3 min
Overview
Sweeping ridgelines and valley vistas are a hiker’s bread and butter, and at Henry W. Coe State Park, you will find these and more on a hike to Frog Lake. This start-high, stay-high hike begins at 2644 feet from the Coe Ranch Visitor Center, circling the park on a clockwise loop in the Diablo Range. Although Coe is known for its scorching temperatures in summer, the hike is surprisingly shady, rarely going more than a few hundred feet without it. Benches and picnic tables provide rest along the way, and yep, there are frogs and even fish in Frog Lake. View southeast from the Monument Trail Start your hike from the Coe Ranch Visitor Center, taking a moment to pop in. Beside the books, maps, and field guides, exhibits tell the story of the park and who we have to thank for its existence: Sada Coe Robinson, Henry W. Coe’s daughter. On August 15, 1953, Sada donated her family’s Pine Ridge Ranch to Santa Clara County. Born and raised in San Jose, Sada grew up helping her Dad at the ranch and managed it for a short time in the 1930’s with her husband, Charles Robinson. View of Santa Clara Valley and the Santa Cruz Mountains from the Ponderosa Trail Loop, an optional detour. Leaving the visitor center, hike north on East Dunne Avenue. In 275 feet, turn right onto Manzanita Point Road. At the top of road, bear left onto the dirt trail beside the gate—the Monument Trail. Ponderosa pines and live oak provide cool shade as you switchback to Pine Ridge, elevation 3,009 feet. Ridges and valleys in Henry Coe, as well as distant peaks in the Diablo Range, are visible. Weaving through the grassland, you can imagine how prized this land was for cattle ranching, with natural springs and open lands for grazing. At 0.5 miles, reach a four-way junction with the Ponderosa Trail. A left here leads to beautiful views of Santa Clara Valley and the Santa Cruz Mountains on the Ponderosa Loop Trail. A right turn will take you to the Henry Coe Monument. Staying straight leads to Frog Lake. Turn right and take the Ponderosa Trail east for
Trail Stats
8.7 km
320 m
912 m
719 m
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