Your Guide To Pinnacles National Park
Rocky towers, spires, and outcroppings rise above the surrounding landscape adorned by a field of native grasses with oak and pine trees sporadically placed about. This lesser visited park is also one of the nation's newest national parks being promoted to the highest rank in 2013. Being a smaller park coming in at just 26,000 acres, it is possible to see much of the park in a day for the intrepid explorer willing to put in some miles on their feet.
My first 2 visits here were when it was "just" a national monument. After it was upgraded, nothing changed outside of the name. The same low crowds and the same beautiful scenery met me just as it had before. After 3 visits, I've hiked the majority of trails here and I'm excited to share Pinnacles National Park with you.
How was Pinnacles National Park Formed?
The interesting features of these unique rock formations are a bit out of place compared to everywhere else around. So how were they formed? We'll need to peak under the surface for the answer.
It's no secret California is riddled with tectonic plates and that's precisely where scientists believe it all began. To start, the North American tectonic plate forced the Farallon tectonic plate downward, known as subduction, and the intense heat from well below the Earth's crust liquified the lower plate into magma. The stress from the immense pressure caused cracks and fissures which allowed the magma to seep up and eventually cool. The process continued until the Farallon plate was finally overridden and the volcanic activity ceased.
A separate plate, the Pacific plate, was right behind the former Farallon plate and it met up with the North American plate except this time, subduction did not take place. Instead, the Pacific plate pushed northward against the other forcing a chunk of the North American plate to break off and head north. Today ground zero for all of this former activity has shifted nearly 200 miles north meaning that Pinnacles National Park started a couple hundred miles south of it’s current location! The movement is far from over as the San Andreas Fault is causing it to shift another 1 inch per year.
Many, many years of erosion have revealed what we now see today so a visit here is sort of like walking under the Earth's surface with the luxury of daylight.
How to Get There
Yep, I never took a photo with the new NP sign so enjoy this outdated old school sign instead.
Pinnacles is about as central as you can get in the state north to south wise although it's closer to the coast. It's a relatively remote park with the nearest major city being San Jose nearly 90 minutes north.
There are 2 entrances and they do not connect. The east entrance, which can be found here, https://maps.app.goo.gl/sxSiyKbBfnuEd8na8 is off the Airline Hwy about 40 minutes south of Hollister. It has both a park store and nature center located within this side of the park.
The west entrance, found here, https://maps.app.goo.gl/5NBcghMfmZc29LN59 is about a 30 minute drive south of Salinas on Hwy 101 to Soledad and an additional 20 minute drive on CA-146 from there. It features a small visitor center.
The standard entrance fees are $30 per vehicle for a week.
Pinnacles National Park Won't Win a Popularity Contest
Pinnacles is California's 2nd least visited national park only sliding in after Channel Islands. A mere 340,000 visitors are all that arrived in 2023. Compare that to Yosemite which had nearly 4 million visitors the same year.
The popularity of the park is not a sign it's not worth the visit. Far from it. If I were to venture a guess, it's because there are so many other larger, more popular parks in the state so it gets overshadowed. Couple that with the semi remoteness and needing to actually commit to coming means only the locals or hardcore national park people are going to visit. On the plus side there are no lines and you'll have the trails about to yourself.
Aside from the beautiful vistas, there are some rare and unique wildlife that call the rocks home. We'll get to that here shortly.
A Tale of Two Entrances
I am going to break this down and feature things to do on each side. The only way to make it from one side of the park to the other is by foot. With the rocks being the focal point, most trails from either side eventually lead to the top. The majority of visitors won't exert the energy required to ascend upwards of 2000 feet from one side, down to the other, and back again so it'll be best to keep it in a east/west format. Just think of the park as split into 2 more or less.
The West Side is The Best Side
Not really, but I personally have enjoyed the west side a touch more than the east side. Either way, both offer phenomenal opportunities. The hikes here all originate from the Chaparral Parking Area on the western side of the park.
The North Wilderness Trail
Let me preface by saying this isn't for everyone. By day hiker standards, this is a bit on the longer side. Somewhere between 10 and 11 miles depending on who you consult. The trail is hot, little shade, Chalone Creek crossings, and overall not maintained so the path may be overgrown and some route finding/wild guessing may become necessary. Still, it's one of my favorites.
You are almost guaranteed to experience this backcountry adventure alone. People rarely travel it so make sure you are comfortable being self sufficient as receiving aid if something goes wrong might be a ways off.
This is a loop if you connect the Balconies Cave and Cliff Trail to it. You can technically start out of either parking area and just loop through via the Balconies Cave. I began my adventure by hiking from the Chaparral lot and up through the Balconies Cave. The cave is called a talus cave because it was formed when huge boulders tumbled down after a collapse. It is dark inside the cave so headlamps or flashlights are required. Just follow the white arrows and squeeze on through.
After completing the cave, it is roughly another mile along the Old Pinnacles Trail before encountering the start of the North Wilderness Trail.
