Location: Redwood City, San Mateo County
Hike Date: 2017, June 21, Wednesday, 10:40 am
Hike Stats: 3.3 miles, 1.5 hours, 400 feet elevation gain
“The panoramic view of the seemingly never-ending valleys leading to the coast is spectacular. On a clear day, visibility extends to the ocean.” (text source: mrosd)
Location: Redwood City, San Mateo County
Hike Date: 2017, June 28, Wednesday, 10:10 am
Hike Stats: 6.4 miles, 2.5 hours, 1375 feet elevation gain
Repeat Visit: 2019, May 4, Saturday
“The panoramic view of the seemingly never-ending valleys leading to the coast is spectacular. On a clear day, visibility extends to the ocean.” (text source: mrosd)
Location: Los Gatos, Santa Clara County
Hike Date: 2017, June 10, Saturday
Hike Stats: 5.4 miles, 4 hours, 1700 feet
Previous Visit: 2015, October 4, Sunday
For my previous trip to this state park in 2015, check out this post.
For other trails in Castle Rock State Park, check out this post on Skyline to the Sea Trail.
Location: Los Gatos, Santa Clara County
Hike Date: 2015, October 4
Hike Stats: 5.9 miles, 3.5 hours, 2108 feet elevation gain
Repeat Visit: 2017, June 10
Hike Date: Saturday, September 12, 2015
4.6 miles, 2 hours, 780 feet
(Repeat visits: Sunday, June 19, 2016 || Saturday, June 24, 2017)
This is our second most-favorite-hike from 2015, the first one being at Big Basin Redwoods State Park. Even though it was a dull, gloomy, gray day, the panoramic views of the Santa Cruz mountains and the vast expanse of forests that stretched out onto the horizon were spellbinding.
Location: Boulder Creek, Santa Cruz County
Hike Date: 2015, September 6, Sunday
* 8.7 miles, 3.5 hours, 2287 feet
* Dool Trail – Sunset Trail – Timms Creek Trail – Skyline-to-the-Sea Trail
Repeat Visit: 2016, July 30, Saturday (Sleep Late and Hike Meetup)
* 9.5 miles, 5.5 hours
* Berry Creek Falls Loop: Dool Trail – Sunset Trail – Berry Creek Falls Trail – Skyline-to-the-Sea Trail – Sunset Trail – Dool Trail
Location: Cupertino, Santa Clara County
Hike Date: 2015, August 29
We were quite late to start with the hike – 5:30 P.M.! To add to the delay, we were unable to find a parking spot close to the trailhead; we drove up and down the Stevens Creek Canyon Rd to find a designated parking place. We finally ended up parking on the side of the road just next to the trailhead.
While driving south the first time, we went past the very scenic Stevens Creek Reservoir. We decided to stop here on our second round and enjoy the panoramic views while there was still ample light.
Trip Date: 14 February, 2016
We finally made it to the much sought-after Twin Peaks in the most unplanned way. We’ve always been very skeptical about a) driving through the San Francisco city and b) finding a parking spot in the city. So Twin Peaks, which are right in the middle of the city, have always been one of those elusive spots that one can only drive to but seemed inaccessible because of the petty parking problems. After all, the satellite map showed only a handful of legit parking spots between the two peaks.
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
Hike Date: August 16, 2015
Alum Rock Park is a municipal park in east San Jose; in fact, the first one established in California! The park spans from west to east, snug within the Alum Rock Canyon, and at the foothills of the Diablo Range. One can only imagine how any hike starting from the base of a hill would be like.
The South Rim Trail runs along the southern escarpment of the Alum Rock Canyon. The north and south escarpments of the canyon are characteristically different from each other in foliage – one is almost completely devoid of tree cover (North Rim Trail) and the other provides an excellent cover from the harsh summer sun (South Rim Trail).
Pedalogue 