Old Smith Ranch Preserve
Fort Bragg, California
Overview
Spoon Rating: 3 spoons, not wheelchair accessible due to stairs, grade, and surface
Type: out and back
Distance: 2.1 miles
Starting Elevation: 130 feet
Elevation Gain: 140 feet
Average Grade: 2.5%
Max Grade: 25% for 6 feet
Max cross-slope: 8%
Typical width: 2 feet
Typical surface: eroded asphalt, dirt
Season/Schedule: Open Dawn-Dusk every day. There may be berry vines and leaves on the trail in fall, seasonally wet/muddy conditions.
Water availability: no water available
Sun exposure: Partial shade in summer
Amenities: Picnic tables (not wheelchair accessible), benches, interpretive signs. No restrooms or trash cans. Nearest public restrooms in MacKerricher State Park.
Pet friendly: Pets not allowed, service dogs welcome (recommend protecting their paws)
Cell phone reception: No
Special notes: Stairs, narrow trail corridor with low hanging branches, frequent highway noise
Nearest town: Fort Bragg
Land manager: Mendocino Land Trust, (707) 962-0470
Date assessed: September 21, 2026
Land Acknowledgement:
These are the ancestral homelands of Local Pomo, Yuki, and Cahto peoples, who continue to be active stewards of these lands.
Why go?
This trail offers great birding along the Ten Mile River estuary. Benches provide opportunities for resting or pack a picnic for one of the picnic tables. There are six rare or endangered plant species in the preserve, including Menzies wallflower and Howell’s spinflower. The Land Trust occasionally holds events here with special gate access; the trail may be accessible for all-terrain capable wheelchair users at that time.
Finding the Trailhead
Pass/Entry Fee:
Getting There:
None.
28355 Shoreline Hwy, Fort Bragg, CA 95437
From Fort Bragg, head north on CA-1 for 7.7 miles. At milepost 69.22, you will see a big red sign that says Old Smith Ranch Preserve on the right (east) side of the highway and a driveway. Turn right into the driveway then immediately right into the parking lot.
Parking:
Dirt parking lot with space for about 8 cars. There is one paved van accessible parking spot, it can flood in the winter (and neither the trail nor picnic area are wheelchair accessible). There is no public transit to the trailhead.
Start:
From the parking lot, head west (towards the highway) and cross the driveway on a marked crosswalk. Look for a small red sign that says Old Smith Ranch Preserve Trailhead, next to a footpath heading into the bushes.
The Hike
The trail begins uneven on a grassy natural surface and is about 2 feet wide. It's surrounded by blackberries on either side, so take care not to scratch yourself. You are near the highway for the first quarter of the trail, so you may hear vehicles rushing by, but there is a thick line of shrubs between the trail and the road. Later on, the trail dips down a hill, which isolates the noise for a while.
From the trailhead, you immediately take a 10% incline for about 10 feet, pass through some bushes, then take a steep 25% decline for about six feet before leveling out. The trail curves slightly right and then left. Continue through a narrow corridor between berry bushes on a dirt path. It is generally level, but bumpy and uneven, one foot wide with grassy shoulders between two to three feet wide. At 0.03 mile, you come to a root across the trail that is about five inches high and four inches wide. The trail continues generally level, up to a 2% decline.
At 0.06 mile, you leave the narrow shrubby corridor and enter a grove of trees. The path is not well defined and may be a bit confusing if it's covered in leaves. Just continue straight through the grove of trees. The trail then curves slightly right, you'll pass between two trees bordering the trail, and at 0.1 mile you'll come to a set of steps leading downhill. There are 6 wooden steps, about 6 inches high.
At the bottom of the steps, there's a red sign that points back the way you came to Old Smith Ranch Trail parking lot and picnic area. Continue following the trail as it curves to the left. You're now on firm, old pavement surface and there's views of the river through the trees on the right.
You then immediately come to a fork in the trail. On the right, there are steps that lead down towards the river – skip that and continue to the left. The old pavement transitions to hard-packed gravel and dirt and is about 5 feet wide. You’ll continue on a generally 3% decline for the next 4/10 mile.
At 0.12 mile, the trail surface transitions back to old, cracked pavement and is pretty uneven. There's a cross slope of 5-8% for about 15 feet. Then the surface changes to compact sand and dirt with a little bit of loose gravel on the top.
Image Description: A dirt path disappears into a narrow corridor of shrubs
Image Description: A faint trail passes between two trees
Image description: Wooden steps covered in leaves lead downhill. A red sign pointing back reads parking lot and picnic area
At 0.2 mile you come to a short section where the trail is crowned, which means it is higher in the middle than it is on the edges. That lasts for just a few feet, then it continues evenly, and you immediately come to a wooden bench on the left under the trees. The bench has a backrest with no armrests and offers a nice view of the river and the hills on the other side.
