C.R.E.A. Trail

C.R.E.A. Trail is a 5.8-mile out-and-back from Rhododendron North, including the Rhododendron Trail approach in both directions. Allow about four hours. The CREA spur climbs steeply through brush to a quiet hilltop grove; this is a good choice for a longer, less-used forest walk, but not for a dramatic overlook or an easy redwood stroll. The 1.8-mile figure sometimes listed for CREA describes the spur alone, and its distance convention is unclear. The 5.8 miles here is the complete walk from the pullout and back. Pets are not allowed on park trails; service animals are permitted.

Start at the Rhododendron North pullout on Newton B. Drury Scenic Parkway. Follow Rhododendron Trail through a lush canyon of old-growth redwoods, over a ridge, and down into a second canyon. There the narrow CREA spur turns uphill in steep switchbacks through mostly smaller redwoods and dense huckleberry that blocks much of the forest view. It levels near a small, quiet hilltop grove, then descends toward the Highway 101 side of the park, where traffic noise grows. Return the same way; the highway is not a trail entrance or exit.

The initials stand for California Real Estate Association. The spur was built in the early 1970s and originally reached East Ridge Road, a logging road on the ridge. The 101 bypass removed the road's southern half in 1990, leaving CREA as a dead-end spur. Ghost pipes and rattlesnake plantain have been recorded near the high point, though these seasonal plants are never guaranteed. Rhododendron blooms along the approach in mid-spring and early summer.