Woodside Store (Historic Site) – Pulgas Water Temple loop from College of San Mateo

Bike touring routes & trails

Woodside Store (Historic Site) – Pulgas Water Temple loop from College of San Mateo

Hard

4.8

(4355)

13,427

riders

Woodside Store (Historic Site) – Pulgas Water Temple loop from College of San Mateo

03:18

52.7km

590m

Cycling

Hard bike ride. Very good fitness required. Mostly paved surfaces. Suitable for all skill levels. The starting point of the route is right next to a parking lot.

Last updated: August 20, 2026

Tips

Your route passes through a protected area

Please check local regulations for:

Wunderlich County Park

Waypoints

Start point

Parking

Get Directions

5.05 km

Sawyer Camp Recreation Trail

Highlight • Trail

See komoot.de/highlight/172571
The 15-mile Crystal Springs Regional Trail is one of the best mostly paved bike trails with few cars in the Bay Area. It spans from San Bruno to Woodside and is routed along three gorgeous lakes and connector links amid riparian woodlands. On Sundays, you can combine the San Andreas and Sawyer Camp segments to south of Highway 92 to Cañada Road, which is closed to cars for Bicycle Sundays (See komoot.de/tour/11413421 ).
Speed limit: 15 mph, difficult for high-end road bikes to stay below; hikers: please don't stand and talk in the center of the trail.

San Andreas segment: From Skyline Boulevard south of San Bruno Avenue the trail drops to the head of San Andreas Lake, with pretty views across to the west of the wilderness slope of Montara Mountain. It rides along the lake 2 miles to an access point near Larkspur and 0.6 miles to another (at Hillcrest) where it connects to the Sawyer Camp segment.
Sawyer Camp segment: This is a gorgeous, easy bike ride, where you drop 400 feet over the span of 6 miles to Crystal Springs Dam. The route descends into riparian woodlands for 2.5 miles to Jepson Laurel picnic grounds, then runs along Crystal Springs Reservoir for 5.2 miles. You can continue another 1.7 miles to Cañada Road for Bicycle Sunday (no cars).
Cañada Road/Crystal Springs segment: South along Upper Crystal Springs Reservoir for 2.1 miles to the Pulgas Water Temple. It continues another 2.1 miles past Filoli Botanical Center and Phleger Estate to Edgewood Road
- sfgate.com/outdoors/sundaydrive/article/Crystal-Springs-Trail-links-lakes-woodlands-4723374.php
- parks.smcgov.org/crystal-springs-regional-trail

Tip by

9.52 km

View of Upper Crystal Springs Reservoir

Highlight • Lake

There are a handful of trails here which treat you to views of the foothills across the reservoir. Upper Crystal Springs Reservoir provides water to the San Francisco Peninsula, and you can bike along its entire eastern shoreline.

Tip by

11.4 km

Upper Crystal Springs Reservoir

Highlight • Lake

Crystal Springs Reservoir, nestled in the northern Santa Cruz Mountains, consists of two artificial lakes formed along the San Andreas Fault and is ideal for hiking and wildlife viewing. Originally named Laguna Grande, the southern lake was submerged to create Upper Crystal Springs Reservoir in 1877, while Lower Crystal Springs Reservoir was formed by the construction of Crystal Springs Dam in 1888. Although no water activities are allowed, visitors can enjoy the reservoir’s natural setting and spot local wildlife, including bald eagles.

Tip by

21.1 km

Woodside

Highlight • Settlement

Woodside is a historic town-turned upscale community along the old wagon path from San Francisco to Santa Clara. The downtown is a great place to take a break from your ride and features a few quaint shops, a market, bakery, and outdoor seating.

