Alpine Road was built in 1894, but its roots go back much further, to pre-Columbian times. Alpine, and the parallel route we now call Old Spanish Trail formed a transportation corridor that was the first of its kind on the Peninsula, a road to the coast. In the 1920’s and 1930’s, San Francisco Mayor and California Governor Sunny Jim Rolph would use it to access his mountain top Ranch. In more recent decades massive mudslides followed by more massive construction projects have maintained the route, at least has a second road into Los Trancos Woods and as a hiking and bicycling route to open space areas along the crest of the Coastal Range. The upper reaches of the old road are soon to be renovated and incorporated into MidPeninsula’s Coal Creek Open Space Preserve.

Drawing on historical resources in the Town’s archives, this 12-minute video gives an overview of the road’s history.

Watch the 12 minute video - The Alpine Road Story