Thornewood Open Space Preserve

Thornewood Open Space Preserve is a small, 167-acre preserve in the hills above Woodside, suited to a quick, easy hike or ride. It is named for Julian and Edna Thorne, who bought the land in 1908; their summer house, designed in the 1920s by architect Gardner Dailey (who also designed the farm buildings at nearby Filoli), still stands on 3.5 landscaped acres but is being restored and is closed to the public. The rest of the estate once belonged to August Schilling of the Schilling Spice Company, and remnants of his estate are explained on four interpretive panels along the Rock of Ages Trail. The estate was willed to the Sierra Club Foundation and later given to Midpen.

Two 0.75-mile trails lead to Schilling Lake: one through second-growth Douglas fir and redwood into oak and madrone woods, the other under bigleaf maples and mossy oaks to the redwoods around the water. The lake has long drawn migrating waterfowl, but Midpen is letting it fill in naturally, so it will slowly become a wet meadow and eventually forest.

Leashed dogs are allowed on designated trails and should be kept close in the sensitive lake area; horses are allowed on designated trails, but bikes are not. Crossing Dennis Martin Creek on the bridle trail is not advised during high water. The small lot (five spaces plus one accessible) is reached through a brick gate on La Honda Road, 1.6 miles past Portola Road, then 0.3 miles up a narrow driveway; there is no trailer parking.