Directions at the top of the loop — cross Redwood Creek on Bridge Four and return down the Hillside Trail on the east slope.
This is the top of our loop — Bridge Four, the farthest point up the canyon we'll go today. Take a second here at the rail and look upstream, where the paved trail keeps going and the crowds thin out; the canyon runs on for miles past here, up toward the shoulder of Mount Tamalpais, on trails that climb clear to the ridge. That's a whole day's adventure for another time.
For us, this is the turn for home — and here's where to go. Cross Redwood Creek here on Bridge Four, over to the far side of the canyon. On the other bank you'll pick up the Hillside Trail, and we'll follow it back down the east slope toward the entrance. Fair warning, so it's not a surprise: the Hillside Trail is a bit more of a path than the paved boulevard we came up on — it climbs a little onto the side of the canyon, there are a few sets of steps, and the surface is dirt. Nothing hard, but watch your footing, especially if it's damp, which in here it usually is.
The reward is a completely different view of this forest. Coming up, we walked at the feet of the redwoods. Going back, we'll be up on the slope, looking down into the grove and across at the middle of these giants — a view most people never bother to get. Cross the bridge, turn to head back down-canyon on the Hillside Trail, and let's take the high road home.
Photo: Matthew Dillon from Hollywood, CA, USA · CC BY 2.0
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