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John Nicholas Trail

Intermediate Intermediate
 4.6 (146)
  1. Areas
  2. CA
  3. …Bay Area
  4. …San Jose
  5. Sanborn County Park
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“Fun new trail connecting Black Rd. to Skyline Trail - some great views and beautiful redwood forest. ”

Marco Soldano
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Map Key

5.1

Miles

8.2

KM
Doubletrack

2,912' 888 m

High

1,798' 548 m

Low

1,146' 349 m

Up

127' 39 m

Down

5%

Avg Grade (3°)

19%

Max Grade (11°)

Dogs Leashed

E-Bikes Allowed

Description

This trail starts from the gate on Black Road, where you can park or ride up from Lexington reservoir. The first 1.5mi of trail is fairly flat on a well maintained fireroad, meandering through the forest. At about 1.5mi you'll reach the Ranch Lake reservoir, where you may find some wildlife (deer, rabbits and skunks). After going around the reservoir, you'll see a steep fireroad on the right dropping down to Sanborn Rd.

Instead, you'll veer left and start climbing up to the new section of the trail along a small creek. The new trail is about 4' wide, with a few wooden bridges and benches under heavy tree cover. The climb is fairly gradual with only a couple of steeper sections. As you climb higher there will be a couple good vista points to enjoy.

After about 5 miles you'll reach Skyline trail. This trail has been only recently opened to bikes. Keep right on Skyline and you'll reach the parking lot on Skyline Blvd. From there you can ride back down the way you came, or, if you prefer, make a loop on the road by turning left on Skyline and another left on Black Road for a beautiful paved descent to your car. There are some sections without a dividing line - and some sneaky corners - so it can be wise to use a bit of caution.

Contacts

Land Manager: Santa Clara County Parks

Shared By:

Marco Soldano with improvements by T P and 1 other
Full Details

Trail Ratings

  4.6 from 146 votes

#1

in Sanborn County Park

#8

Overall
  4.6 from 146 votes
5 Star
66%
4 Star
31%
3 Star
2%
2 Star
1%
1 Star
1%
Trail Rankings

#1

in Sanborn County Park

#3

in California

#8

Overall
240 Views Last Month
59,272 Since Dec 16, 2014
Intermediate Intermediate
3%
4%
81%
9%
3%
0%
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Photos

Nice tacky trail in the woods- John Nicholas Trail
Dec 16, 2014 near Monte S…, CA
The views from the John Nicholas Trail are fantastic.
Dec 18, 2016 near Monte S…, CA
Enjoy great views from by the bench under the big rock on John Nicholas Trail.
May 15, 2017 near Monte S…, CA
Last wooden bridge before going up.
Apr 29, 2018 near Monte S…, CA
An interesting rock with a bench. About 4 miles into the trail from the Black Road entrance.
Aug 27, 2017 near Monte S…, CA
A wonderfully built switchback leading downhill on John Nicholas trail
Apr 24, 2017 near Monte S…, CA

14 Comments

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Current Trail Conditions

Minor Issues 32 days ago
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Check-Ins

Mar 17, 2024
A M
Oct 21, 2023
Einat Talker
Oct 7, 2023
Olaf Zinke
Open weekends only. Crowded on a Saturday.
Sep 4, 2023
Adam Orrock
Good trail conditions. It will be closed from Sept 11th to November 2023
Jul 1, 2023
Cong Xia
1h 50m
May 27, 2023
Jacob Van Meter
Some steep climbing. Not too technical. 11.8mi — 2h 31m
Nov 5, 2022
Josh Smith
Nice out and back, top side going towards Skyline has some moderate rocks in some steep places. Be aware of hikers and blind curves. 11mi
Oct 11, 2022
Steve Connolly
I rode a road bike from Lake Ranch Res south to Black Mtn.

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