Private ranch next to Tilden park eyed for purchase by land trust

Photo: Adam Weidenbach

The John Muir Land Trust is trying to raise $7 million to buy the 116-acre Johnson Ranch near the steam train, and open its panoramic views to the public. It bought a smaller ranch nearby last December.

There are 116 privately owned acres of woodland, grassland and coastal scrub abutting Tilden park with incredible views in all directions, a waterfall and evidence it was once home to prehistoric three-toed horses and human cultures spread across the centuries.

And a conservation group wants to buy it and let you in.

The John Muir Land Trust (JMLT) launched a campaign Wednesday to buy Johnson Ranch, a natural area in the East Bay hills — just a few minutes walk up Seaview Trail from the steam train.

The land trust describes privately owned Johnson Ranch, owned by a single family for generations, as “the critical missing piece in a natural wildlife corridor of thousands of acres.”

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