Continuing past the bench, the trail has a narrow, washed-out rut down the center with a level section about two feet wide on either side, continuing until about 0.27 mile, where there's currently a very deep rut down the center. It's 4-5 inches deep, and up to a foot wide, with a 5-8% decline. The trail gets a little rougher and uneven with patches of old cracked pavement and washed-out gravel surface, on a 2-5% decline. At 0.29 mile you come to more loose gravel on the surface of the trail, up to an inch deep. You may still hear some road noise.
At 0.3 mile, you start to get a view of the ocean, and you can see the highway bridge. The trail surface continues uneven and patchy and takes an 8% decline for about 30 feet. You continue through a narrow corridor of shrubs and low trees. At 0.39 mile, you come to a section of old pavement with grooves cut into the surface going across the trail, on a 5-8% decline. You then gain a view of the mouth of the river and the estuary. The trail narrows to about 3 feet on a 5% cross slope with loose gravel and some uneven patches of old pavement.
At 0.42 mile, the trail starts to curve slightly left and widens to 6-8 feet with loose gravel up to 2 inches deep. You’ll pass a sign that warns of power lines overhead (they are very high overhead). The trail then curves slightly right and takes a slight decline, continuing with loose gravel.
At 0.5 mile, you come to a fork in the trail with the highway bridge above you. Straight ahead, the trail continues into Inglenook Fen 10 Mile Dunes Natural Preserve. To continue on the Old Smith Preserve trail, curve sharply to the right at the fork. The trail continues with loose gravel and takes a decline of about 5% for about 50 feet.
You are now traveling along the river directly on your left. The trail levels out and widens to about 6 feet with loose gravel on top of an old pavement surface. At 0.58 miles, you come to an interpretive sign on the left that says "Turning the Tide for Salmon” about the Ten Mile River estuary. The trail continues straight ahead, following the river. You come to a section with a steep cross slope of about 7% for a few feet, then it continues with a 2-5% cross slope for about 100 feet. The trail evens out, continuing through a wide corridor surrounded by shrubs. The trail surface is eroded pavement and slightly uneven.
Image Description: A wood bench with a backrest sits off the trail with bushes in the background.
Image Description: A gravel trail leads between low growing shrubs. A sign on the left says entering Inglenook Ten Mile Dunes Natural Preserve. A bridge is above in the background.
Image Description: Ten Mile River as is flows beneath a bridge and out to sea. There are water birds in the river and rolling hills on the opposite side. It is foggy.
At 0.67 miles, you come to another interpretive sign on the left with a history of logging on the Ten Mile River. The river got it’s current name because it was ten miles up the coast from Fort Bragg, where the lumber mill was located. There’s a bench on the left overlooking the river; it also has a backrest but no arm rests. The trail widens to 12 feet here with the overlook. It's very nice view of the river and the estuary and is a good place for birding or just enjoying nature with very little highway noise.
Past the bench, the trail continues on old rough pavement with lots of dips and holes and weeds growing through the center. While the trail is overall 6-8 feet wide, with the plants growing up through the center it’s clear for about two feet wide in most places.
At 0.75 miles, the trail narrows to 2-3 feet, enters an area of shrubs and low-growing trees, and then comes to a boardwalk. The boardwalk is a 10-inch-high step up and an 8-inch step down on the other side. It's made of composite boards and about 4 feet wide with no edge guards. On the other side of the boardwalk, the trail surface returns to old pavement with moss and grass growing on top and continues through a narrow corridor of low-growing shrubs.
At 0.8 mile, the trail corridor opens up a little more. The trail surface becomes smoother, but continues on old pavement, generally 3-4 feet wide. At about 0.95 miles, you may start to hear some traffic noise. The trail surface transitions to mostly dirt surface on top of old eroded pavement.
At 1.0 mile the trail surface transitions back to old pavement, 2-3 feet wide. Then after about 100 feet, the trail transitions back to a natural surface footpath surrounded by shrubs with the river on your left. At 1.07 miles, the trail surface transitions back to old pavement, and you then come to a picnic table at 1.10 miles.
The table is positioned on a grass surface. It feels tucked away, surrounded by trees and shrubs with a view of the river. You may be able to get a couple of bars of cell service here if needed. Ahead of you is a gate blocking the trail, so when you are ready turn around and head back the way you came. Go left at the first fork you come to (where the Ten Mile Dunes trail splits off), right up the stairs at the sign pointing to the parking lot and picnic area, continue left through the grove of trees then follow the trail to the parking lot.
A red Mendocino Land Trust sign on a fence. Head towards this then turn right and follow the fence.
Three picnic tables sit out in a grassy field.
Picnic Area
There is another picnic area with a few tables tucked away from the parking lot. To reach it, go east towards the fence line with a Mendocino Land Trust sign on it, walking up the grassy slope. Then go right following the fence line towards a small area of shrubs.
A gravel path leads through the shrubs, with a couple of wooden posts on the right. The path is very steep for a few feet, then you enter a large grassy area. There’s three picnic tables set about 100 feet away at the rear of the grassy area. The picnic area is right next to the highway, though there are shrubs along the edge.
Trail Map
Map of the trail with the route highlighted in green and markers for the benches, picnic tables, stairs, and interpretive signs. Click the image to access the map on AllTrails, which you can use to follow along.