Skyline Boulevard | ||||
Route information | ||||
Maintained by Caltrans | ||||
Length | 54.056 mi [1] (86.995 km) The length of SR 35 is broken into pieces and do not reflect overlaps. [2] | |||
Tourist routes | Skyline Boulevard from the Santa Cruz–Santa Clara County line to SR 92 [3] | |||
Major junctions | ||||
South end | SR 17 near Redwood Estates | |||
North end | SR 1 in San Francisco | |||
Location | ||||
Country | United States | |||
State | California | |||
Counties | Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, San Mateo, San Francisco | |||
Highway system | ||||
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State Route 35 (SR 35), generally known as Skyline Boulevard for most of its length, is a mostly two-lane state highway in the U.S. state of California. It runs along the ridge of the Santa Cruz Mountains from the high point of State Route 17 near Lexington Reservoir in Santa Clara County to State Route 1 just south of Daly City in San Mateo County, where it crosses SR 1 and loops around Lake Merced to become Sloat Boulevard in San Francisco. SR 35 then continues along Sloat Boulevard until it reaches its terminus when it meets SR 1 again at 19th Avenue.
Because of its high elevation and location, it is one of the few places on the southern portion of the San Francisco Peninsula from which the San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean are both visible at the same time. It also provides scenic views of the Silicon Valley metropolitan area.
It was originally designated State Route 5 (SR 5), but this had to be changed with the creation of Interstate 5 (I-5) in 1964 to avoid confusion between the two roads.
The highway begins at the junction of Summit Road and State Route 17, at Patchen Pass. While SR 17 traverses the pass outright, SR 35 primarily is on the ridgeline. The portion of SR 35 from SR 17 to Bear Creek Road is called Summit Road. The highway then merges with Bear Creek Road for a few miles before becoming Skyline Boulevard. It bears the name Skyline Boulevard for a majority of its route along the ridge of the Santa Cruz Mountains to the west of Silicon Valley, passing by cities such as San Jose, Saratoga, and Palo Alto. The southern portion of the road, starting at Highway 17 and ending at Black Road, is mostly a narrow and winding country road without a double-yellow line. However, the road has been upgraded to 2 lanes beginning at Black Road, and remains in this configuration until it merges with Interstate 280 north of California State Route 92. The road reaches its highest elevation near Sanborn Skyline County Park at about 3,000 ft (914 m). The road passes through the small community of Sky Londa where it intersects State Route 84. The ridge that the road follows forms the border between Santa Cruz and Santa Clara counties. However, the boundary is so irregular that the road weaves in and out of the two counties.
The ridgetop portion of the route ends at the junction with State Route 92, [4] because this northern area of the Santa Cruz Mountains is a protected watershed owned by the San Francisco Water Department. Highway 35 is co-routed with SR 92 for 2 miles (3 km) east, descending towards Crystal Springs Reservoir, which it crosses on a causeway, and then joins Interstate 280 northbound for 6 miles (10 km). However, on the southbound side, Route 35 exists as a separate road to the west of the freeway between Bunker Hill Dr. and Route 92, as there is no connector road between 280 South and 92 West.
Route 35 departs from 280 at the southern end of San Bruno, running to the west of the freeway, regaining the ridgetop separating South San Francisco and Daly City from Pacifica.
It crosses State Route 1 in Daly City and in San Francisco, Skyline Boulevard ends and the highway briefly continues along Sloat Boulevard until it reaches its terminus when it intersects Highway 1 again at 19th Avenue.
SR 35 is part of the California Freeway and Expressway System, [5] but is not part of the National Highway System, [6] a network of highways that are considered essential to the country's economy, defense, and mobility by the Federal Highway Administration. [7] SR 35 is eligible for the State Scenic Highway System; [8] however, only the portion from the Santa Cruz–Santa Clara County line to the SR 92 junction is officially designated as a scenic highway by the California Department of Transportation, [9] meaning that it is a substantial section of highway passing through a "memorable landscape" with no "visual intrusions", where the potential designation has gained popular favor with the community. [10]
Because of its scenic views and winding roadway, Skyline Boulevard and surrounding roads see substantial recreational motoring and bicycling use. Many sports cars and motorcycles can be found congregating near the intersections with State Route 9 and State Route 84, particularly on weekends. Mountain bikers are also commonly found at the many trailheads along the road.
