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Easy Hiking Trails in California

The directory currently contains 160 quality-checked routes matching this guide in California. Their average mapped distance is 1.9 km and average recorded ascent is 37 m (121 ft); the longest route in the set is 7.3 km.

This subset represents 15% of the 1,083 quality-checked routes in California. Its average distance is 1.9 km, compared with 13.8 km across the full local set. Average recorded ascent is 37 m (121 ft), versus 464 m (1,522 ft) for all quality-checked routes in the same area.

Every route in this set is rated easy by the directory’s distance-and-elevation model. The rating does not verify surface, exposure or current hazards. Within this set, 160 routes (100%) are rated easy, 0 (0%) are rated hard or expert, and 25 (16%) are recorded as loops. Ratings are computed from available distance and elevation data and do not establish current terrain or access.

Data refreshed September 2026

Choose by the details

How do these routes differ?

A closer look at the first 6 routes in this page’s default ordering. These comparisons describe this sample, not the entire destination or a field-tested recommendation.

Shortest mapped distance in this sample

0.5 km

Emerald Lake Trail

Compare the climbing too; shortest does not necessarily mean easiest.

Lowest recorded ascent in this sample

8 m

Gem Lakes Trail

6 of 6 have ascent data. Missing measurements are excluded.

Return logistics

0 recorded loops

Check start and finish for every option. An unknown shape does not mean a loop, and a loop does not establish access to its start.

Plan the return journey →

Distances follow stored route lines; ascent and time are estimates. Current access, surface and technical difficulty need separate checks. How to turn a comparison into a shortlist.

Trails

Easy

California Coastal Trail

California · United States

Distance
1.9 km
/ 1.2 mi
Elevation gain
40 m
Typical duration
28 min
  • Coastal
Rainbow Falls in Mammoth Lakes
Easy

Rainbow Falls-Reds Cutoff

California · United States

Distance
0.6 km
/ 0.4 mi
Elevation gain
36 m
Typical duration
10 min
  • Waterfall
  • Lake
Meadow paintbrush (Castilleja lemmoni), group of dark pink flowers in meadow near stream. In meadow at head of Chickenfoot Lake, Little Lakes Valley, John Muir Wilderness, Sierra Navada USA.
Easy

Chickenfoot Lake Trail

California · United States

Distance
0.7 km
/ 0.4 mi
Elevation gain
49 m
Typical duration
13 min
  • Lake
  • Mountain
Emerald Lake
Easy

Emerald Lake Trail

California · United States

Distance
0.5 km
/ 0.3 mi
Elevation gain
15 m
Typical duration
8 min
  • Lake
  • Mountain
Mount Dade (on the right) taken from Treasure Lakes, Little Lakes Valley, Sierra Nevada , California , USA
Easy

Gem Lakes Trail

California · United States

Distance
0.7 km
/ 0.4 mi
Elevation gain
8 m
Typical duration
9 min
  • Lake
  • Mountain
Banner Peak, Mount Davis, and 1000 Island Lake in Ansel Adams Wilderness, California , USA
Easy

Thousand Island Lake

California · United States

Distance
2.5 km
/ 1.5 mi
Elevation gain
21 m
Typical duration
33 min
  • Lake
  • Mountain
Easy

Fourth Lake Cutoff

California · United States

Distance
0.6 km
/ 0.4 mi
Elevation gain
29 m
Typical duration
10 min
  • Lake
  • Mountain
Easy

Hobbler Lake Trail

California · United States

Distance
2.7 km
/ 1.7 mi
Elevation gain
38 m
Typical duration
37 min
  • Lake
  • Mountain
Easy

Muriel Lake Trail

California · United States

Distance
1.7 km
/ 1.0 mi
Typical duration
21 min
  • Lake
  • Mountain
Easy

Tamarack Bench Trail

California · United States

Distance
1.5 km
/ 0.9 mi
Elevation gain
17 m
Typical duration
21 min
  • Mountain
Easy

Tamarack Cutoff

California · United States

Distance
0.6 km
/ 0.4 mi
Elevation gain
36 m
Typical duration
11 min
  • Mountain
Easy

Tecolote Canyon Trail

California · United States

Distance
2.2 km
/ 1.3 mi
Elevation gain
12 m
Typical duration
28 min
  • Canyon and gorge
Native species were planted along the lake bottom to supplement natural revegetation.
Easy

Dream Lake Trail

California · United States

Distance
0.4 km
/ 0.3 mi
Elevation gain
9 m
Typical duration
6 min
  • Lake
Easy

Long Meadow Trail

California · United States

Distance
3.6 km
/ 2.2 mi
Elevation gain
176 m
Typical duration
1 hr 1 min
  • Alpine meadow
Easy

Sotcher Lake Loop

California · United States

Distance
2.3 km
/ 1.4 mi
Elevation gain
50 m
Typical duration
33 min
  • Lake
Humphreys Basin
Easy

Humphreys Lakes Trail

California · United States

Distance
3.4 km
/ 2.1 mi
Elevation gain
173 m
Typical duration
58 min
  • Lake
  • Mountain
Easy

Davis Lake Trail

California · United States

Distance
1.4 km
/ 0.9 mi
Typical duration
17 min
  • Lake
  • Mountain
Easy

Desert View Trail

California · United States

Distance
0.9 km
/ 0.6 mi
Elevation gain
18 m
Typical duration
13 min
  • Desert
Easy

Meadow Trail

California · United States

Distance
0.8 km
/ 0.5 mi
Typical duration
10 min
  • Alpine meadow
Easy

California Coastal Trail

California · United States

Distance
2.7 km
/ 1.7 mi
Elevation gain
25 m
Typical duration
36 min
  • Coastal
Easy

