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The Forest of Nisene Marks
State Park
SaveTheRedwoods.org/csp
Our MissionThe mission of California State Parks is to provide for the health, inspiration and education of the people of California by helping to preserve the state’s extraordinary biological diversity, protecting its most valued natural and cultural resources, and creating opportunities for high-quality outdoor recreation.
The Forest of Nisene Marks State ParkAptos Creek Road, off Soquel and State Park Drive, Aptos, CA 95003
(831) 763-7062
© 2012 California State Parks (Rev. 2016)
California State Parks supports equal access. Prior to arrival, visitors with disabilities who need assistance should contact the park at (831) 763-7062. If you need this publication in an alternate format, contact [email protected].
CALIFORNIA STATE PARKSP.O. Box 942896
Sacramento, CA 94296-0001For information call: (800) 777-0369
(916) 653-6995, outside the U.S. 711, TTY relay service
www.parks.ca.gov
Nearly ten thousand
acres of forest offer
a hushed oasis with
panoramic ocean views
from its hilltops.
PARK HISTORY
The local first people were the Costanoans (now known as Ohlone). The native people harvested resources on the edges of the forest, but little evidence exists that they ever lived among these deep redwoods. Two Mexican land grants to the Castro family in 1833 and 1844 partially form the boundaries of today’s park.
Shortly after California became a state in 1850, loggers built wooden skids and used oxen teams to drag smaller harvested trees for “split stuff” and tanbark. The forest’s more reachable redwoods were milled
during the Gold Rush building boom, but lumber interests found the steep canyons
impenetrable for logging giant redwoods.
In 1880, however, the Southern Pacific Railway (SP) arrived in nearby Monterey. SP financed the purchase of tree-filled Upper Aptos Canyon, the Loma Prieta Lumber Company, and the Loma Prieta Railway.
Chinese laborers cut and graded the rail line seven miles up the canyon. By 1883, standard-gauge railway tracks had been built to haul the huge redwood logs to mills.
he serene trails within The Forest of Nisene Marks State Park give scant hint of the redwood forest’s turbulent natural and human history. For centuries, the jagged terrain of these 10,000 acres saved the original trees from loggers and settlers. Today the second- and third-growth forest canopy in earthquake country shades a recreational oasis with 30 miles of maintained trails and roads for hiking, biking, and running.
T
Historic logger’s cabin (lost in 1982 flood)
The 1880s cost of building this railroad, part of today’s main Fire Road, was estimated at $50,000 per mile. The Loma Prieta Mill became the largest in the 19th-century Santa Cruz Mountains until disastrous landslides during San Francisco’s 1906 earthquake paused logging efforts.
Reforestation began when the lumber company planted 50 acres of redwood and non-native eucalyptus seedlings. Logging resumed from 1909 until 1924, when most of Loma Prieta’s mill was dismantled and abandoned—after processing 140 million board feet of redwood.
The Marks family of Salinas deeded more than 9,000 acres to the State for use as a public park in 1963. Named for matriarch Nisene (a Danish name) Marks, the gift deed specified that the “natural preserve” be used for camping, hiking, and nature study. Other donations have increased park acreage to nearly 10,000 acres. The Forest of Nisene Marks honors forest regeneration and preservation efforts.
Loggers on platform supported by springboards, ca. 1895
Phot
o co
urte
sy o
f the
San
ta C
ruz
Mus
eum
of A
rt a
nd H
isto
ry
Fetid adder’s tongue, a disagreeable- smelling plant, grows among the redwoods along the Buggy Trail.
Five percent of the park is covered in Northern maritime chaparral containing coyote brush and woolyleaf manzanita.
Other habitats include a purple needlegrass grassland and a red alder riparian forest.
The Forest’s diverse topography, abundant water, and varied plant life support many species of wildlife, including raccoons, cougar, deer, yellow-legged frogs, and the popular banana slug. Native birds include the American dipper, winter wren, and saw-whet owl. Coho salmon and steelhead spawn in the Bridge and Aptos creeks.
ACCESSIBLE INFORMATION
Accessibility is continually improving, but there are currently no wheelchair-accessible activities at the park. For updates, visit http://access.parks.ca.gov.
