Sonoma Valley Regional Park

Fantastic park! We walked the Valley of the Moon paved trail (1.3 miles from Hwy 12 parking lot to Arnold Drive) with our dogs today and it was lovely! Trail is pretty flat with benches & picnic tables (with trash cans) along the way. Trail follows little creeks and additional trails take off from this main trail.

I stumbled upon this place when I was trying to get a 10 mile training run in on the scary winding roads around the vineyards. What a blessing! I ended up getting my 10 miles in and spending most of my morning completely in awe of the scenery and awesome trails that I came across. Everyone that was out that morning smiled and said good morning, too, so the friendliness I was met with made it even better. Love!

I took an unexpected hike at Sonoma Valley Regional Park when I discovered Jack London’s help was late opening the gates. Even though I was closer to the entrance on the Arnold Drive side of the park, I didn’t like the parking so I drove around to the highway 12 side that had ample parking. I have an annual pass for Sonoma County Regional Parks so I didn’t have to pay the $ 7.00 parking fee. I was not familiar with the park and I wanted to see the lake and took the West Sutton lake trail which led me to a gate opening that had a sign Park Boundary Restricted Area Beyond this point, so I went back and took the Corridor Ridge Trail assuming I would be able to spot the lake from the top of the mountains — it was hilly terrain which led me to the Arnold side of the park and I never saw the lake. That side opens up into Lake Suttonfield which is not part of the Sonoma Valley Park but a reservoir. I could not find very much information on this lake online. After hiking around the lake I started back to my car from the other side of lake on well-​cut trails but found myself walking in what could have been private property — it was very confusing where the park started and stopped and what trails were private or not. I found myself having to use my GPS to figure out where I was most of the time. My fitbit hit 10,000 steps by the time I got back to my car so expect this was about 4 miles. The hike starts with some pretty impressive vistas of the Sonoma Valley and Glen Ellen area. The wildlife I saw was limited to birds. I saw acorn woodpeckers, turkey vultures, western jays, and a lot of tweets. At the lake I saw Mallards, Cormorants, Herons, Coots and a solo Bufflehead that looks lost and out of place. The park was not much to see the lake was pretty cool. Anchored with a dog park this place is good for dog walkers and noticed some jogging and signs of equestrian activity. I guess there is a fair amount of birding here too as a birding site has information on this park as well. Living in Petaluma, I don’t think I would make a special trip to visit here. It is a nice spot for the locals.

This is truly one of the best dog friendly parks I have been to in the bay area. A meandering paved path through a shady oak valley along a stream right through the middle of the park. Sutter’s Lake (actually next to the park) is clear enough to see the bass swimming below the surface and well worth the side trip after walking the paved trail or hiking the hillside trails. Btw there are numerous tables perfect to sit at and enjoy a picnic. Bring lots of fluids, both for fido and yourself since 200 acres is enough to get turned around in. Also, the map posted is inadequate! Do research before you go, since the cell service is spotty too. :)

Pretty park, very dusty and not signed, but not so big you’ll get really lost, although I would recommend trying to note where you turn on the trail. Takes you to a nice pond to walk around. It’s very relaxing and not at all crowded, so a nice way to be outdoors and get a little exercise between or before wine tastings and food.

This is a relaxing, beautiful area. There’s a lake and an adjacent dog park. I hardly see anyone there when I go, very peaceful.

This park is a great place for dog walking and there’s a huge and well-​maintained dog run as well. There’s a nice lake there too!