A first phase, including about 500 acres (200 ha) west of Bear Creek Road, was opened to the public on June 8, 2019.

[1] Fauna include mountain lions, mule deer, coyotes, bobcats, song sparrows, mallard ducks, bullfrogs, western pond turtles, Townsend's big-eared bats, California myotis bats, Mexican free-tailed bats, Steller's jays, Santa Cruz black salamanders, California giant salamanders, red-shouldered hawks, belted kingfishers, and many migratory bird species.

The southwestern corner of the preserve reaches south of State Route 35 into the upper watershed of Zayante Creek, a tributary of the San Lorenzo River.

The Ohlone gathered acorns and grass seeds to make bread and porridge, and ground them into flour at milling stations on boulders and rock outcrops.

In 1906 Harry Tevis, heir to a San Francisco mining fortune, built a 50-room mansion, gardens, and stables on a ridge top.

In 1999, the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District signed a contract to acquire the former college site, set on 1,071 acres (4.33 km2) of wooded hillsides.

[4] The first phase, including about 500 acres west of Bear Creek Road, opened to the public on June 8, 2019.

Bond funds were used to build trails, a parking lot, restrooms, retaining walls, bridges, culverts, and a pedestrian crossing of Bear Creek Road.