Lace up your hiking boots. We’ve compiled a curated hiking guide for the Sacramento area with nine trails and routes to help you plan your next adventure.
Note: Before heading out, we recommend checking park websites for further info, current trail conditions, and safest practices for the area.
Key: Easy = 🥾| Moderate = 🥾🥾 | Hard = 🥾🥾🥾
Sacramento
Sacramento Waterfront Trail, Broadway + Marina View Dr
- Difficulty: 🥾
- Length: ~9 miles
- Pet friendly: Yes, on leash
- Wheelchair accessible: No
- Parking fee: None
Enjoy this river promenade with views of downtown, Old Sacramento, and the occasional sea lion. We personally love this trail for its great sunsets + the fact you can wander over the Tower Bridge.
Jedidiah Smith Memorial Trail, multiple access points
- Difficulty: 🥾
- Length: ~32 miles
- Pet friendly: Yes, on leash
- Wheelchair accessible: Portions
- Parking fee: $7-$28
Whether you start in Discovery Park or in Folsom, this is one of the more breathtaking (and breathtakingly easy) trails to access in the region. There’s also no need to walk the whole thing — jump on and off the paved path whenever you’d like (we personally recommend the stretch near the American River Parkway).
Folsom
Lake Natoma Loop Trail, multiple access points
- Difficulty: 🥾
- Length: ~11.5 miles
- Pet friendly: Yes, on leash
- Wheelchair accessible: Yes
- Parking fee: $10
Oak woodlands, relics of Gold Rush history, and wildlife-rich marshes abound at this paved trail located in the Folsom Lake State Recreation Area. Pro tip: Watch the water as you walk — you might just see a family of river otters.
Carmichael
Effie Yeaw Nature Loop Trail, 2850 San Lorenzo Way
- Difficulty: 🥾
- Length: ~1.6 miles
- Pet friendly: No
- Wheelchair accessible: Yes
- Parking fee: $5
This brief path — which runs along the American River — is one of the very best places to observe Sacramento’s wildlife, like turkeys, woodpeckers, and deer. Keep an eye out for interpretive signs about the river’s ecosystem + the life of the indigenous Nisenan people who once called the area home.
Auburn
Hidden Falls Trail, 7587 Mears Pl.
- Difficulty: 🥾
- Length: ~3.2 miles
- Pet friendly: Yes, on leash
- Wheelchair accessible: No
- Parking fee: varies
You can go chasing waterfalls at this popular + straightforward hike in Placer County. With its tranquil sights and sounds, the trail is generally considered perfect for families — just know that reservations are required for entry on weekends and on certain high-usage dates.
Quarry Road Trail, 150 Highway 193
- Difficulty: 🥾🥾
- Length: ~11.2
- Pet friendly: Yes, on leash
- Wheelchair accessible: No
- Parking fee: $10
This wide dirt path chases the majestic Middle Fork of the American River and features sheer limestone rock faces, and passes a cave known for its paleontological excavations. The path is perfect for trail runners or those wanting a moderate hike in the Sierra foothills.
Sloughhouse
Deer Creek Hills Preserve Trails, Scott Road + Stonehouse Road
- Difficulty: 🥾
- Length: Varies by tour
- Pet friendly: No
- Wheelchair accessible: No
- Parking fee: None
Seasonal creeks + wildflowers are true sights to behold at this rolling nature preserve in Sloughhouse. Here, you can enjoy self-guided hikes and docent-led tours, but you must pre-register.
The preserve is usually open for public hiking on Saturdays, 9 a.m.-1 p.m., February-May and October-November. Entry is free, but a $10 donation is recommended.
Winters
Stebbins Cold Canyon — UC Davis Natural Reserves, 24875 Highway 128
- Difficulty: 🥾🥾🥾
- Length: Varies
- Pet friendly: No
- Wheelchair accessible: No
- Parking fee: None
Choose between four beautiful hikes in an inland canyon of the Northern Inner California Coast Ranges. If the ~1,200-ft elevation and rocky scramble on the mountain’s ridge sounds like too much, hikers have the option to do a two-mile loop to the Old Homestead site instead. Pro tip: If you do make it to the top, be sure to look out and over at the serene Lake Berryessa.
Pilot Hill
Magnolia Ranch Trail, Coloma Road
- Difficulty: 🥾🥾
- Length: ~2.5 miles
- Pet friendly: Yes, on leash
- Wheelchair accessible: No
- Parking fee: None
Along Highway 49 with access to the American River, this easy-to-moderate looping trail provides scenic views of oak woodlands + rolling hills. Other great treks, like the Cronan Ranch Trailhead, are easy to access from this hike if you decide you want to take in the vistas for just a bit longer.
Get the right gear
Get the most out of your trip with comfortable, handy, and helpful hiking gear:
- For the best footwear, check out Nordstrom Rack’s sneaker edit for hiking.
- If your trail demands a proper hiking boot, we like Columbia’s collection on Amazon.
- Travel light (but still have room for snacks) with lululemon’s Everywhere Belt Bag.
- Get a good bulk deal on Perfect Bars, Clif Bars, or Kind Bars at a warehouse store like Sam’s Club.
- Don’t forget to bring a compact, portable phone charger (you’ll thank us later).
- We like this Teton hiking backpack.
- We like this lightweight water bottle.
- Psst — to be ultra-prepared, here are the 10 items you should never enter a national park without, according to the National Park Service.
