Bay Area's Best Stairway Walks

We all know we should take the stairs. And that's just about the best idea ever when it comes to the Bay Area's great urban hikes ... with stairways! From San Francisco to the South Bay, here are three stairway walks that are simply wander-ful.

Week: 06.14.2018
Regions: Northern CA

America's Best Urban Hike

Hike San Francisco's Grand Walk, Sutro Baths to Crissy Field

Woman walking down the stairs overlooking the ocean on the Coastal Trail in San Francisco
People walking th labyrinth in San Francisco near Mile Rock Beach
Many years ago we dubbed it the “Grand Walk” and said it was one of the most scenic and stunning trails in the West. We were wrong. This is the most scenic urban hike in America!
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Top 10 Viewpoints

Top 10 Viewpoints in the Santa Cruz Mountains

In the Bay Area we pride ourselves on seeking new points of view. But how about seeking out the best points of view?! Yep, our friends at Peninsula Open Space Trust have done it again, creating a complimentary downloadable guide to the very best vistas in the Peninsula and South
Visit our sponsor Peninsula Open Space Trust

Will You Accept This Rose?

Berkeley Stairway Hike and Rose Garden

Walker going through Berkeley Rose Garden
Person walking a path in the Berkeley Rose Garden
Sign for Berkeley Rose Garden
Berkeley Rose Garden
Not every rose ceremony comes with a kiss or tears. Take the Berkeley Rose Garden, the centerpiece and starting point for a colorful urban walk with hidden staircases. Instead of tears, you get tiers: the roses here burst forth in brilliance with 1,500 individual rose bushes
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Stairways to Santa Cruz

Explore Santa Cruz by taking its mural and mosaic stairways

Golden beaches, beautiful Pacific views, and famous surf … don’t just take the famous boardwalk to see Santa Cruz: Take the stairs! This 2.6-mile urban hike features four cool stairways through Santa Cruz’s lively downtown and beautiful neighborhoods—rich with history.
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Trending Stories NorCal

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  1. Aloha from California

    Say Aloha without leaving California with a 7-mile out-and-back hiking adventure to Lake Aloha in El Dorado National Forest. You can also camp here, a premier place for stargazing.

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  2. Sequoia Re-opens Crystal Cave

    Step inside Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park's hidden world by visiting the newly re-opened Crystal Cave—the only cave in the parks open to the public. Closed for four years, this rare marble karst cavern is welcoming visitors once again, but only through the summer season!

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  3. Easiest Best Hike in the World

    Choose the easiest and most view-rewarding hike in Yosemite. Okay, we’ll go first: the combination of hiking to Sentinel Dome and Taft Point. Both of these lookouts are within a couple miles of each other on Glacier Point Road

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  4. Hiker in the forest at Mount Sutro in San Francisco

    San Francisco's Middle Earth

    No need to travel to New Zealand to visit Middle Earth. San Francisco’s Mount Sutro Open Space is practically Hobbiton—a hidden “shire” in the middle of the city. Okay, maybe not quite as magical, but still an incredible place to take a hike in city limits.

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Trending Stories SoCal

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  1. Can't Top This

    San Francisco’s Presidio was already a fantastic place to hang out for the afternoon, a beautiful site within the largest urban national park in the United States (the Golden Gate National Recreation Area). And Presidio Tunnel Tops is like a cherry on top. Make that two cherries on top, with the newly opened (July 2025) Outpost Meadow, a 1.5-acre green space located at Old Mason Street across from the Crissy Field Marsh in the Presidio.

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  2. Underground Garden

    Looking to escape the summer heat? Head to Fresno and discover its cool secret: the Forestiere Underground Gardens–an enchanting garden and architecture oasis like no other.

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  3. Volcanic Activity

    Northern California is home to one of the most unique ecosystems in the country: Lassen Volcanic National Park. The region features geothermal areas, including the largest dome volcano in the world, Lassen Peak. Hike to the top of this active volcano on a 5-mile out-and-back.  

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  4. Oh Ryan

    Sure, it’s those whimsical trees that give Joshua Tree National Park its marquee billing; but this beautiful landscape also has surrounding mountains and its night sky—one of the darkest in Southern California and designated an International Dark Sky Park. Joshua Tree has four allowable stargazing parking lots, and a newly opened haven for spending the night nearby...

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