We have a Bay Area Ridge Trail and a Bay Trail. How about another trail that would loop around San Francisco; another connected network of paths with the letter B in the name? I propose the Bay Area Barn Trail, long stretches of trail with a pretty barn to look at every 50 miles or so. And Burleigh Murray Ranch State Park is a shoo-in candidate.
     The park, of about 1300 acres, was donated by the Murray family to the state in 1979. The Murrays had used the land as a dairy ranch for over a century, and rusting farm equipment still sits idly near the large old barn. It's an unusual state park, with practically nothing in the way of facilities, and no entrance or parking fees. A broad dirt road serves as a trail for the mile from the parking lot to the barn, then a small, poorly-maintained trail breaks off and heads east, diminishing in quality until it runs out of steam altogether on its way up the hill. Eventually it is hoped that a real trail will wind all the way up to Skyline Boulevard, and Burleigh Murray may rival Purisima Creek Redwoods Open Space Preserve for access from the flat farmland near Half Moon Bay to the top of the Santa Cruz Mountains. Until then the main highlights are the barn and the surprising quiet of the valley. The park's small size and tame nature make it attractive to families and older folks.
     Years of ranching have disturbed the vegetation, resulting in a mixture of exotic vegetation and native plants. Poison oak and stinging nettles are extensive, but there's also lots of attractive twinberry and edible blackberries and thimbleberries. Eucalyptus and alder are the dominant tree. Spring wildflowers lean toward the weedy side, with plenty of thistles and unglamorous blooms such as salisfy, birdsfoot lotus, and bellardia.
     At the trailhead, the information signboard recaps the history of the park, and indicates the route to the barn, a wide fire road through the valley. Practically flat, the trail (called Ranch Road on the map) spends most of its time running along Mills Creek. Once through a small meadow, the slope on the right side of the trail becomes a tangle of plants, including blackberries, poison oak, ceanothus, stinging nettles, and twinberry. In spring, you might see beeplant and yellow lupine. On the left side of the trail fennel, cow parsnip, and coyote brush give way to red alders and willows lining the creek, and past that, rolling hills of grassland and chaparral. Sporadic groves of large eucalyptus trees tower above the trail. On breezy days they creak in the wind like a bunch of haunted house soundtracks. Poison oak is one of the dominate understory plants, climbing up trunks of the trees and holding court in large clumps along the creek. Several bridges cross over Mills Creek as the trail meanders through this riparian corridor. Under the shade of the eucalyptus trees, look for nightshade, creambush, and currant. At 0.90 mile a picnic bench sits near a portable toilet.
        At a bend in the trail a road breaks off to the northeast, at 0.98 mile. Stay to the left. A sign on the spur road warns of a firing range ahead. It's every hiker's dream, right, to stroll to the accompaniment of the stimulating sound of gunfire! According to the map at the trailhead, the firing range is open to law enforcement officers only, which is a bit of a conciliation, somehow. The range was quiet when I was there, but if you are disturbed by the presence of guns and gunfire, you may want to head back to your car if the range is open on the day of your visit. Keep to the left on a path as the road continues straight to the employee residence, cross the bridge, and the barn comes into view on the left at 1.07 miles.
      The trail, such as it is, continues to the right just past the bridge (there's no sign). Near the barn there is an information signboard with a map of the grounds in their glory days. You can walk close to the barn, but you can't go inside (if you've ever been inside an old barn, you may be glad to stay outside). I love the stone work around here, including the wall behind the barn. It's a nice, quiet, cool place for lunch (there's a picnic table). When you've had your fill of the barn, retrace your steps to the parking area. (Adventurous souls can continue hiking on the path along Mills Creek, where it curves right just past the final bridge. When I gave it a try, the path was choked with stinging nettles, tall grass, and blackberry brambles. This is not a good trail for anyone phobic of snakes. If you visit and the trail has recently been brushed, you can hike uphill as far as the water tanks, another 3/4 of a mile or so. Past that the trail is currently unmaintained.)

Total distance:  2.14 miles
Last hiked:  Tuesday, May 15, 2001


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