Poly Canyon

Very inspiring to see the results of so much worked produced by students over the years. It could benefit from an additional maintenance to keep it in condition. Good representation of learning by doing 😁

What a cool spot to hike too. Difficult to find parking in campus if you don’t know where to park. I parked in front of the food hall. Downloaded the parking app and that was it. Lots to see. No shade in the way there. Plenty of areas to sit. You can walk into the structures. Be respectful these were hours and hard work of past students. Enjoy

Hiked in this trail for the first time, November/22/20. The trail starts right in the middle of the campus. There’s no parking fee, no entrance fee, I didn’t see bathroom at the trailhead. My hike was a loop 7 miles, around 1,200 feet of the elevation gain. I was started at something very interesting, those architecture graveyard projects, it was fun, I enjoyed a lot. Following the dirt, rock, straight up trail, it leads me to the Serenity Swing, (tree of life). The views of the canyon from the peak is truly breathtaking, it’s spectacular place to take a break. I was ended my hike at the ranch. It is not too difficult hike, well maintained trails, no shade, hiking shoes needed, plenty of water, hat, sunblock, snacks. Happy Hike Everyone!!!

Great morning time adventure for family and kids. Park on campus close to the poly canyon gate. We parked by the facilities management lot in a spot NOT labeled “staff.” About a mile hike up to the first structures, all of which were built by cal poly students with engineers and architects to help. Most projects are older, circa 65-85 and in various states of decay. This is amazing in itself and allows the viewer to see how each structure was fabricated. Although I was pleased to see a recent platform, built in 2019, and looking great. “Learn by doing” the cal poly moto is on display and reassuring to the public that this central coastal town will continue to churn out future builders, even if UC Berkeley does a better job of that. Ha ha ha ha ha ha. Go bears.

One the best hikes I’ve been on. Structures by cal poly architecture students were very cool + the endless nature was extremely beautiful and calming.

Beautiful place. Make sure you hike to the top of the hill, the view is worth it! Would recommend going early morning.

Old growth oak woodland with some massive eucalyptus on the path to graveyard. Carry water and watch for wildlife.

Architecture graveyard is one of SLO's most unique spots. The trail there is lovely, with a great view of creeks and a variety of trees.

Visiting SLO and my wife heard about this trail. I checked online on how to access...unfortunately the article was from 5 years ago and seemed to be outdated. Make sure you have plenty of time as there is quite a bit to see. We had a little over an hour and weren't able to see everything. We parked at the parking village drive parking garage, which was $10. There are 2 trails that head to the entrance arch shown in the picture..the first we ran across connected to the living quarters as was a narrow trail in the grass leading to the woods. This is a tad more challenging as the other trail is a gravel road with a slight incline and this route is a small path through the woods ( incline, decline, over branches and roots, etc). After about 14 mins it connects the gravel travel. To access from the gravel trail start from the parking garage opposite of the parking garage entrance there is a sidewalk path leading to a bridge, cross the bridge and you'll be on your way. Immediately, we saw some horses wandering around and crossing us on the trail. They were calm and a pleasant surprise. I won't post much of our photos, but there are lots of interesting structures that gave me a burning man feel. Lots of graffiti too, not sure if that is welcome or just vandalism. This was a nice change of pace trail and I would recommend.

If you've heard of the Architecture Graveyard, this is the way to get there! Other reviews have good directions but I highly recommend going on a weekend so you don't have to worry about finding parking. There's also a parking garage that isn't too far, in addition to the nearby staff lots. Trail is a fire road, and occasionally there are cars/trucks on it, so stay aware. You'll eventually come to a route to your right with a bridge for a hidden trail, but keep going to the left to get to the graveyard - plan to spend an hour or two if you really want to wander around and see all the structures. The trail itself is shady, but several of the projects are out in the open - take sunblock and water, and use common sense. For better or worse, most of the architecture displays are run-down, broken, and/or vandalized with graffiti - it lends a cool dystopian vibe to the area but it's a shame that the university let them get so damaged. Still cool to explore, though, stop by to take a look and get in some steps on a nice day!

Logistics: - If you're coming on a weekday, make sure to buy a parking permit from the information booth for $5. You can park at the closest lot which is R1 to the trail head. - If you're coming on a weekend, it's free parking and the H1 staff parking is the closest parking lot to the trail head. - If you just want to the architectural graveyard hike, at the fork, hike to the left and you'll get a cool walk around the structures - Trail head is a fire road with a gate, open for pedestrians. This was a fun trail and since SF and I only wanted to see the graveyard, the hike altogether was about 4 miles with some detours. It's not very shaded when you're on the fire road but at the graveyard, you get some shade coverage. Pretty cool hike to go on if you're in SLO for the weekend!

Super cute, short and sweet hiking trail located on campus! It's about 1 mile (2 miles RT) from the start of the trail head to the Architectural Graveyard. Pop in and look around; there is a lot of interesting structures and on the day we went, there were some horses hanging out. There isn't much shade but also not much incline either so totally doable for most people. The address tries to make you drive on the fire road/trail which is totally wrong... so come during the weekend, park in lot H4 and walk to the yellow "gates". Don't waste your time driving around like I did. Enjoy!