HABITATS
In the cool and quiet semi-wilderness of the park, tall trees shelter creeks and canyons. Park elevation ranges from sea level to more than 2,600 feet. The park contains grassland, scrub, chaparral, woodland, and forest riparian communities. Eighty percent of the hilly park
is covered in coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) forest, with trees ranging in age from 80 to 120 years old and reaching 125 feet tall. These second- and third-growth redwoods often sprout from the collar surrounding
cut stumps; the sprouts are usually genetically identical
to the parent tree. A few old-growth redwoods still survive within the park.
Redwood species once grew throughout
Asia, Europe, and North America. The remaining
range of coast redwood is limited to the Pacific Coast fog belt between Oregon and the Big Sur coast.
Scientists fear that climate change, with decreasing fog and increasing temperatures, will result in even more redwood habitat loss.
Sequoia sempervirens
Banana slug
Fetid adder’s tongue
GEOLOGY
Three earthquake faults—San Andreas, San Gregorio, and Zayante— influence the park’s geology. The San Gregorio Fault runs slightly southeast of park boundaries. The Zayante Fault crosses the park’s Aptos Creek Canyon while the San Andreas Fault, extending nearly the entire length of the state, parallels the park’s northeastern
border below Santa Rosalia Ridge. The San Andreas Fault’s devastating 6.9
magnitude earthquake caused upheaval throughout Northern California in 1989. That quake was named after Loma Prieta (“dark hill”), the mountain near the quake’s epicenter in the park.
Ancient sea floor sedimentary rocks—mostly sandstone, chert, and siltstone with embedded marine fossils—are found in the Aptos and Bridge creekbeds. For most of the park’s history, it was a shallow inland sea. The park’s unstable sandy and loamy soil is susceptible to landslides.
Trees shifted by the Loma Prieta quake twist as they grow to self correct.
The 2,700-acre Soquel Demonstration State Forest north of the park is managed by the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. Advanced mountain bikers can ride the loops within the demo forest by entering on Ridge Trail at the end of the Aptos Creek Fire Road.
RECREATION
The park lies north of Aptos Village on Aptos Creek Road in Santa Cruz County. Weather can be changeable year round.
Picnic tables and barbecue pits are available. Trail campsites are located six miles from the trail camp parking lot at the West Ridge Trailhead. The trail camp has no water, and fires are prohibited. To reserve, call the Sunset State Beach kiosk at (831) 763-7063.
Trails Loma Prieta Grade Trail follows a steam railway bed from the mill to Hoffman’s Historic Site, named after a logging superintendent. This site was a camp that once housed 100 loggers and mill workers.
PLEASE REMEMBER
• All natural and cultural features are protected by law and may not be disturbed or removed.
• To prevent erosion of the slopes, stay on marked trails; observe all trail postings.
• By law, bicycling and mountain biking are allowed only on the Aptos Creek Fire Road and four single-track trails below its steel bridge. Cyclists may use the Aptos Rancho
Trail, the Split Stuff Trail, the Terrace Trail, and the Vienna Woods Trail.
• Except for service animals, dogs are allowed only on Aptos Creek Fire Road and four single-track trails (named above) below the steel bridge. Dogs are prohibited beyond the gate at the Porter picnic area parking lot. Animals must be attended and on leashes no longer than six feet at all times.