Several public open spaces border on Skyline Boulevard, including Sanborn County Park, Windy Hill, and the Purisima Open Space; both the latter are parts of the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District. Numerous hiking trails originate from parking lots off Skyline in these open spaces.
Whenever there is snow on the road's higher elevations, many people take their families up to see and play in the snow, and therefore, many of the parking lots at regional parks are packed with cars.
For most of the route, State Route 35 offers vistas of both San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean. The route passes through or by several Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District preserves and other parks, from south to north:
A number of streams originate near Skyline Boulevard, flowing to both Pacific Ocean and the Bay. Among the bayside streams are San Francisquito Creek, Redwood Creek, and San Bruno Creek.
Location | Seal Beach, California-Baldwin Park, California |
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Existed | 1934–1964 |
The original road called State Route 35 was located in southern California and ran north to south from State Route 22 (Garden Grove Boulevard) in Orange County to U.S. 99 (Garvey Avenue), first along Los Alamitos Boulevard going north which, after entering Los Angeles County, turns into Norwalk Boulevard. Route 35 continued west on Centralia Street and then north along Pioneer Boulevard until hitting San Antonio Drive at Rosecrans Avenue. San Antonio Drive would turn back into Norwalk Boulevard and continue with that street name until turning into Old Mill Road at Beverly Boulevard. Route 35 would wind through Rose Hills and Avocado Heights as Workman Mill Road and would then turn into Puente Avenue at Valley Boulevard where it would continue to its end at U.S. 99 (which was concurrent with U.S. Routes 60 and 70) at the border of Baldwin Park and West Covina.
The current State Route 35, Skyline Boulevard, was originally designated State Route 5. The number was changed in the 1964 renumbering in California. On February 10, 2017, a huge washout washed away a 220-foot stretch of SR 35 about five miles south of the junction with State Route 9. Repairs were completed and the section of road re-opened January 9, 2018. [11]
Except where prefixed with a letter, postmiles were measured on the road as it was in 1964, based on the alignment that existed at the time, and do not necessarily reflect current mileage. R reflects a realignment in the route since then, M indicates a second realignment, L refers to an overlap due to a correction or change, and T indicates postmiles classified as temporary ( ). [1] Segments that remain unconstructed or have been relinquished to local control may be omitted. The numbers reset at county lines; the start and end postmiles in each county are given in the county column.
County | Location | Postmile [1] [12] [13] | Exit [14] [15] | Destinations | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Santa Clara SCL R0.05-0.23 | Lexington Hills | R0.05 | Summit Road | Continuation beyond SR 17 | |
R0.05 | SR 17 – San Jose, Santa Cruz | Interchange; south end of SR 35 | |||
Santa Cruz SCR 0.23-7.68 | | 2.87 | Bear Creek Road | ||
Santa Clara SCL 7.68-17.12 | Saratoga Gap | 14.10 | SR 9 – Big Basin, Boulder Creek, Santa Cruz, Saratoga | ||
San Mateo | | 3.21 | Alpine Road, Page Mill Road | ||
Woodside | 10.52 | SR 84 (La Honda Road) – Woodside, La Honda | |||
| 23.04 5.19 [N 1] | SR 92 west – Half Moon Bay, Santa Cruz | South end of SR 92 overlap | ||
| 7.19 [N 1] L21.72 | SR 92 east to I-280 – Belmont, San Mateo, San Francisco, San Jose | North end of SR 92 overlap | ||
| L22.76 R12.32 [N 2] | I-280 south (Junipero Serra Freeway) / Skyline Boulevard, Bunker Hill Drive – San Jose | Interchange; south end of I-280 overlap; I-280 exit 34 | ||
South end of freeway on I-280 | |||||
Hillsborough | R14.22 [N 2] | 36 | Black Mountain Road, Hayne Road | ||
| R17.16 [N 2] | 39 | Trousdale Drive – Burlingame | ||
Millbrae | R17.92 [N 2] | 40 | Millbrae Avenue | Northbound exit and southbound entrance | |
R18.52 [N 2] | 41 | Larkspur Drive, Millbrae Avenue | Southbound exit and northbound entrance | ||
San Bruno | R19.28 [N 2] R23.04 | North end of freeway on I-280 | |||
I-280 north (Junipero Serra Freeway) – San Francisco | Interchange; north end of I-280 overlap; northbound exit and southbound entrance; I-280 north exit 41 | ||||