The easy going of the Old Pinnacles Trail quickly fades as you turn onto the North Wilderness Trail. There are plenty of interesting things to see along the way.
One of my favorite views of the Pinnacles is on the stretch coming back on the far west side towards the Chaparral area.
It's not all fun and games. The ticks here rank in the top 2 worst I've ever encountered. I pulled over 2 dozen off me. They were so thick in places you could see them hanging out on tall blades of grass. Even the trekking poles were picking them up. Nasty!
The Tunnel Trail and Juniper Canyon Trail
Both of these connect to the High Peaks Trail forming yet another loop. This excursion takes you through a cool tunnel blasted out of the rock.
The High Peaks Trail
Your journey to the top takes place via the High Peaks Trail as it circumnavigates the upper reaches of the black and copper colored rock spires. Steep ascents with small stairs carved into the rock are in multiple places accompanied by handrails. There are plenty of switch backs along here too. Huge rocks tower overhead as you stroll among them with ever changing vantage points. The appearance of your surroundings truly shift with every step taken and when you reach the top, a magnificent view awaits.
The collection of birds can be excellent so be sure to spend ample time here soaking up the views and watching the wildlife. The birding always seemed better on the east side of the trail, but the west side had the better rock features. I'll let you decide!
East Side Adventures
On the east side of the park, while several parking areas exist, there are two main lots for the trailheads. Moses Spring and Old Pinnacles. The Old Pinnacles lot is another option for connecting to the North Wilderness Trail via the Old Pinnacles Trail. It also has the Blue Oak Trail which leads up to the High Peaks Trail.
The Moses Spring lot connects to the Bear Gulch Cave via the Moses Spring Trail. This pleasant trail has some shady spots to keep you cool in the hot sun as you head for the cave.
Bear Gulch Cave is another talus cave and also requires a headlamp or flashlight. The way is easily identifiable and it's necessary to navigate around and under some slightly tighter areas.
Once out of the darkness, Bear Gulch Reservoir beckons (sadly no photo) for a stop and it's onto the short Rim Trail before heading up the High Peaks Trail. If you haven't noticed by now, several trails connect to the high point path.
If you prefer to keep with the loop theme, head back from the High Peaks via the Condor Gulch Trail.
Bird Watching
The Pinnacles attract a huge array of fascinating birds. Over 160 species have been observed in the park. The most famous of all is the California Condor which is the largest bird in North America. With a wingspan closing in at 10 feet, they dwarf all other birds in comparison. These endangered birds are only about 500 strong and live in California, Utah, and Arizona. There is no guarantee you'll see one at Pinnacles, but if you do, there is no denying you saw the king of the skies. It's interesting watching them take off. It only takes a single flap of their wings to become airborne and they soar from there.
Turkey vultures abound here and they take advantage of ridge lift and thermals.
The Pinnacle's website has a bird checklist of what birders have reported seeing and it's really interesting to see the spectrum of birds that have been spotted. Whether they are full time residents or just stopping by during migrations, anything from eagles and owls, to roadrunners and pheasants, to pelicans and gulls, and just about everything else in between has been spied on at least once. Another cool bird I've seen here is the tiny Anna's Hummingbird.
On one hike along the top, I heard what literally sounded like a speeding bullet. I looked up and saw a bird absolutely screaming past me. He did this several times before moving on. I'm thinking it may have been a type of swift, but whatever it was, the speed was crazy.
Wildflowers
The park really flourishes with an abundance of flower species scattered throughout the terrain and you are sure to catch a glimpse of several. With eye popping color, they add dramatic contrast to the surrounding landscape. Spring is primetime so plan on scheduling your adventure between March and May for optimal viewing. If a spring visit isn't doable, you will still see something as it's generally warm enough here year round to support it.
Other Activities
Rock Climbing
Outside of a gym, I'm not a rock climber (yet) so I can't truly speak on this, but Pinnacles is a definite climbing destination. The brittle volcanic rock makes for a more challenging scenario. There aren't many bouldering routes available here so bring the ropes and hardware.
Pinnacles Campground
Located on the east side of the park, 134 camping sites are available at the Pinnacles Campground. This is another activity I have not participated in here so I can't review it. For those interested, it is not run by the park service, but rather the Pinnacles Recreation Company https://www.visitpinnacles.com/
Non-electric sites are $43 per night and electric sites are $59 per night. They even have a swimming pool which is an uncommon amenity at a national park.
Useful Links
Pinnacles National Park website - https://www.nps.gov/pinn/index.htm
Conclusion
It might not be the most popular, have the tallest mountains, or gushing waterfalls, but Pinnacles National Park is still filled with unique beauty that will exercise your wonder and curiosity. It’s small enough to be appreciated in a single day’s visit although like anywhere else, you’ll pull more out of it with a lengthier stay or multiple visits in different seasons. I highly recommend making it a point to plan an adventure here whether you’re a local or visiting from out of state.
As always, B.E. Adventurous!