Maple Falls at end of Bridge Creek Trail
MontereyBay
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Bean Hill1450ft442m
T a nn
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BuzzardLagoon
BuzzardLagoon
EntranceStation
Bridge CreekHistoric Site
Hoffman’s Historic Site
The AdvocateTree
CabrilloCollege
EpicenterLoma PrietaEarthquake
10/17/89
Loma PrietaMill Site
Porter House SiteLoma Prieta Town Site
P
P
P
P
Steel Bridge
Parking for Registered Trail
Campers
Winter Gate
West RidgeTrail Camp
Lone TreePrairie
Sand Point Overlook
Mary EastonPicnic Area
Porter FamilyPicnic Area
Margaret’sBridge
CAPITOLA
APTOS
Sawpit
Trail
Big SlideTrail
Trail Mill PondTrail
Trai
l
Porter
Lom
a
West
Rid
ge
Aptos Cre
ek
Trail
Cre
ek
Trail
Ridge
Trai
l
Trail
Rd
RoadHihn’s
Mill
Hinckley
Basin
Fire
Road
Road
Buzzard
LagoonSo
que
l -
Olive
Sprin
gs
Rd
Jose
San
Rd
Road
Hihn’s Mill
Ro
adFire
Road
Rd
Highland
Eureka
Canyon
Road
WayRd
Long
Ridge
Amaya
Creek
Braille Trail
Ridge
Trail
Trail
RidgeTractor
Cusacks
Trail
Corral
Big Stump
Gap Trail
White’s
Lagoon
Road
Ridge Connection
Trail
Ap
tos
Creek
Apt
os
Cre
ek
Fire
Prie
taG
rade
Ap
tos
Cre
ek R
dB
rid
ge
Trail
West
Ridge
Ap
tos C
reek Fire Rd
S TAT E F O R E S T
D E M O N S T R AT I O NS O Q U E L
T H E
F O R E S T O F
N I S E N E M A R K S
S TAT E PA R K
(CA DEPT OF FORESTRY AND FIRE PROTECTION)
© 2012 California State Parks (Rev. 2016)
0.8 Kilometers
0.5 Miles0.250
0 0.4
Legend
Freeway
Paved RoadUnpaved/Fire RoadTrail: Hike
Primitive Camp
Locked Gate
Parking
Picnic Area
Restrooms
Viewpoint
Waterfall
A
ptos
R
anch
o
Tr
ail
Ap
tos C
reek Fire R
oad
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Ma
ng
el s G
ul c
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EntranceStation
The AdvocateTree
P
P
P
Steel Bridge
George’s Picnic Area
Pourroy Picnic Area
EmmettReedPicnicArea
Winter Gate
Apt
osC
reek
Aptos
Creek
APTOS
Trai
lB
uggy
Trail
Vienna Woods
Roa
d
Old
Old
Trail Trl
Loop
Terr
ace
T
rail
TwistedGroveTrail
Split Stuff Trail
Oak
R
idge
Trail
Loop
Growth
Growth
Ap
tos
Cre
ek
WaggonerOverlook Trail
Soquel Drive
Grande
Wilshire Dr
Vie
nn
a D
r
Dan
ub
e D
r
Soquel Drive
Mes
a
Vien
na D
rive
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0.5 Miles0.250
0 0.4
WestRidge Trail
PRIVATE
PROPERTY
PRIVATE
PROPERTY
Vienna
TrailW
oods
Apto
s Ra
nch
Rd
Stat
e Pa
rk D
r
Oak
Rid
ge Tr
ail
Ap
tos Rancho Trail
Parking for Registered Trail
Campers
Trail: Hike & Bike
Trail: Accessible
Soquel Rd
Soquel Drive
The Forest ofNisene Marks
State ParkSan
LorenzoRiver
MontereyBay
152
101
85
17
9
9
1
183
101
1
1
25 Kilometers
15 Miles1050
0 5 10 15 20
Castroville
Salinas
San JuanBautista
WatsonvilleGilroy
MorganHill
LosGatos
ScottsValley
Davenport
Marina
CapitolaSanta Cruz
FremontPeak SP
Henry WCoe SPCastle
RockSP
Big BasinRedwoods
SP
Henry CowellRedwoods SP
Wilder Ranch SPNatural Bridges SB
Santa Cruz Mission SHP
The Forest ofNisene Marks SP
SeacliffSB
New Brighton SB
to San José
to Monterey
Manresa SB,Sunset SB
PACIFICOCEAN
see detail map right
37°
00’
00”
37°
02’
30”
37°
05’
00”
122° 52’ 30” 122° 50’ 00”122° 55’ 00”
NEARBY STATE PARKS
• Seacliff State Beach State Park Drive, Aptos 95001 (831) 685-6442
• New Brighton State Beach 1500 Park Ave., Hwy. 1, Capitola 95010 (831) 763-7062
• Sunset State Beach 201 Sunset Beach Rd., Watsonville 95076 (831) 763-7063
This park receives support in part from a nonprofit organization.
For information, contact the Friends of Santa Cruz State Parks
at (831) 429-1840 or www.thatsmypark.org