Pacifica | | South end of freeway | |||
Daly City | R28.69 | 54 | SR 1 to I-280 – San Jose, San Francisco, Pacifica, Santa Cruz | Signed as exits 54A (north) and 54B (south); SR 1 exits 508A-B | |
| North end of freeway | ||||
30.83 | John Daly Boulevard – Westlake District | ||||
City and County of San Francisco SF 0.00-3.16 | | Great Highway – Beach | Serves the San Francisco Zoo | ||
1.83 | Sloat Boulevard | ||||
2.12 | Sunset Boulevard | Interchange | |||
3.16 | SR 1 (19th Avenue) – San Mateo, Golden Gate Park | North end of SR 35 | |||
3.16 | Sloat Boulevard – San Francisco Civic Center | Continuation beyond SR 1 | |||
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
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State Route 1 (SR 1) is a major north–south state highway that runs along most of the Pacific coastline of the U.S. state of California. At 656 miles (1,056 km), it is the longest state route in California, and the second-longest in the US after Montana Highway 200. SR 1 has several portions designated as either Pacific Coast Highway (PCH), Cabrillo Highway, Shoreline Highway, or Coast Highway. Its southern terminus is at Interstate 5 (I-5) near Dana Point in Orange County and its northern terminus is at U.S. Route 101 (US 101) near Leggett in Mendocino County. SR 1 also at times runs concurrently with US 101, most notably through a 54-mile (87 km) stretch in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, and across the Golden Gate Bridge.
Interstate 680 (I-680) is a north–south auxiliary Interstate Highway in Northern California. It curves around the eastern cities of the San Francisco Bay Area from San Jose to I-80 at Fairfield, bypassing cities along the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay such as Oakland and Richmond while serving others more inland such as Pleasanton and Concord.
Interstate 280 (I-280) is a 57.22-mile-long (92.09 km) major north–south auxiliary Interstate Highway in the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It runs from I-680 and US Route 101 (US 101) in San Jose to King and 5th streets in San Francisco, running just to the west of the larger cities of San Francisco Peninsula for most of its route.
State Route 138 is an east–west state highway in the U.S. state of California that generally follows the northern foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains and the western Mojave Desert. The scenic highway begins in the west at its junction with Interstate 5 located south of Gorman in the Sierra Pelona Mountains, continues eastward through the Antelope Valley and Cajon Pass, to its junction with State Route 18 in the east, located in the San Bernardino Mountains south of Crestline.
State Route 92 is a state highway in the U.S. state of California, serving as a major east-west corridor in the San Francisco Bay Area. From its west end at State Route 1 in Half Moon Bay near the coast, it heads east across the San Francisco Peninsula and the San Mateo–Hayward Bridge to downtown Hayward in the East Bay at its junction with State Route 238 and State Route 185. It has interchanges with three freeways: Interstate 280, U.S. Route 101 in or near San Mateo, and Interstate 880 in Hayward. It also connects indirectly to Interstates 238 and 580 by way of Hayward's Foothill Boulevard, which carries Route 238 and flows directly into Route 92.
State Route 152 is a state highway that runs from east to west near the middle of the U.S. state of California from State Route 1 in Watsonville to State Route 99 southeast of Merced. Its western portion provides access to and from Interstate 5 toward Southern California for motorists in or near Gilroy and San Jose.
State Route 74, part of which forms the Palms to Pines Scenic Byway or Pines to Palms Highway, and the Ortega Highway, is a state highway in the U.S. state of California. It runs from Interstate 5 in San Juan Capistrano in Orange County to the city limits of Palm Desert in Riverside County. Stretching about 111 miles (179 km), it passes through several parks and National Forests between the Pacific coast and the Coachella Valley.
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State Route 38 is a mostly rural and scenic state highway in the U.S. state of California, connecting Interstate 10 in Redlands with State Route 18 in the Big Bear Lake area. It is one of the primary routes into the San Bernardino Mountains. Despite the orientation of its alignment, SR 38 is assigned in a west–east direction.
