Summit Saturday East Slope Sonoma Mountain Trek
If you’re up for a challenge and love stunning views, this hike is for you! Join Sonoma Ecology Center docents, in partnership with Sonoma County Regional Parks and Sonoma County County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District (Sonoma County Ag + Open Space) for a scenic and invigorating hike, part of our “Summit Saturday” hiking series. This ~7.5-mile point-to-point trek (with approximately 800-ft ascent and 2650-ft descent) rewards hikers with sweeping vistas of Sonoma Valley and beyond. We will meet at Sonoma Developmental Center (find parking on Harney Street) promptly at 8:00 am, and will shuttle to the Eliot Property. Our hike begins on the East Slope Sonoma Mountain Ridge Trail, continuing on to the Sonoma Mountain Ridge Trail and Mountain Trail. Then, we will take Upper Fallen Bridge Trail to the orchard, detour to the Ancient Redwood tree, and then follow Fern Lake Trail to Carolyn Day Trail to a side trail to the Sonoma Developmental Center (near the corner of North & Walnut). We aim to finish our hike by 2:00 pm, allowing time for rest breaks and trail appreciation.
Please come prepared with:
—Sturdy hiking shoes for rocky terrain.
—Plenty of water (at least 64 oz).
—Sun protection and layered clothing.
—Lunch or trail snacks.
There are no parking fees.
About the Site: The Eliot Property is also known as “Buckeye Knob” for its beautiful, lush California buckeye outcropping along the start of the trail. Buckeye Knob, located on the east side of Sonoma Mountain, is privately-owned and forever-protected through a conservation easement donated to the Ag + Open Space District by the property owners. The 52-acre property is located on a highly visible, south-facing hillside and includes grassland, oak woodland, and the lush upper canyon of Carriger Creek. As noted by Glen Martin (Sonoma Magazine, March 2020), “Sonoma Mountain has been a working landscape since the first people filtered into the Sonoma Valley region 12,000 years ago. They hunted game and harvested acorns and pinole—native grass seed—from its slopes…Indigenous people periodically burned and cleared brush in oak groves and pruned the trees to maximize the acorn crop, the primary staple of their diet.”
“The mountain’s geographical prominence and natural abundance made it a regional cynosure for native people,” says Greg Sarris, the charmain of the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria and a professor of Native American Studies at Sonoma State University. A 50-acre parcel on the mountain was bought in the 1970s by Ted Eliot (a career U.S. diplomat) and Pat Eliot (who had worked as a teen at Jack London Ranch resort). They co-founded Sonoma Mountain Preservation in 1993 to help preserve the mountain’s landscape and expand public access. In 2004, they donated a conservation easement over the Eliot Property. The East Slope Sonoma Mountain Trail opened in 2015, adding another link to the Bay Area Ridge Trail.
There is no charge for this outing, which is made possible by the voters of Sonoma County who fund the work of Ag + Open Space with a quarter-cent sales tax.