Wetlands Walk Trail

California · United States

Distance
1.8 km
/ 1.1 mi
Typical duration
22 min
  • River
Easy

Engelsman Loop Trail

California · United States

Distance
6.1 km
/ 3.8 mi
Elevation gain
173 m
Typical duration
1 hr 31 min
Easy

Lake Loop Trail

California · United States

Distance
3.7 km
/ 2.3 mi
Elevation gain
75 m
Typical duration
53 min
  • Lake
  • Panoramic viewpoint
Easy

Coast Road

California · United States

Distance
0.7 km
/ 0.4 mi
Typical duration
9 min
  • Coastal
Easy

Perkins Cutoff

California · United States

Distance
3.1 km
/ 1.9 mi
Elevation gain
113 m
Typical duration
49 min
  • Mountain
Easy

Big Rock Trail

California · United States

Distance
0.7 km
/ 0.4 mi
Elevation gain
52 m
Typical duration
13 min
Fumaroles in the Devils Kitchen hydrothermal area, Lassen Volcanic National Park, in late July 2020
Easy

Devil's Kitchen Trail

California · United States

Distance
2.6 km
/ 1.6 mi
Elevation gain
20 m
Typical duration
35 min
Easy

Eucalyptus Loop

California · United States

Distance
5.4 km
/ 3.3 mi
Elevation gain
127 m
Typical duration
1 hr 19 min
Easy

Guardians Loop Trail

California · United States

Distance
2.3 km
/ 1.4 mi
Elevation gain
85 m
Typical duration
37 min
Easy

Old Cabin Trail

California · United States

Distance
1.5 km
/ 1.0 mi
Elevation gain
47 m
Typical duration
23 min
Easy

Owl Trail

California · United States

Distance
1.7 km
/ 1.0 mi
Elevation gain
100 m
Typical duration
30 min
Easy

Park to Bay Link

California · United States

Distance
2.9 km
/ 1.8 mi
Typical duration
36 min
The Dish — on the Stanford University campus, in Palo Alto, California.
Easy

Stanford Dish Loop Trail

California · United States

Distance
5.2 km
/ 3.2 mi
Elevation gain
115 m
Typical duration
1 hr 16 min
Easy

Appaloosa Trail

California · United States

Distance
1.7 km
/ 1.1 mi
Elevation gain
77 m
Typical duration
28 min
Rock formation on the Barker Dam Natural Trail
Easy

Barker Dam Loop

California · United States

Distance
1.8 km
/ 1.1 mi
Elevation gain
50 m
Typical duration
27 min
Easy

Big Sycamore Trail

California · United States

Distance
1.5 km
/ 0.9 mi
Elevation gain
6 m
Typical duration
19 min
Easy

Cape Horn Trail

California · United States

Distance
1.1 km
/ 0.7 mi
Elevation gain
53 m
Typical duration
19 min
Easy

Columbine Trail

California · United States

Distance
0.4 km
/ 0.3 mi
Elevation gain
6 m
Typical duration
6 min
Easy

Headlands Trail

California · United States

Distance
1.6 km
/ 1.0 mi
Elevation gain
6 m
Typical duration
20 min
Hidden Valley in Joshua Tree National Park , California.
Easy

Hidden Valley Trail

California · United States

Distance
1.5 km
/ 0.9 mi
Elevation gain
32 m
Typical duration
22 min
Hollywood, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Easy

Hollywood Walk of Fame

California · United States

Distance
5.4 km
/ 3.4 mi
Elevation gain
23 m
Typical duration
1 hr 10 min
Easy

Jeffrey Pine Trail

California · United States

Distance
0.7 km
/ 0.4 mi
Elevation gain
9 m
Typical duration
9 min

The shortlist, side by side

The ten highest scoring routes on this page, so you can compare effort before opening any of them.

Distance, ascent, walking time and difficulty for the top routes
RouteDistanceAscentTimeDifficultyBest season
California Coastal TrailCalifornia1.9 km40 m28 minEasyApril to October
Boiling Springs Lake TrailCalifornia1.2 km33 m18 minEasyJune to October
Rainbow Falls-Reds CutoffCalifornia0.6 km36 m10 minEasyJuly to September
Chickenfoot Lake TrailCalifornia0.7 km49 m13 minEasyJuly to September
Emerald Lake TrailCalifornia0.5 km15 m8 minEasyJuly to September
Gem Lakes TrailCalifornia0.7 km8 m9 minEasyJuly to September
Thousand Island LakeCalifornia2.5 km21 m33 minEasyJuly to September
Fourth Lake CutoffCalifornia0.6 km29 m10 minEasyJuly to September
Tyndall Creek Ranger Station TrailCalifornia0.9 km0 m12 minEasyJuly to September
Hobbler Lake TrailCalifornia2.7 km38 m37 minEasyJuly to September

California Coastal Trail, Boiling Springs Lake Trail, Rainbow Falls-Reds Cutoff currently rank highest in this filtered set according to the directory score. Open an individual route to inspect its mapped line, elevation profile, data source and planning caveats. Check live access, conditions and local rules with an official source before travelling.

Frequently asked questions

Plan with more confidence

All planning articles →

Choosing a route

How to choose a hike beyond the difficulty label

Compare distance, climbing, route shape and missing information to build a shortlist that fits your day.

Read article →

Understanding the map

Read an elevation profile without misreading the climb

Understand total ascent, net height change, profile scale and the section breakdown on each mapped route.

Read article →

Planning your day

Build a hiking time plan with room for your own pace

Separate moving time, climbing allowance and stops, then explore how changing your assumptions changes the plan.

Read article →

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