Cascade Canyon, Fairfax, CA

Cascade Canyon is the wooded notch on the southwest side of Fairfax where Cascade Drive follows a creek up toward the hills. The road ends at a preserve gate instead of another street, and the houses sit close to the water and the trees. It feels more like a forest lane than part of a town. Homes in Cascade Canyon range from older cabin-style cottages to larger custom houses, many of them shingled and set among redwood and bay trees, with decks and gardens built to take in the greenery. Streets are narrow, and the lots follow the contours of the canyon floor and its sides. The main attraction is at the top. The preserve at the top spreads over roughly 500 acres, and the walk to Cascade Falls is roughly a mile and a quarter round trip through forest beside the creek. The water is strongest in winter and spring. Doc Edgar Park, a short way down Cascade Drive, is the meeting spot for ranger-led walks. Dogs stay on leash here because foothill yellow-legged frogs live in the creeks. For meals you head into the center of town, about a mile away. Más Masa makes tacos from handmade corn tortillas, Village Sake serves Japanese small plates, and Taste Kitchen & Table is the stop for pastries. The Coffee Roastery handles espresso, and Fairfax Scoop closes out the afternoon with ice cream. Errands run through downtown too, since Good Earth Natural Foods is the closest grocery. Buses on Sir Francis Drake are the transit option, and reaching them from the canyon takes a short drive or a bike ride. Highway 101 is reached through San Anselmo and San Rafael. Parking is the pinch point. Cascade Drive has limited space, enough that ranger walks use a shuttle between the park and the gate. After a wet week the creek and falls are the main event, and the canyon road is where the town stops and the trailhead begins.