several sections of the Bay Trail system go along the waterfront of the Mid-peninsula cities. There are also many other local trails that connect to the Bay Trail along the waterfront parks and sloughs.

The Bay Trail passes through 47 cities and 9 different counties. It includes toll-bridge crossings, waterfront walkways, wetland trails, freeway bike lanes and a mixture of other types of conditions. The Bay Trail system is not continuous, and the are many locations where you would need to ride along streets to get from one section to another. Some trails within the system are known by other names as they are controlled by local entities. There may be wide paved pathways for some sections and other sections have gravel or natural surfaces and be less well maintained.

Bay Trail in Palo Alto and East Palo Alto

A section of the Bay Trail is located along E. Bayshore Road in Palo Alto and is also know as Renzel Trail. The south end of this trail connects to other portions of the Bay Trail in the city of Mountain View.

Another section of the Bay Trail is the southerly portion of the San Francisquito Creek Trail. The Bay Trail heads of to the northeast after crossing the creek with a bridge. The Bay Trail skirts along the west side of Baylands Preserve and crosses Bay Road. From this point you can head out to Cooley Landing to the northeast or continue on the trail around Ravenswood Open Space Preserve. There are plans to have the Bay Trail connect with other trail sections to the north of Ravenswood Open Space Preserve, but for now there is no way to connect directly to those trails.

Bay Trail in Redwood Shores Neighborhood, Foster City, San Mateo and Burlingame

There are several trails in these communities that are part of the Bay Trail system. There is a paved trail that runs around the perimeter of the Redwood Shores Neighborhood of Redwood City. The paved path starts on the south end just north of San Carlos Airport at the end of Twin Dolphin Drive. From here it heads north along the shores of Steinberger Slough past Mariner Park. This section of the trail ends near Shore Dogs Park, but it is a short ride along Radio Road to connect to the next section of trail.

At the east end of the Redwood Shores neighborhood, there are several intersecting trails that are all considered part of the Bay Trail system. You can take any of these trails to get to the north side of the neighborhood and take the Bay Trail to the south east along Belmont Slough. Near the west end of the slough, there is a bridge to connect to the next section of the Bay Trail that wraps around the Foster City peninsula. After Foster City, the trail heads along the shoreline to Coyote Point Recreation Area. There are a couple more sections of the Bay Trail that take you along the bay shore as far as the San Francisco Airport.

Adobe Creek Loop Trail

The Adobe Creek Loop Trail is a 4.5-mile long paved and unpaved trail that loops around Palo Alto Bayland Park along the waterfront of San Francisco Bay. The trail starts and stops at the E. Bayshore Road on the east side of Highway 101, and you can make a continuous loop by traveling along the Renzel Trail.

The northern end of the Adobe Creek Loop Trail at Highway 101 is located approximately 0.6 miles south of the interchange of Highway 101 and Oregon Avenue. The southern end of the loop on Highway 101 is accessible from W Bayshore Drive on the south side of the freeway. The access trail goes under the freeway from this location.

San Francisquito Creek Trail

The San Francisquito Creek Trail is a 3-mile long paved and unpaved trail that starts and E. Bayshore Drive near Laura Lane. It follows the creek as it passes the Baylands Athletic Center and then goes around the north border of Palo Alto Golf Course then kicks back to the south and goes out to Lucy Evans Baylands Nature Preserve at the end of Embarcadero Road. The 0.9 mile long western portion of the San Francisquito Bay Trail is included in the Bay Trail system of trails. The Bay Trail heads to the northwest when the San Fransiquito Trail takes a bend to the northeast.

This area is a good location for viewing the natural environment along the shores of San Francisco Bay. 

Sand Hill Road Trail

Sand Hill Road travels along the northwest side of the Standford University Campus. There is a paved path that runs adjacent to the roadway for approximately 3 miles. This trail is located on the south side of the road in some sections and on the north side in other sections. The trails extend from Interstate 280 to El Camino Real. 

Bayfront Expressway Bike Path

The Bayfront Expressway is a portion of Route 84 that leads to the Dunbarton Bridge, the most southerly bridge that goes over San Francisco Bay. The bridge takes you to the cities of Newark and Fremont on the east side of the bay.

There is a paved path that follows alongside the expressway for about 3.5 miles. The west end of the trail is at Marsh Road on the north side of the expressway. At Willow Road the trail switches to the south side of the expressway. At this point there is also a junction with the paved pathway that encompases the Facebook campus. 

At the start of the Dunbarton Bridge there is a place where you can connect to the bike trail that runs adjacent to the roadway along the bridge. The Bayfront Expressway Trail and the bike trail on Dunbarton Bridge are considered to be part of the Bay Trail system.

Foster City Levee Pedway

Foster City is located on a peninsula on San Francisco Bay, just north of Redwood City. This peninsula has several recreational trails, including a long section of the Bay Trail that wraps around the bay side perimeter of the city. Seal Slough winds through the heart of the peninsula and along the north shore is the 2.75-mile long paved Foster City Levee Pedway. This pathway travels between residential neighborhoods and the shoreline.

The south end of the Foster City Levee Pedway is at the end of La Selva Street, just north of Highway 101. From here the trail makes a tight loop and there is a junction with a paved trail that heads off to the east along the O'Neill Slough. You can connect to the Bay Trail from the O'Neill Slough Trail. The Foster City Levee Pedway goes to the northwest from this junction.

The trail goes under E. Hillsdale Boulevard and takes a couple more loops to a point just north of J. Arthur Younger Freeway, Route 92 and adjacent to Fashion Island Boulevard. From this point, a more narrow paved path continues along the waterfront for another half mile.

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Resources

Following are links to official off-site resources to find out more details about the recreational trails in the area of Palo Alto, California.