Pulgas Ridge Open Space Preserve is a public recreation area in the Santa Cruz Mountains

Santa Cruz Mountains

The Santa Cruz Mountains, part of the Pacific Coast Ranges, are a mountain range in central California, United States. They form a ridge along the San Francisco Peninsula, south of San Francisco, separating the Pacific Ocean from San Francisco Bay and the Santa Clara Valley, and continuing south,...

, San Mateo County in northern California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

. It is managed by the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District

Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District

The Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District is a special-purpose district that manages over of open space in 25 preserves in the San Francisco Bay Area. It includes parts of Santa Clara, San Mateo and Santa Cruz Counties. The District was created by voter initiative in 1972...

 (MROSD).

The nature reserve

Nature reserve

A nature reserve is a protected area of importance for wildlife, flora, fauna or features of geological or other special interest, which is reserved and managed for conservation and to provide special opportunities for study or research...

 covers 366 acres (1.5 km²) with 6 miles (9.7 km) of trails with elevation changes of around 500 feet (152.4 m). Trails provide views of San Francisco Bay

San Francisco Bay

San Francisco Bay is a shallow, productive estuary through which water draining from approximately forty percent of California, flowing in the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers from the Sierra Nevada mountains, enters the Pacific Ocean...

and undeveloped hillsides.

History

The 293 acres (1.2 km²) that now comprise Pulgas were formerly a tuberculosis sanitarium owned by the City of San Francisco. MROSD purchased the land in 1983. Buildings were demolished in 1985, and most of the non-native plants have been removed, but there are still some old retaining walls and steps off Hassler Trail.

Access

Pulgas Ridge Open Space Preserve is open from dawn to 1/2 hour after dusk. Dogs are permitted on leash, and off-leash at the large off-leash dog area. All trails are open to dogs, but leash rules apply except in the marked off-leash area. No bikes or horses.

External links

• Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District: Pulgas Ridge webpage - openspace.org