Dragged my girls and dog on this interesting looking hike on vacation on a whim. Parking garage not that close-$6. Does take some time to get to architectural artifacts. But once there greeted my enormous piles of horse poo, then saw many horses cavorting about under the shade of a large tree. One horse in particular took a liking to our golden retriever, much to his alarm since he's never seen a horse before! Unplanned highlight of our central coast trip really.

We went on this fun, easy hike on a Saturday morning with our family and dog. The unique structures are fun to see and there was a mountain bike race going on which we watched for about 1/2 hour. It's real nice back here - wish we had more time to spend just walking around.

A very scenic hike. Especially loved touring the Cal Poly Experimental Architecture space tahat is a diversion from from the main trail. The only drawback was that it took some time to find the trailhead. In addition street parking near the trailhead was difficult to find due to campus parking restrictions so we ended parking in a public garage on campus and "hiked" 10 minutes to the trailhead. Fortunately use of the ParkMobile app was available so we could add extra time that we needed.

The Serenity Swing is a great hike off of Poly Canyon with amazing views. We hiked it on a very windy day making it more challenging, but it was worth it. About 600 ft in elevation change from Poly canyon with the last bit being practically straight up. Could clearly see Morro Bay and all of SLO. Definitely going to be doing this hike again. I've been hiking, biking and running Poly Canyon since 2002, and thankfully not too much has changed. Usually low traffic which is nice if you're wanting to get away. The only real downsides are the parking on campus which is expensive and the complete exposure. Be sure to buy a parking permit and definitely use sunscreen. There are very few trees to hide under, but the ones available are a nice welcome break. Feel free to bring your dog on leash as they will have a blast.

Loved it. Top side of campus, go on weekends and the student parking was free for me. No one in faculty parking but I stayed away. Access is unmarked gated dirt gravel road, a stream runs along the side of the road, joined a friendly couple and kids that were about 8 years old boys up the trail. At a regular pace it took about 30 minutes to get the to zig zagged marked entrance. If one were to fly through the area with all the structures it would be about 20 minutes tops but exploring, taking photos, hanging, climbing on some (some you should not, signs prohibit some climbing). The structures are NOT maintained but everyone is expected to just admire and photograph. This a hike that is NOT like any other I've ever been to. For uniqueness it's a 5/5 star. It's a like a state monument.

The highlight of my visit to SLO was hiking along this trail to see the Architecture Graveyard. We visited this past weekend and lucky for us we discovered parking on the SLO campus was free (only on weekends) so we parked in a lot next to apartment buildings called Caballo, Hollister, and more. From the lot we walked over to Poly Canyon Road past the metal gate where the path started and began our hike. It was more like a nice 15-20 minute stroll on a dirt path until we reached the graveyard that was marked clearly by a brick Arch and map. In the graveyard there were about 15 different structures - restructured houses to functional statues- to see and they were really cool! Just follow and stay on path bc it will lead you all around the graveyard. And afterwards if you want more or a challenge, you can exit the graveyard and walk past the houses (probably the keymasters') to go see the Serenity Swing. Though we attempted the hike, it proved more steep than we imagined. But tbh I think we were just not fit enough or were too lazy to walk up the slopes bc lots of students ran up the hill as if it was a breeze. But anyway, all in all the hiking trail is quite nice and I'd recommend it to anyone who visits SLO. The trail is a bit dry with shrubs and not shaded but weather in SLO seems nice. Bring a jacket if you're hiking past sunset bc it does get chilly!

When I was in high school here in SLO, our group would stay overnight in the canyon with sleeping bags. The buildings were not boarded up at the time and we're in good condition. Substances that are legal now we're ingested for recreational purposes. It was a really fun time walking around in the moonlight with the futuristic structures.

Very nice hiking trail that I was glad to be told about. Starts right next to Cal Poly's Canyon Village. You go just above the river on a pretty wide and well maintained dirt road for about 1-2 miles then get to the architectural graveyard; that's what someone told me it was called, and there are maybe 15 or so interesting monuments/student projects there. Neat little hike, also can ride your mountain bike up too.

It's a nice place to exercise on a daily basis. There are multiple of paths/routes. One leading to Serenity Swing, Architecture Graveyard, or enjoying the huge pavement along the small little river. My only concern is that there is another path which doesn't really warn you take there are no fences or borders to keep from you from falling down (into the river stream). It is deep, and you may run into some cobwebs and flying gnats. At some occasions, I did see some wild goats, deer, giant squirrels, falcon, and hares. I must say it is a very pretty scenic route to get "lost" and have fun exploring.

Fun hike. Hard to find and parking is more than expensive. I'd avoid if unfamiliar with the area you will be driving around for a while on your google maps.

Easy hike, fun seeing the structures, oak groves and steams. Great way to get a little exercise and enjoy beautiful weather and scenery. It takes about an hour and a half.