The hook
A whole redwood canyon folded into the hills behind Pescadero that most coast traffic drives straight past — the quiet alternative to every famous grove in the region.
01Why it's worth it
Butano ("byoo-TAH-no") is what the peninsula's redwood parks were like before parking reservations: a deep, fern-walled canyon of second-growth and surviving old-growth where weekday solitude is the norm, not the reward. Locals slot it into their coast circuits as the inland course — "Shark Fin Cove, Pigeon Point lighthouse, Butano SP, drive up through Pescadero to Skyline... it's super pretty" — and cyclists know Cloverdale Road past its entrance as part of the great Gazos–Cloverdale–Pescadero perimeter ride. Be honest about the scar: the 2020 CZU fire burned through here, and the recovery is the current story — blackened trunks already sprouting green fuzz, a canyon demonstrating in real time that redwoods are built for fire. Some trails and the backcountry camp have been closed or rerouted since; check status before planning a long loop.
02How to experience it
Entrance on Cloverdale Road, ten minutes inland from Pescadero (and directly on the bike route between Pescadero and Gazos Creek). The canyon-floor trails give the rainforest; the rim trails climb to ridge views over the fog. Pair with Arcangeli's artichoke bread in Pescadero on the way in — that's the local program.