Local Lake Hikes

Lace up the hiking boots and hit the refresh button: the summer sizzle is on! Keep your cool with these lakeside hikes.

Week: 06.23.2016
Regions: Northern CA

Dam Tam!

Hiking Mount Tam's Alpine Lake

Hike in the Sierra without leaving the Bay Area! Well, at least it seems that way. The sparkling reservoirs on the north side of Mount Tamalpais offer miles of hiking trails and the kind of peaceful forest sensation that could be a stand-in for low elevation Sierra Nevada.
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A Taste of Hennessey

Hiking Hennessey Unit in Napa Valley

Napa’s liquid refreshment comes in more ways than wine, thanks to the Napa County Regional Park & Open Space District. Moore Creek Park is located just 30 minutes east of Napa’s great grapes, and rewards with a bounty of scenic countryside on a 6.5-mile loop hike bordering St. He
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Anza Bonanza

Hiking Lake Anza in East Bay

A hike that begins and ends at one of the most swimmable lakes in the East Bay? Now that’s the way to hit “Refresh”! Tilden Regional Park is the crown jewel of the East Bay Regional Parks, and Lake Anza is its summertime heartbeat. From the lake, connect a series of trails to mak
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Trending Stories NorCal

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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. This Is Paradise

    Granite mountain-scape, superb sunset views, crystal lakes, and shoreline campsites … the trip to Paradise Lake in Tahoe National Forest lives up to its idyllic name.

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  3. 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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  4. 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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  1. Hot As (Bumpass) Hell

    So you like going to all the hot spots when you visit places? Well, in Lassen Volcanic National Park there’s a place so hot it gets downright steamy. Bumpass Hell is the largest hydrothermal area in the park, with sputtering mud pots, sulfur vents, and boiling pools. It’s California’s Yellowstone. But it only opens in summer through fall.

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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. 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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  4. 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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