Best backpacking trips near Santa Cruz, CA

Ranked by straight-line distance from Santa Cruz (population ~62,956) to each trip's trailhead. Drive times are rough estimates — mountain roads are slower than they look.

Santa Cruz backpacking at a glance

Sierra View Camp is the closest documented backpacking trip to Santa Cruz — the Coe Ranch Visitor Center trailhead sits roughly 33 miles away, about 36 minutes by car. Of the 12 closest routes, 12 are within a two-hour drive of town, spanning Henry W. Coe State Park, Ventana Wilderness and Los Padres backcountryTrailheads for these trips sit between 300 and 5,000 feet, so you can pick a low, warm-season start or a high alpine route depending on the month.

5 of these 12 routes need no wilderness permit — useful for spontaneous weekends. Across the twelve closest trips, the months hikers rate best are March, April, October.If you want the gentlest introduction, Sierra View Camp climbs only 250 feet over 1.6 miles; the biggest single-trip climb nearby is Pine Ridge Trail (Ventana Wilderness) at 4,700 feet of total gain over 22.3 miles.

#	Trip	Miles away	Est. drive	Distance	Gain	Difficulty	Permit
1	Sierra View Camp Henry W. Coe State Park	33 mi	~36 min	1.6 mi	250 ft	3	Required
2	Frog Lake Henry W. Coe State Park	33 mi	~36 min	4.7 mi	700 ft	14	Required
3	Madrone Soda Springs Henry W. Coe State Park	33 mi	~36 min	10 mi	1,680 ft	17	Required
4	Los Cruzeros Henry W. Coe State Park	33 mi	~36 min	11.5 mi	2,000 ft	18	Required
5	Willow Ridge Henry W. Coe State Park	33 mi	~36 min	14.2 mi	3,040 ft	22	Required
6	Poverty Flat Henry W. Coe State Park	33 mi	~36 min	9.4 mi	1,600 ft	31	Required
7	China Hole Henry W. Coe State Park	33 mi	~36 min	10.3 mi	1,640 ft	36	Required
8	Carmel River Trail Ventana Wilderness	45 mi	~50 min	13 mi	800 ft	22	None
9	Pine Ridge Trail (Ventana Wilderness) Ventana Wilderness	53 mi	~59 min	22.3 mi	4,700 ft	44	None
10	Pine Ridge Trail Los Padres backcountry	53 mi	~59 min	44.6 mi	—	55	None
11	Big Sur Trail Ventana Wilderness	56 mi	~62 min	8.5 mi	1,800 ft	20	None
12	Santa Lucia Trail Los Padres backcountry	59 mi	~66 min	29.2 mi	—	35	None

Three ways to start backpacking from Santa Cruz

Closest trailhead: Sierra View Camp — about 33 miles / 36 minutes from town.
Gentlest outing: Sierra View Camp — difficulty 3/100 (Easy), 1–1 days.
Biggest adventure: Pine Ridge Trail (Ventana Wilderness) — 22.3 miles and 4,700 ft of climbing.

Distances are great-circle miles from Santa Cruz to trailhead coordinates; actual road distances will be longer. Town data: Wikidata SPARQL (CC0), population values derived from U.S. Census Bureau estimates.

Backpacking near Santa Cruz: common questions

What is the closest backpacking trip to Santa Cruz?

Sierra View Camp is the closest documented trip to Santa Cruz at roughly 33 miles (about 36 minutes of driving) from the Coe Ranch Visitor Center trailhead.

Do I need a permit to backpack near Santa Cruz?

Many routes near Santa Cruz, including Sierra View Camp, require a wilderness permit from California State Parks (Henry W. Coe SP). Always check the managing agency before you go.

When is the best season to backpack near Santa Cruz?

For Sierra View Camp — the closest trip to Santa Cruz — the best months are February, March, April, October, November.