Long Ridge Open Space Preserve Description & Information

Long Ridge Open Space Preserve

Spring Summer Fall Winter

Bay Area Ridge Trail, looking north, Long Ridge Open Space Preserve, March 2009 (Jennifer Rycenga)

Description

Area Habitats
Mixed Woodland, Grassland

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This Open Space Preserve is located primarily in San Mateo county, but the south east edges are in Santa Cruz county. Long Ridge OSP has some of the highest elevations in San Mateo County, above 2500 feet near Skyline Boulevard. Despite its mix of habitats, it is not well-explored among birders. Unusual county birds that might be found here include Cassin's Vireo, Chipping Sparrow, and Lazuli Bunting (all summer). Raptors spotted here have included Golden Eagle, Peregrine Falcon, Merlin and Osprey, in addition to expected birds like Red-tailed Hawk, Turkey Vulture and White-tailed Kite.
Some of the best birding in the park occurs along Peters Creek Trail, easily reached from the Grizzly Flat parking area. The creek is sometimes visible, and at other times hidden within the small marshy areas it spawns. Both residents and migrants congregate in these areas. The Long Ridge Trail, in its northern portions, features dark forested trails; these are visually beautiful but not very birdy. The Bay Area Ridge Trail runs through the preserve, and its open grassland habitat presents an open sky for raptors. However, its proximity to Skyline Boulevard can disrupt your communion with nature, especially on the weekends when large flocks of motorcycles roar past. The Bay Area Ridge Trail runs north through Long Ridge to Skyline Open Space Preserve.
To use the language of Wikipedia, this description is a stub! We need further visits from more birders to construct a full idea of what is possible in this park. The southwestern trails in the preserve, such as the Ranch Springs Trail and School Road, could hold interesting breeding birds. If you have knowledge of these trails and their avian life, please consider revising this article.

Look For These Birds

Mallard, Ring-necked Duck, California Quail, Wild Turkey (fairly common here), Pied-billed Grebe, Band-tailed Pigeon, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Mourning Dove, White-throated Swift, Vaux's Swift, Black Swift (rare, migration), Anna's Hummingbird, Allen's Hummingbird, American Coot, Double-crested Cormorant, Great Blue Heron, Turkey Vulture, Osprey, White-tailed Kite, Cooper's Hawk, Golden Eagle, Red-tailed Hawk, Red-shouldered Hawk, Barn Owl (rare at this location), Western Screech-Owl, Great Horned Owl, Northern Pygmy-Owl, Northern Saw-whet Owl, Belted Kingfisher, Red-breasted Sapsucker, Acorn Woodpecker, Nuttall's Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, Hairy Woodpecker, Pileated Woodpecker (uncommon), Northern Flicker, American Kestrel, Merlin, Peregrine Falcon, Olive-sided Flycatcher, Pacific-slope Flycatcher, Ash-throated Flycatcher, Black Phoebe, Say's Phoebe, Warbling Vireo, Cassin's Vireo, Hutton's Vireo, Steller's Jay, California Scrub-Jay, Common Raven, American Crow (uncommon at this location), Chestnut-backed Chickadee, Oak Titmouse, Barn Swallow, Violet-green Swallow, Cliff Swallow, Tree Swallow, Bushtit, Wrentit, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Red-breasted Nuthatch, White-breasted Nuthatch, Pygmy Nuthatch, Brown Creeper, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Bewick's Wren, House Wren, Pacific Wren, Marsh Wren (rare at this location), European Starling (mercifully rare), California Thrasher, Western Bluebird, Swainson's Thrush, Hermit Thrush, American Robin, Varied Thrush, Cedar Waxwing, Purple Finch, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Pine Siskin, Red Crossbill, Fox Sparrow, Dark-eyed Junco, White-crowned Sparrow, Golden-crowned Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Spotted Towhee, California Towhee, Red-winged Blackbird, Bullock's Oriole, Orange-crowned Warbler, Yellow Warbler, Yellow-rumped Warbler (includes small number of breeders), Black-throated Gray Warbler, Townsend's Warbler, Hermit Warbler, Wilson's Warbler, Western Tanager, Black-headed Grosbeak, Lazuli Bunting

Rarities Seen Here

In this guide, "rarities" are defined as those species given an County Abundance Code of 4, 5, or 6.
California Condor (2004), Common Poorwill, Chipping Sparrow (2004, 2016), White-throated Sparrow, Indigo Bunting (1999, 2000, 2019), Evening Grosbeak,

Directions

Long Ridge Open Space Preserve is located on the west side of SR 35, Skyline Boulevard. Situated between Page Mill Road and SR9, the principal parking for Long Ridge OSP is directly across from the Grizzly Flats Parking for Upper Steven's Creek County Park (Santa Clara).

Interactive Map

Red Markers: Parking Area or Trail Head
Hover mouse pointer over marker, or click marker, for pin identification.
Use + or - buttons to change map zoom. Click & Drag to pan.

Fees

There are no fees connected with Long Ridge OSP.

Hours

The Preserve officially closes a half-hour after sunset.

Hazards

This is Mountain Lion country; of course, you are not at all likely to see one, but it is better to be aware in order to be wary. There are ticks and poison oak, too. Mountain bikers use these trails, even the narrow ones, so stay alert.

Facilities

There are no facilities; the nearest rest rooms are at Skyline and Russian Ridge OSPs. There are no nearby stores or restaurants either. Plan ahead for your trip to Long Ridge OSP!

Accessibility

Accessibility information is currently not available for this location.

Contact

The Midpeninsula Region Open Space District can be contacted at 650-691-1200 during regular business hours. The 24-hour dispatch number for an MROSD ranger is 650-968-4411.

Avian Research Status

Your sightings are needed for Long Ridge OSP in eBird! There are two hotspots for this massive park: Long Ridge OSP (SM Co.) and Long Ridge OSP--Ranch Spring Trail. There are some sections of the park, to the south and west, in Santa Cruz county with hotspots of their own; eBird functions more effectively by keeping county lines clear. The San Mateo hotspots in eBird have data in 24 of 48 calendar quadrants, accounting for eighty-eight species.

The iNaturalist place marker for Long Ridge OSP could use some more lengthy and detailed visits. This location has some unusual butterfly species to motivate your search.