AMBLEWAY Wildest hikes
Alpine Lake 10160.jpg
Stepheng3 · CC BY-SA 3.0
Mount Tamalpais Watershed

Little Carson Falls–Kent Lake, 5 sights

9.7 mi · ▲ 1,230 ft · 3 hr 51 min

Little Carson Falls–Kent Lake, 5 sights is a 9.7-mile out-and-back in Mount Tamalpais Watershed near Stinson Beach, CA. The route passes Alpine Lake and Kent Lake before reaching Little Carson Falls at the turnaround, 4.8 miles in. It climbs 1,230 ft, with sections as steep as 16% grade. It scores 90/100 on the Ambleway Wildness scale: genuinely wild.

Elevation

0 mi518 – 1,398 ft · steepest grade: 16%9.8 mi

Getting there

Trailhead: Kent Pump Fire Road 37.94069, -122.63887
Nearest town Stinson Beach, CA
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Directions

AMBLEWAYwww.ambleway.com

Little Carson Falls–Kent Lake, 5 sights

9.7 mi · ▲ 1,230 ft · 3 hr 51 min

Elevation 519–1,399 ft

Out & Back · Mount Tamalpais Watershed

Trailhead: Kent Pump Fire Road · 37.94069, -122.63887

Weather Aug 3: Clear, high 78°F / low 64° · precip 0% · wind 5 mph · sunrise 6:16 AM · sunset 8:19 PM

Toilets at the trailhead

  1. Start on Kent Pump Fire Road, heading W.
  2. 50 ftPass Alpine Lake.
  3. 2.2 miTurn right onto Old Vee Fire Road, heading N.
  4. 50 ftPass Kent Lake.
  5. 1.1 miSharp left onto Oat Hill Fire Road, heading N.
  6. 1.1 miTurn left, heading N.
  7. 0.4 miReach Little Carson Falls, then turn around and head back the way you came.
  8. 1.5 miSharp right onto Old Vee Fire Road, heading S.
  9. 1.1 miTurn left onto Kent Pump Fire Road, heading W.
  10. 2.2 miArrive back at the trailhead.

Each distance is the walk from the previous step. Tap a step for a map of its junction.

Trail map, photos and weather for this hike: www.ambleway.com/hikes/little-carson-falls-out-back-16-km-998a

Weather

ClearTemperature 78°F64°
Precip0%Wind5 mphUV8Humidity65%
Hourly temperature
80°60°
Sunrise 6:16 AM12 AM3 AM9 AM12 PM3 PM6 PMSunset 8:19 PM
Tue 69°55°
Wed 66°54°
Thu 71°53°
Fri 74°51°
Sat 74°51°
Sun 67°51°

Sunset

The best sunset spot on this hike is 3.9 mi in (~119 min). Leave by 6:00 PM for the 8:19 PM sunset. Back at your car by 10:11 PM, after dark — bring a headlamp.

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Good to know

  • Toilets at the trailhead

Other ways to reach this destination

More from Kent Pump Fire Road Trailhead

Hikes near Stinson Beach, California