The Forest of Nisene Marks State Park, State park in Santa Cruz, United States.

The Forest of Nisene Marks State Park covers 10,223 acres in the Santa Cruz Mountains, with four-fifths dense redwood forest. Its 40 miles of trails and fire roads cross terrain from sea level to over 2,600 feet. The photograph shows tall, deeply furrowed trunks with peeled bark, ferns and undergrowth on a sloping floor.

The land was clear-cut by the Loma Prieta Lumber Company between 1883 and 1923 before the Marks family purchased it. They later donated the land to establish and preserve it as a public forest park.

The park preserves California's logging heritage through visible remnants of sawmills, railroad tracks, and trestle sites scattered throughout the forest. Visitors encounter these industrial traces while hiking and gain insight into how the land was once used.

The park has over 40 miles (64 km) of hiking trails and fire roads. Bikes, dogs and horses are limited to the Aptos Creek fire road and four single-track trails below the steel bridge; horses may not go past that bridge. Dogs must stay leashed, camping and fires are banned, and the sandy loam soil is prone to landslides.

The 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake's epicenter lay within the park, and the San Andreas, San Gregorio and Zayante faults shape its geology. The Zayante fault crosses Aptos Creek Canyon, and ancient marine sedimentary rocks show in creek beds because the area was once a shallow inland sea.