Lake Ranch Reservoir. Sanborn Park . Saratoga, California , USA . — Photo Eugene Zelenko · CC BY-SA 4.0

Sanborn County Park

Saratoga, Santa Clara County, CA

Parking$6 per vehicle

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DogsOn leash

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Hours8 a.m. to sunset

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Size: 3,452 acres Source
Managed by: Santa Clara County Parks

About Sanborn County Park

Sanborn County Park is a mountain park in the Santa Cruz Mountains, between Saratoga and Skyline Boulevard, filled with redwoods and tanbark oaks. More than 22 miles of trails cross its terrain, and the Lake Ranch Trail offers a shaded, easy walk between Lake Ranch and Black Road.

The day-use area has a one-mile nature trail and picnic tables spread across 40 grassy acres, and three group areas can be reserved for large gatherings. In summer, the park is home to Silicon Valley Shakespeare, the region's only outdoor Shakespeare company.

Overnight stays are limited to RVs and hike-in tents. The year-round RV campground has electric and water hookups and a dump station, with a 30-foot vehicle length limit. Hike-in tent camping closes each year from the third Sunday in October until the third Friday in March. Car camping is not allowed, and reservations are strongly encouraged. The county manages Sanborn's woods under a Forest Health Plan.

The park is open from 8 a.m. to sunset, with a vehicle entry fee at the main entrance on Sanborn Road. The Skyline Trail and Sunnyvale Mountain Loop trailhead at 16868 Skyline Boulevard has free parking. Parking is restricted along Black Road and at the far south end of Sanborn Road near the Lake Ranch Trail entrance, where the road narrows to a single lane.

Based on Sanborn County Park official information, checked Oct 18, 2026.

Know before you go

Sanborn County Park covers 3,452 acres in Saratoga, Santa Clara County. Closing follows the sun here: sunset at Sanborn County Park is around 4:52 p.m. in mid-December, 7:14 p.m. in mid-March, 8:29 p.m. in mid-June, and 7:18 p.m. in mid-September. 12 named trails add up to about 19.7 miles inside the park; the longest is John Nicholas Trail at 5.2 miles, and Sanborn Trail has the most up and down (about 1,592 feet). Mapped trails range from 1,333 to 3,089 feet in elevation. OpenStreetMap shows 11 parking areas, including Indian Rock parking and Sunnyvale Mountain, plus 6 restrooms and 1 drinking fountain.

Facilities

Camping
Drinking Water
Historic Site
Picnic Area
Restrooms
Horseshoes
Volleyball

Facility details: official park information, OpenStreetMap

Sanborn County Park at a glance

PParking · 11: Indian Rock parking, Sunnyvale Mountain
WCRestrooms · 6
WDrinking water · 1
iVisitor center · 1: Visitor Center
Named trails · 12

Trails

Trail	Mapped length	Elevation	Surface & uses
John Nicholas Trail	5.2 mi	1,422 ft up & down1,789–2,914 ft	UnpavedBikesHorses
Skyline Trail	4.1 mi	1,381 ft up & down2,766–3,089 ft	UnpavedBikesHorsesPaved
Sanborn Trail	2.7 mi	1,592 ft up & down1,333–2,873 ft	No bikesHorsesUnpavedNo horsesPavedBikes
PG&E Road	1.7 mi	649 ft up & down1,579–2,003 ft	UnpavedNo dogsNo bikesNo horses
Summit Rock Loop Trail	1.3 mi	746 ft up & down2,578–2,976 ft	BikesHorsesUnpaved
Vernon J. Pick Trail	1.1 mi	596 ft up & down1,372–2,008 ft	No bikesHorsesNo horsesPaved
Lower Madrone Trail	0.8 mi	529 ft up & down1,457–2,008 ft	UnpavedNo bikesHorses
Peterson Trail	0.6 mi	459 ft up & down1,333–1,830 ft	No bikesHorses
San Andreas Trail	0.6 mi	130 ft up & down1,400–1,488 ft	No bikesHorsesPaved
Upper Madrone Trail	0.6 mi	463 ft up & down2,008–2,509 ft	UnpavedNo bikesHorses
Ambrose Road	0.5 mi	64 ft up & down1,546–1,629 ft
Lake Ranch Trail	0.5 mi	158 ft up & down1,649–1,829 ft	BikesHorses

How trail figures are measured

Compared with nearby parks

Among the 21 other parks in this guide within 10 miles, Sanborn County Park is number 3 of 22 by size at 3,452 acres. 2 nearby parks have more mapped trail mileage than its 19.7 miles.

Closest places for what Sanborn County Park doesn't list: