Briones Crest Trail, April 2020 Spanning 1,600 acres in the East Bay’s Contra Costa County, Briones Regional Park is a wonderland of woody valleys, rolling hilltops, and sun-soaked ridges with panoramic views of the Berkeley Hills, Carquinez Strait, Mount Diablo, and Ygnacio Valley. Once owned by a 19th century rancher, the Briones Hills are now …
Lafayette Ridge Trail, Briones Regional Park, March 2020 Note: This is part of a multi-post series chronicling the many possible day hikes in the East Bay’s Briones Regional Park, a 1,600-acre tract nestled east of the Berkeley Hills, west of Mount Diablo, and south of Martinez and Carquinez Strait. I tackled these hikes over the …
Continue reading Hikes in Briones Regional Park (Lafayette Ridge Staging Area)
Lafayette Ridge Trail, Briones Regional Park, March 2020 Note: This is part of a multi-post series chronicling the many possible day hikes in the East Bay’s Briones Regional Park, a 1,600-acre tract nestled east of the Berkeley Hills, west of Mount Diablo, and south of Martinez and Carquinez Strait. I tackled these hikes over the …
Continue reading Hikes in Briones Regional Park (Springhill Road Staging Area)
Blue Oak Trail, Briones Regional Park, November 2019 Note: This is part of a multi-post series chronicling the many possible day hikes in the East Bay’s Briones Regional Park, a 1,600-acre tract nestled east of the Berkeley Hills, west of Mount Diablo, and south of Martinez and Carquinez Strait. I tackled these hikes over the …
Continue reading Hikes in Briones Regional Park (Reliez Valley Staging Area)
Hayfield Trail, Briones Regional Park, March 2020 Note: This is part of a multi-post series chronicling the many possible day hikes in the East Bay’s Briones Regional Park, a 1,600-acre tract nestled east of the Berkeley Hills, west of Mount Diablo, and south of Martinez and Carquinez Strait. I tackled these hikes over the course …
Continue reading Hikes in Briones Regional Park (Alhambra Creek Staging Area)
Lagoon Trail, Briones Regional Park, January 2020 Note: This is part of a multi-post series chronicling the many possible day hikes in the East Bay’s Briones Regional Park, a 1,600-acre tract nestled east of the Berkeley Hills, west of Mount Diablo, and south of Martinez and Carquinez Strait. I tackled these hikes over the course …
Continue reading Hikes in Briones Regional Park (Park Office & Briones Road Staging Area)
Black Oak Trail, Briones Regional Park, February 2020 Note: This is part of a multi-post series chronicling the many possible day hikes in the East Bay’s Briones Regional Park, a 1,600-acre tract nestled east of the Berkeley Hills, west of Mount Diablo, and south of Martinez and Carquinez Strait. I tackled these hikes over the …
Continue reading Hikes in Briones Regional Park (Bear Creek Staging Area)
Twin Ponds Trail, Diablo Foothills Regional Park, March 2020 Covering a portion of a scenic hogback fanning out westward from Mount Diablo, Diablo Foothills Regional Park is—at 1,060 feet—relatively small and has only one peak that exceeds 1,000 feet. Yet, at least in winter and spring, the area is exceptionally picturesque. The terrific trail network, …
Carquinez Strait Regional Shoreline, Eastern Unit, March 2024 An eight-mile channel used as a highly-trafficked shipping lane, Carquinez Strait is the gateway from the Sacramento River Delta to San Francisco Bay and separates Solano and Contra Costa counties. While much of the shoreline is residential or industrial, some portions have become protected parklands, including a …
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Canyon Loop Trail, Fernandez Ranch, February 2024 Fernandez Ranch, one of the many properties acquired and managed by the John Muir Land Trust, spans nearly 1,200 acres of open pastures and bay/oak woodlands in the hills above Franklin Canyon, between Hercules and Martinez in northern Contra Costa County. The property was acquired over the course …
Live and Let Hike 