Lookout Tower & Skyline Trail is a 2.2-mile out-and-back in Castle Rock State Park near San Lorenzo Park, CA. The route reaches Lookout Tower at the turnaround, 1.1 miles in. It climbs 409 ft, with sections as steep as 18% grade, and is mostly dirt. It scores 24/100 on the Ambleway Wildness scale: paved and peopled.
Elevation
0 mi2,628 – 2,894 ft · steepest grade: 18%2.5 mi
Getting there
Trailhead: Skyline Trail 37.25795, -122.12088
Nearest town San Lorenzo Park, CA
Directions
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Lookout Tower & Skyline Trail
2.2 mi · ▲ 409 ft · 56 min
Elevation 2,628–2,894 ft
Out & Back · Castle Rock State Park
Trailhead: Skyline Trail · 37.25795, -122.12088
Weather Sep 20: sunrise 6:55 AM · sunset 7:10 PM
No dogs on part of this route · Parking lot at the trailhead
- Start at the trailhead, heading SE.
- 50 ftTurn left onto Skyline Trail, heading SE.
- 1.1 miSharp right, heading SW.
- 0.1 miReach Lookout Tower, then turn around and head back the way you came.
- 1.2 miTurn right, heading NW.
- 50 ftArrive back at the trailhead.
Each distance is the walk from the previous step. Tap a step for a map of its junction.
Trail surface
99% dirt1% unspecified
Weather
Sunrise 6:55 AMSunset 7:10 PM
Sunset
The best sunset spot on this hike is 0.1 mi in (~3 min). Leave by 6:47 PM for the 7:10 PM sunset. Back at your car by 7:28 PM — 8 min before dark. Car visible from the viewpoint
Good to know
- No dogs on part of this route
- Parking lot at the trailhead
Other ways to reach this destination
More from Skyline Trail Trailhead
- Loughry Woods Trail–Service Road Trail, 3 sights 6.2 mi · ▲ 1,055 ft
- Saratoga Gap 3.4 mi · ▲ 426 ft
- Emily Smith Observation Point–Loughry Woods Trail, 3 sights 8.5 mi · ▲ 1,533 ft
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Hikes near San Lorenzo Park, California