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Running trails in Cupertino, CA
Cupertino has 19 trails in the directory — 2 paved and 1 on crushed gravel or dirt, 7 loops that return to the trailhead, 8 with a stated distance, 8 shaded, and 3 open 24 hours. 11 of them post opening hours, so you can check the gate before an early start. They're ranked here by rating weighted by review volume, across 10,418 Google reviews. Filter by surface, loop, distance, shade or lighting to get to the run you're actually planning — no made-up difficulty score, just the facts you'd check before driving out.
Rancho San Antonio County Park & Open Space Preserve
4.7 ★★★★★ 4,535 reviews
Rural nature preserve with 25 miles of hiking trails, plus a working farm & a model plane launch.
Stevens Creek County Park
4.6 ★★★★★ 1,367 reviews
Miles of multi-use trails, shaded picnic areas & a large reservoir for fishing & boating.
Fremont Older Open Space Preserve
4.7 ★★★★★ 1,146 reviews
Scenic spread on 739 acres with rolling views & trails for hiking, biking & horseback riding.
Picchetti Ranch
4.7 ★★★★★ 1,107 reviews
308-acre park offering 3.7 miles of trails amid orchards & woodlands, a winery & weekly activities.
McClellan Ranch Preserve
4.7 ★★★★★ 726 reviews
Former horse ranch from the 1930s featuring a nature museum, community garden & historic buildings.
Creekside Park
4.5 ★★★★★ 705 reviews
Soccer fields, a playground & a community room make up this urban green space with walking paths.
Rancho San Antonio Open Space Preserve
4.7 ★★★★★ 157 reviews
Nature preserve with hiking trails, a farm, and picnic tables, plus deer, turkeys, and other wildlife.
Stevens Creek Reservoir
4.4 ★★★★☆ 158 reviews
Tranquil, tree-covered reservoir, plus trails and picnic areas, for hiking and family outings.
PG&E Trailhead
4.7 ★★★★★ 146 reviews
Popular hiking area featuring a steep trail that's good for those looking for a strenuous workout.
Deer Hollow Farm Trailhead
4.8 ★★★★★ 110 reviews
Walks and hiking for families along trails, some with creek views, with a farm and farm animals.
Fremont Older Trailhead
4.6 ★★★★★ 59 reviews
Roadside parking is available for this hiking area leading to Freemont Open Space trails.
Tony Look trail
4.5 ★★★★★ 17 reviews
Regnart Creek Trail
5 ★★★★★ 5 reviews
Hidden Gulch
5 ★★★★★ 3 reviews
No trails match those filters.
How to pick a trail in Cupertino
- Match the surface to your legs. Cupertino gives you a choice: 2 paved, 1 natural surface, and 1 mixed. Asphalt and concrete are fast, predictable and runnable year-round but the least forgiving; crushed limestone and dirt take the sting out of high mileage; boardwalk is flat and scenic but slick in the wet. If your shins or knees are complaining, the fix that actually works is varying the surface you run on rather than chasing one "best" one. More paved trails →
- Loop or out-and-back? 7 trails here are loops, so you finish back at the car with no backtracking — the easiest way to run a set distance without thinking about it. On an out-and-back you turn round at half your target distance, which makes any trail fit any run. The longest stated distance in Cupertino is Rancho San Antonio County Park & Open Space Preserve at 25 mi. 4 trails are long enough for a 5-mile-plus run without repeating yourself.
- Check the hours before a 6am run. 3 trails in Cupertino are open 24 hours — the rest can sit inside a park that gates at dusk and doesn't unlock until well after sunrise. 11 of the 19 listings carry posted opening hours — worth a look before you set an alarm.
- Long run? Check water and restrooms first. 15 have trailhead parking, 10 have restrooms, and 6 have a water fountain in Cupertino. Anything over an hour and those stop being nice-to-haves — and in summer, shade counts double.
- The small things that decide it. 8 shaded, 5 that runners describe as quiet, 7 dog-friendly, and 7 smooth and wide enough for a stroller or a wheelchair. Busy or quiet isn't a good-or-bad thing here: a busy path is the safer choice for a solo run at dawn, a quiet one is better for intervals.
More on all of this in the trail-running guides.
Browse Cupertino trails by type
Running trails near Cupertino
Worth the short drive — the closest towns with trails in the directory.