Hike Date: Januray 18, 2016

Occasion: MLK National Holiday (Monday)

What better way to celebrate a national holiday than to go for a long walk in the wilderness, not too far from home. After our first year’s experience of living in the Bay Area, we had dismissed the idea of going for a road trip anywhere around because one would invariably be caught up in a traffic load of people trying to do the same. Or of people returning home via road after a long weekend.

Destination: Bay Trail in San Mateo’s “Coyote Point Recreation Area“, just next door to the San Francisco International Airport

Now, if you so wished, you could sit next to the bay the whole day and watch planes head to the airport every two minutes.

Or you could head off for a pleasant walk in the opposite direction, and the scenic Bluff Trail would not disappoint you as it takes you through a Eucalyptus grove overlooking the bay.

The Bluff Trail descends gracefully at the Coyote Point Marina with its beautifully lined boats and yachts. Some folks just drop in here for leisure fishing.

From here on, it’s a straight, boring trail hugging a salt marsh.

The other end of this long, straight Shoreline trail ends up at a bridge that connects to the Seal Point park.

 

 

 

This is a view of the Bay Trail (looking back) from the marina to the bridge.

 

 

The Seal Point is diametrically opposite the entry point to the park. The trail around the park is a loop.

Instead of going around, you could go across the park over the hilly mound – there are both trails and stairs to cover the distance across.

Perhaps we’ll try the stairs some day.

We treated ourselves with a hearty meal at a Burmese restaurant in the nearby hip downtown of Burlingame.

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Trail Info
Parking Lot: There are ample parking spots at the Bluff Trail trailhead. That's where we parked. But looks like there is a dedicated parking for the Coyote Point Recreation Area here. Both the parking lots are close to each other.
Parking Fee: None.
Restrooms: Restrooms are available next to the parking lots back at the Coyote Point Recreation Area. There is a restroom near the Seal Point parking lot as well.
Map: None available at the trailhead.
Exposure to sun: Completely exposed.
Crowd: Moderate.

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