Stanford students are too busy to use walking as a mode of transportation – at least most of the time.
From freshman year scavenger hunt to wacky walk at graduation, Stanford University has no shortage of quirky traditions. But none of them are as physically demanding as Stanford to Sea – a 26 mile walk from the school’s Main Quad to Half Moon Bay.
To the Sea
When I woke up at 4:30 am on a cool morning last April, I didn’t even intend to walk the entire distance. I had too much work to spend the whole day walking. My friend Lily and I made a pact to turn around at the Village Bakery in Woodside, just 6 miles in.
Surrounded by a crowd of more than 50 other students (down from the 165 who had RSVPed “yes” and the 169 (including me) who had RSVPed “maybe”), we began our hike.
By the time we reached the Village Bakery, fueled by coffees and breakfast sandwiches, Lily and I decided we might as well go all the way to the beach. The hardest part was surely behind us—we’d already dragged ourselves out of bed before sunrise and dodged cars left and right on Sand Hill Road.
The hardest part, as it turned out, was not behind us. At mile 10, I felt a blister forming on my pinky toe. At mile 12, the hunger started to hit. Lily pulled out the biscotti and peach rings she had packed as her only snack for the original 6 mile stroll. At mile 15, I rolled my ankle. And at mile 22, that blister popped. I balanced on a rock as I wrapped my wound in the rouge band-aid I found in my backpack.
The most beautiful parts, as it turned out, were also ahead. Now on an actual hiking trail and not the side of the highway, we saw banana slugs squirming around, had quiet moments surrounded by redwoods, and felt the ultimate satisfaction when we could finally lie down at our final destination – Poplar Beach.
Snowy plovers skidded along the sand. The gray sky blurred with the horizon. Some people polar plunged into the ocean. When I tried to stand up to feel the water, I realized I could barely walk. I spent the next few days hobbling around campus trading stories with other Stanford to Sea veterans.
To the Bridge
A few months later, my friend, Symphony, asked me if I wanted to join in another walk. This one would be 36 miles to the Golden Gate Bridge. Remembering how badly my legs hurt after just 26 miles and thinking about the job applications I needed to submit that weekend, I declined.
On the inaugural Stanford to Golden Gate Bridge walk in 2024, Symphony had to stay behind to work on her grad school application. So when the opportunity came around again this year, she was determined to make the trip.
On January 11th at sunrise, Symphony and 9 others took the first steps of their journey. By 10:30 pm that night, 7 made it to the bridge. Symphony was one of them.
“That route was really boring,” Symphony said. “We basically walked on El Camino Real for like 27 miles.”
El Camino Real, a road that once connected all the Spanish missions, is known for its commercial convenience and not for its natural beauty.
Still, despite a lingering knee injury, Symphony doesn’t have any regrets. “I am glad I did it, because I think I'm gonna have a fun story out of it and memories with my friends that will last forever.”
To the Bagel Shop
I haven’t had a bike on campus since sophomore year – which is a rarity on the 11th largest campus in the world by acreage. Other students often ask me how I possibly have enough time to walk everywhere.
Last week, I had planned to get bagels with Symphony and some other friends. I asked the group if they wanted to walk since it’s just over a mile away. My friends all said that they would rather drive – walking would take too long and they had work to do.
“Didn’t you all walk a marathon last year?” I asked.
Symphony said the difference for her between walking to new spots around campus and walking to the Golden Gate Bridge is the potential for a good story.
“Part of the desire to do these long walks is because it's going to create really fun memories and good experiences and stories I can tell people about,” Symphony said.
I did end up walking to get bagels last week and met up with my friends who drove. On the way, I stumbled upon a house giving away like-new kitchen appliances and artwork from Saudi Arabia. I happily collected a new-in-box food processor.
Chopping up vegetables with my new gadget, I thought about how lucky I was to be walking past that specific house at that specific time. Beyond getting fresh air, decreasing carbon emissions, and telling good stories, there seem to be benefits to all sorts of walks, no matter the distance.
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Nora Swidey is a master’s student in Earth Systems at Stanford University. She graduated with her undergraduate degree in Political Science last Spring. She’s passionate about using innovative communication techniques to advance environmental policy in the United States. Most recently, she’s deployed these skills on political campaigns from the local to national level.
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