Tip by

29.4 km

Woodside Store (Historic Site)

Highlight • Historical Site

Trails looping around and through the open air pioneer settlement museum. Even if inside displays should be closed it's interesting and some buildings have windows to peek through

Tip by

39.9 km

Pulgas Water Temple

Highlight • Monument

San Francisco built Pulgas Water Temple as a monument to the engineering marvel that brought Hetch Hetchy water more than 160 miles across California from Yosemite National Park in the Sierra Nevada Mountains to the Bay Area. The Hetch Hetchy Project took 24 years to build through the Great Depression at a cost of $102 million.
On October 28, 1934, the roar of Hetch Hetchy mountain water greeted everyone gathered at Pulgas Water Temple to celebrate its arrival. With vivid memories of the fire that had raged after the Great Earthquake of 1906, the city rejoiced in its new secure, plentiful supply of high quality drinking water. The frieze above the columns expresses the city’s relief: “I give waters in the wilderness and rivers in the desert, to give drink to my people.”
Pulgas Water Temple was designed in the Beaux Arts style by William Merchant, a San Francisco architect trained by Bernard Maybeck. Merchant’s design featured fluted columns and Corinthian capitals to reflect the architecture of ancient Greeks and Romans, whose engineering methods were used to build the new water system. Artist and master stone carver Albert Bernasconi brought Merchant’s drawings to life.
Pulgas Water Temple is located about one-half mile south of the Cañada Road trailhead.
Open free to bikers & pedestrians every day, car parking opens only M-F 9-4
sfwater.org/index.aspx?page=93
Biketrail with more highlights and annotated photos at komoot.com/tour/11413421

Tip by

47.4 km

Lower Crystal Springs Reservoir

Highlight • Lake

The 15-mile Crystal Springs Regional Trail is one of the best mostly paved bike trails with few cars in the Bay Area. It spans from San Bruno to Woodside and is routed along three gorgeous lakes and connector links amid riparian woodlands. On Sundays, you can combine the San Andreas and Sawyer Camp segments to south of Highway 92 to Cañada Road, which is closed to cars for Bicycle Sundays (See komoot.com/tour/11413421)
Speed limit: 15 mph, difficult for high-end road bikes to stay below, so bring a bell: some hikers stand and talk in the center of the trail ;-)
San Andreas segment: From Skyline Boulevard south of San Bruno Avenue the trail drops to the head of San Andreas Lake, with pretty views across to the west of the wilderness slope of Montara Mountain. It rides along the lake 2 miles to an access point near Larkspur and 0.6 miles to another (at Hillcrest) where it connects to the Sawyer Camp segment.
Sawyer Camp segment: This is a gorgeous, easy bike ride, where you drop 400 feet over the span of 6 miles to Crystal Springs Dam. The route descends into riparian woodlands for 2.5 miles to Jepson Laurel picnic grounds, then runs along Crystal Springs Reservoir for 5.2 miles. You can continue another 1.7 miles to Cañada Road for Bicycle Sunday (no cars).
Cañada Road/Crystal Springs segment: South along Upper Crystal Springs Reservoir for 2.1 miles to the Pulgas Water Temple. It continues another 2.1 miles past Filoli Botanical Center and Phleger Estate to Edgewood Road
sfgate.com/outdoors/sundaydrive/article/Crystal-Springs-Trail-links-lakes-woodlands-4723374.php
parks.smcgov.org/crystal-springs-regional-trail

Tip by

52.7 km

End point

Parking

Way Types & Surfaces

Way Types

35.5 km

7.40 km

7.05 km

2.68 km

152 m

< 100 m

Surfaces

49.0 km

3.44 km

287 m

Elevation

Nothing selected – click and drag below to see the stats for a specific part of the route.

Highest point (180 m)

Lowest point (40 m)

Weather

Today

Sunday 18 October

19°C

14°C

0 %

Additional weather tips

Max wind speed: 31.0 km/h

to get more detailed weather forecasts along your route

Comments

September 24, 2024,Many Busy Road Machines

They were all working like ants preparing for a long winter. Plenty hot, but not too. 2 days in a row turns out to be abusive to my reluctant body. Whatchagonnado?