Mile 0.0: Start at the Castle Rock parking lot, and walk toward the information signboard and two low red-painted log barricades. Begin hiking downhill through a thick forest of Douglas fir, madrone, and tanoak on Saratoga Gap Trail. Mile .17: Junction with Castle Rock Trail. Continue downhill, right, on Saratoga Gap Trail. Mile .67: Junction with Ridge Trail. Veer right onto Ridge Trail. The path soon climbs out of the woods and emerges into chaparral, then ascends towards Goat Rock. Some sections of trail are confusing through here. Mile 1.17: Goat Rock and junction. Bear left, then after a few feet, bear right, "to campground." Mile 1.34: Junction with connecting path from Interpretive Center. Bear left. Black and live oaks are mixed through madrones and grassland. You may hear gunfire drifting from the nearby rod and gun club. Mile 1.44: Stay to the right at a junction with a path to a bird-watching viewpoint. Mile 1.61: A path left heads downhill to Saratoga Gap Trail, an option if you want to shorten this hike. Continue straight on Ridge Trail, which descends easily just downslope of a madrone and live oak wooded ridge. Mile 2.01: At a break in tree cover, the trail creeps out to an awesome viewpoint. Then you'll return to the woods again, descending still. Mile 2.40: Junction with Saratoga Gap Trail. The trail right goes to the campground. Turn left onto Saratoga Gap Trail. Tanoaks, madrones, and live oaks shade the trail for awhile, but you'll soon enter chaparral. The trail creeps beneath a rocky outcrop, and guidewires help you descend a large boulder. There are a few other short scrambles on this exposed trail, and lots of wonderful views west. Mile 3.06: After returning to oak grassland, you'll reach a junction with the connector path to Ridge Trail. Continue straight on Saratoga Gap Trail. Ahead, you'll pass a bench and small cluster of redwoods in a small gulch to the right. There are a few stretches shaded by California bay, but the trail is most under full sun through chaparral. Mile 3.85: Once you navigate a pile of moss-covered boulders, the trail ascends through live oak and bay woodlands to the top of Castle Rock Falls. Walk a few feet down to a viewing platform where you can enjoy the sight and sound of the falls' 75 foot drop. Then return to the trail and continue uphill on Saratoga Gap Trail. Mile 4.05: Junction, again, with Ridge Trail. Continue straight (right) on Saratoga Gap Trail, and retrace your steps back to the trailhead. Mile 4.72: Back at the trailhead