State Route 2 (SR 2) is a state highway in the U.S. state of California. It connects the Los Angeles Basin with the San Gabriel Mountains and the Victor Valley in the Mojave Desert. The highway's southwestern end is at the intersection of Centinela Avenue at the Santa Monica-Los Angeles border and its northeastern end is at SR 138 east of Wrightwood. The SR 2 is divided into four segments, and it briefly runs concurrently with U.S. Route 101 (US 101) and Interstate 210 (I-210). The southwestern section of SR 2 runs along a segment of the east–west Santa Monica Boulevard, an old routing of US 66, to US 101 in East Hollywood; the second section runs along segments of both the north–south Alvarado Street and Glendale Boulevard in Echo Park; the third section to I-210 in Glendale is known as the north–south Glendale Freeway; and the northeastern portion from I-210 in La Cañada Flintridge to SR 138 is designated as the Angeles Crest Highway.
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The State Scenic Highway System in the U.S. state of California is a list of highways, mainly state highways, that have been designated by the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) as scenic highways. They are marked by the state flower, a California poppy, inside either a rectangle for state-maintained highways or a pentagon for county highways.
State Route 84 is a state highway in the U.S. state of California that consists of two unconnected segments, one in the San Francisco Bay Area and the other primarily in the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta area.
State Route 17 is a state highway in the U.S. state of California that runs from State Route 1 in Santa Cruz to I-280 and I-880 in San Jose. SR 17, a freeway and expressway, carries substantial commuter and vacation traffic through the Santa Cruz Mountains at Patchen Pass between Santa Cruz and the San Francisco Bay Area.
State Route 4 is a state highway in the U.S. state of California, routed from Interstate 80 in the San Francisco Bay Area to State Route 89 in the Sierra Nevada. It roughly parallels the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, a popular area for boating and fishing, with a number of accesses to marinas and other attractions. After crossing the Central Valley, the highway ascends up the Sierra foothills. It passes through Ebbetts Pass and contains the Ebbetts Pass Scenic Byway, a National Scenic Byway.
State Route 33 is a north–south state highway in the U.S. state of California. It runs north from U.S. Route 101 in Ventura through the Transverse Ranges and the western side of the San Joaquin Valley to Interstate 5 at a point east of Tracy. SR 33 replaced part of U.S. Route 399 in 1964 during the "great renumbering" of routes. In the unincorporated sections of Kern County it is known as the West Side Highway. In addition, the California Legislature designated the entire Kern County portion as the Petroleum Highway in 2004. The southernmost portion in Ventura is a freeway known as the Ojai Freeway, while it is known as the Maricopa Highway from Ojai to Maricopa.
State Route 156 is a west to east state highway in the U.S. state of California, running from State Route 1 in Castroville to State Route 152 near Hollister. It serves as part of the primary route from the Monterey Peninsula to either the San Francisco Bay Area or the California Central Valley.
State Route 166 is a state highway in the U.S. state of California. It connects the Central Coast to the southern San Joaquin Valley, running from State Route 1 in Guadalupe and through Santa Maria in Santa Barbara County to State Route 99 in Mettler in Kern County.
U.S. Route 101 (US 101) is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway, stretching from Los Angeles, California, to Tumwater, Washington. The California portion of US 101 is one of the last remaining and longest U.S. Routes still active in the state, and the longest highway of any kind in California. US 101 was also one of the original national routes established in 1926. Significant portions of US 101 between the Los Angeles area and the San Francisco Bay Area follow El Camino Real, the commemorative route connecting the former Alta California's 21 missions.
Junipero Serra Boulevard is a major boulevard in and south of San Francisco named after Franciscan friar Junipero Serra. Within the city, it forms part of the route of State Route 1, the shortest connection between Interstate 280 and the Golden Gate Bridge. The remainder, in San Mateo County, was bypassed or replaced by I-280, the Junipero Serra Freeway. The boulevard was one of several new roads built along the San Francisco Peninsula before the age of freeways, and became a state highway known as Route 237 in 1956, receiving the State Route 117 designation in the 1964 renumbering, only to be deleted from the state highway system the next year. Two other regional highways—Bayshore Highway and Skyline Boulevard—were also upgraded into or bypassed by freeways.