Ravenswood Open Space Preserve

Ravenswood Open Space Preserve protects about 376 acres of tidal marsh on the bayshore in East Palo Alto, named for a Gold Rush–era town that once stood nearby. In the 1950s the Leslie Salt Company walled off the marsh with levees to make salt ponds; Midpen bought the land in 1981, opened it in 1989, and began restoring it in 2000 by breaching the old levees and letting the tides back in. The marsh now shelters the endangered Ridgway's rail and salt marsh harvest mouse and draws sandpipers, dowitchers, avocets, great blue herons, egrets, and white pelicans. Twice a day the tide reshapes the view, turning the cordgrass and pickleweed into a maze of channels at high water and exposing mudflats where birds feed at low tide.

The 2.1-mile trail, mostly paved and part of the San Francisco Bay Trail, runs along the levee beside Cooley Marsh, and a raised boardwalk with overlooks connects it to University Avenue. The trail and viewing decks are accessible for wheelchairs and strollers, and Class 1 and 2 e-bikes are allowed on improved trails. A separate northern section near the Dumbarton Bridge approach has a 0.7-mile easy trail with roadside parking. Next door, the city's Cooley Landing Education Center adds picnic tables, trails, and an outdoor amphitheater.

Dogs and horses are not allowed, and groups of 20 or more need a permit. Park at the end of Bay Road off University Avenue, or walk or bike in from the University Avenue trailhead.