This Santa Cruz-area redwood forest used to be a 19th-century lime empire, and the kilns are still standing

Most people who drive out to Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park walk the loop trail, stand next to a tree that predates the fall of Rome, snap a photo, and head back to the car. That’s already a great hour. What most of them never learn is that this same park spent decades as a working 19th-century limestone quarry, and the kilns are still standing a short walk from the trees everyone actually came for.

The park sits in the Santa Cruz Mountains in Felton, just north of the city on Highway 9 — close enough that you can genuinely do this as a half-day trip from the beach. It’s not one thing. It’s an ancient grove, an industrial ruin, and a steam train stop, all behind the same gate.

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The grove itself takes about 20 minutes

The Redwood Grove Loop Trail is 0.8 miles, flat, and paved enough for a wheelchair or a stroller — there’s no excuse not to do this one. Three named trees anchor the walk: the Mother, the Father, and the Santa Clara Tree, the last of which tops out around 277 feet and is somewhere near 1,500 years old.

I stood at the base of that one for longer than felt normal and still couldn’t fit the whole thing in one photo. Bring a wide lens or just accept defeat early.

Then there’s the part almost nobody mentions: a lime empire

In the 1870s, the I.X.L. Lime Company built kilns in what’s now the park’s Fall Creek Unit, a separate section reached from its own trailhead across Highway 9. Businessman Henry Cowell — yes, that Cowell — bought into the operation, and for decades Santa Cruz County led the entire state in lime production, most of it shipped to San Francisco for mortar and plaster.

The kilns closed in 1919 and have sat quietly ever since. You can still walk right up to them on the South Fork Trail — brick furnaces standing in second-growth forest like someone switched off the lights and left.

Want more mileage? There’s a bigger loop

If 0.8 miles isn’t enough, the Observation Deck Loop runs about 5.3 miles round trip with roughly 750 feet of elevation gain — moderate, not brutal, and it ends at a deck with sweeping views over the San Lorenzo Valley. It’s a real hike, not a stroll, so budget a couple of hours for it.

A steam train runs straight through the park

Roaring Camp Railroads runs narrow-gauge steam locomotives dating back to the 1890s — among the oldest still in scheduled passenger service anywhere in the country — out of a depot right at the edge of the park. We swung by the station on our way out, and the whole scene, general store, red locomotive parked and hissing, kids losing their minds, feels like it hasn’t changed much since the excursions started back in 1963.

The route runs down through the San Lorenzo River Gorge, over a 1909 steel truss bridge, and through an 1875 tunnel before ending at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. If you’ve got kids, or just like trains, build your visit around it.

Good to know before you go

Day-use parking runs $10 per vehicle. There’s also a campground on-site if you’d rather turn this into an overnight than a drive-through, which is worth considering given how central it is to everything else in the Santa Cruz Mountains.

This isn’t the only redwood-and-coast combo worth your time nearby — check our guides to hikes in Santa Cruz and things to do in Santa Cruz for the rest of it. Skip the crowds at the boardwalk for an afternoon — this grove is the better photo anyway.

Trip tips: grab a rental car to get out here, lock in your hotel before the good rooms are gone, or skip both and book a camper van instead — there’s a campground right in the park.

Rules and fees change — always confirm current requirements before you go.

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