Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Trip 66
HIGHWAY 1 TO VICENTE FLAT
LENGTH AND TYPE: 5.3-mile out-and-back or 7.7-mile point-to-point
RATING: Strenuous
TRAIL CONDITION: Clear, poison oak
HIGHLIGHTS: Climb from golden coastal bluffs to Vicente Flat Camp, nestled beneath ancient redwoods
along Hare Creek.
TO REACH THE TRAILHEAD:
The trailhead is on the east side of Highway 1, across the
street from Kirk Creek Campground, 36 miles north of Hearst Castle, 41 miles north of
Cambria, 38 miles south of Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park, and 54 miles south of Carmel.
There are no facilities or water at the trailhead. If you're bound for Cone Peak Road
and plan to use a shuttle vehicle, be aware that the road is closed during the wet season
(November through April). See
TRIP 64 Vicente Flat Trail
for more information.
TRIP SUMMARY:
You can approach this primarily uphill route as either a scenic day
hike or an out-and-back overnight. Or you can use Vicente Flat as a base camp for
grander tours of the wilderness via the Stone Ridge, Gamboa, and Cone Peak Trails. If
you can arrange a shuttle vehicle, consider the route from Cone Peak Road to Highway
1, which is virtually all downhill (see
TRIP 64 Vicente Flat Trail
)
.
From Highway 1, this route ascends nearly 2000 feet above the wave-swept coast.
Bare golden terraces allow dramatic coastal and canyon vistas as the trail climbs pas-
toral hilltops into redwood-lined Hare Creek. Vicente Flat offers sites amid old-growth
trees and atop a sun-drenched meadow.
Spring welcomes a profusion of wildflowers to the otherwise golden slopes.
Watch for the rare and fragile orchid-like chocolate lily, which blooms along the lower
portion of the trail. In wet months Hare Creek abounds with life. American dippers
dive for food or bob along the banks, while California newts slither slowly to the wa-
ter. Red, orange, yellow, and purple fungi emerge from the damp forest floor, and lush
ferns, mosses, and horsetails thrive in the verdant canyon.
