SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA SECRETS: China Camp State Park

In my lifetime of hiking in the Bay Area, I somehow missed China Camp State Park, on the bay side of San Rafael close to the San Rafael bridge. Not only is it a great find for me, but it is the most convenient hiking spot in Marin County for East Bay residents.

The blurb on the park website says, " the park's ridge separates the 1890s from the 21st century. While the view south has changed immeasurably, the view down to China Camp on San Pablo Bay is almost exactly what it was in the early 1900s."

So true. The area was a thriving Chinese shrimp fishing village from the 1870s through approximately the 1930s. Some of the buildings still survive and there is an interpretative exhibit in one of them. Here are some photos of the village area:


In addition to the village there are 1500 acres of open space, laced with hiking and mountain biking trails. The trail that I took -- the Shoreline Trail -- is not a shoreline trail at all, but a view of the shoreline. It was an easy six miles in mostly shade following the ridge above the shoreline. Great walk for a break in woods. Here are some photos: