Pescadero Marsh

My husband and I hiked this in June 2013, after the trails had been cut back a bit, so the walk was pleasant and relatively free of shoulder high weeds and brush. There is a lot of poison oak on the trail, but that is true of most California coast trails, especially those that are in chapparel terrain. We accessed the trailhead from the northern parking lot (not the one at the intersection of Highway1 and the road into Pescadero). The parking fee was $ 8. From the trailhead, you get a short but diverse look at a LOT of beautiful coastal marshland, flowers, succulents, chapparal and sand. Be really careful of the poison oak. (there are about a hand ful of signs that remind you of the same thing + pictures of nettle, too!) I would recommend long pants or high socks. This is single track hiking, but nothing strenuous and the entire 3 miles has only a 200 feet of elevation gain. Plan for at least 1.5 hours for a leisurely walk with photo ops and bird watching.
It is cool to note that this marsh trail is set up very well with clear paths and lots of signs. In relation to other hikes along Highway 1, I’ve been everywhere between Half Moon Bay to Carmel, there are points of interest signs, boards that talk about species that are native to the marsh (steelhead access the ocean from this area), blue heron nest in the eucalyptus across the marsh, and red-​legged frogs, puddle ducks, and turtles wander about these parts. This is better than some other park areas that have a visitor center and you take a pamphlet for a self guided tour. With those, sometimes they run out of pamphlets and you’re stuck looking at a square pole with a number on it.. wondering what you’re supposed to look at.
You cannot really get lost here and there are little spots where you can sit and watch for animals. One really cool one is a windswept eucalyptus tree that is half immersed in the pond. The last vantage point is the end of the trail (1.6 miles in) and it is marked by a funny sun-​bleached sign and a bench where you can see the marsh back toward the ocean.
I was lucky enough to spot a few garter snakes, watch 2 — 3 blue heron fly into the tops of the trees to nest, enjoy both the marsh and the ocean surf in just about 1 hour. Most times I pass by here, the weather is a little foggy and cooler than other spots along Highway 1. It can get muggy and warm because of the marsh, so there are a lot of little gnat like bugs that swarm around the wetter areas.

This marsh offers a beautiful hike with plenty of breathtaking photo opportunities. Only, two things:
— Entrance is hard to get to. No parking (that I could see) on the same side, so you have to park on the opposite side of the highway and run across when there is a gap in oncoming cars. You can, however, walk over from the beach where there is a connecting strip but it’s a little confusing as far as how to get there.
— Path is overgrown with poison oak. I also encountered a hornets’ nest. thank goodness they weren’t too active at the time. Be very cautious of where you step!
I’d recommend for anyone nearby to take a look. And to be careful ;)

I came here to hike their trails based on it being being written about in multiple San Francisco Bay Area hiking guide books. It had pretty nice surrounding scenery being near the ocean, with a marsh and mountain background. There was also a nice bench to relax and even nap on, a plus for me. The thing I didn’t care for is, compared to majority of other trails I hiked, there was many parts that are overgrown and therefore have to deal with these excess shrubs.
According to one book, there are two sets of trails that can total up to six miles of hiking. Unfortunately they are not connected and involve two different access points. One is reached from the main Pescadero State Beach parking lot and a something length (maybe near quarter of a mile) along Highway 1. The other is reached from Pescadero Creek Road. I haven’t tried that one that but may next time, hopefully it’s better because I assume it would not involve as much walking along the highway.