Lots of wildflowers on view in Foothills Nature Preserve

Last Saturday we hiked the 7+ miles Los Trancos trail at Foothills Nature Preserve, starting at the Interpretive Center.

This is the longest trail in the preserve, passing through multiple plant communities. It has scenic views over the northern part of Foothills preserve, as well as Los Trancos Woods and the open space preserves along Skyline.

We saw a number of wildflowers, including Henderson’s shooting star, giant trillium, Pacific hound’s tongue, checker mallow, warrior’s plume, and California poppies.

Despite passing two “newt crossing” signs, we didn’t see a newt on the road or on the trail. We did, however, spot several banana slugs!

Photos by Frances Freyberg (c) 2025