Tag Archives: Bay Area

Saratoga Gap – Ridge Trail Loop, including Castle Rock Falls (Castle Rock State Park, CA)

Situated in the Santa Cruz Mountains just south of Silicon Valley in the South Bay, Castle Rock State Park is known primarily for its rock climbing—but the 34 miles of hiking trails are worthwhile as well. To avoid the tech … Continue reading

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Cerro Este & Little Yosemite Loop (Sunol Regional Wilderness, CA)

Spanning 6,859 acres of the northern Diablo Range, Sunol Regional Wilderness is a hiker’s paradise close to home in the East Bay, wedged between the massif of Mission Peak (2,517’) to the west and Ohlone Wilderness and Rose Peak (3,817’) … Continue reading

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Wildcat Peak via Laurel Canyon & Jewel Lake (Tilden Regional Park, CA)

Truly unobstructed panoramas with views in all directions are a relative rarity in the Berkeley Hills of California’s East Bay, but Wildcat Peak in Berkeley’s Tilden Regional Park offers one of them with excellent vistas of the San Francisco Bay, … Continue reading

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Mount Diablo via Macedo Ranch (Mount Diablo State Park, CA)

Rising more than 3,000 feet above the valley floor, Mount Diablo (3,849’) is perhaps the most iconic peak in the East Bay, a behemoth for which the broader Diablo Range—which extends around 200 miles south into central California—is named. Most … Continue reading

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Fern Creek – Dipsea – Sun Trail Loop (Muir Woods National Monument, CA)

Sure the towering California redwoods are lovely, but Muir Woods National Monument on the Marin Peninsula has become almost comically crowded, mobbed by throngs of locals and visitors to the San Francisco Bay Area alike. Visitors must now have advance … Continue reading

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Kelly Lake, Coit Lake, and Pacheco Falls Loop (Henry W. Coe State Park, CA)

Central California’s Henry W. Coe State Park is a popular destination for Bay Area backpackers seeking to condition during the winter/spring season for trips to the Sierra Nevada later in the year. In fact, the terrain at Henry Coe is … Continue reading

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Madrone Soda Springs – China Hole Loop (Henry W. Coe State Park, CA)

The second-largest state park in California, Henry Coe State Park spans 87,000 acres of rolling hillsides and stream valleys in the central Diablo Range. Most visitors stick to the “Western Zone,” accessed from the Coe Ranch Headquarters and Campground on … Continue reading

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Middle Ridge – Manzanita Point Loop (Henry W. Coe State Park, CA)

At 87,000 acres, Henry Coe State Park is the second largest state park in California and offers a beautiful landscape of rolling hills and woody ridges in the Diablo Range southeast of the Bay Area. Lacking any towering peaks, Henry … Continue reading

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Lafayette Ridge Trail to Russell Peak (Briones Regional Park, CA)

The East Bay’s Briones Regional Park is a hiker’s paradise, with dozens of interlocking trails traversing a scenic stretch of hills between the suburban centers of Lafayette, Orinda, and Pleasant Hill. Lafayette Ridge—a lengthy spine that stretches southeast from the … Continue reading

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Ridge Top – Indian Creek Trail Loop (Shell Ridge Open Space, CA)

Winter and early spring is far and away the best time of year to hike in the East Bay, when temperatures are good and the rolling hillscapes—typically brown, dusty, and dry in summer—are lush and verdant. The jade-colored hues in … Continue reading

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