Sunol Regional Park 3/22/08

Today our group had some time constraints so we decided on the relatively short but beautiful hike up the Camp Ohlone Trail to Little Yosemite in Sunol. It was really nice to be able to walk along the wide trail, enjoy the warm spring day and have some great conversations, all while getting in a great little hike! When you are pressed for time, or just want something a little less strenuous, the Little Yosemite hike is a great "go to" hike because of it's proximity (at least for those of us in the Fremont/Pleasanton/Livermore areas!), and you just can't beat the waterfalls and crystal clear pools of Little Yosemite! We did this 2 or so mile hike in just over an hour with a nice rest stop at the falls. Be sure to check Laura's photos (link in the upper right hand corner of this page) - she got some great shots!

Fremont Older

What a beautiful little hike this was! A perfect blend of sun and shade, uphill and downhill. Laura, Jeff, Christa, Kathy and I met at the Prospect Road parking lot, headed up the Cora Older trail and looped around through some shaded canyons, and up to some amazing vantage points. Jeff, Christa and I (Christa with a twisted "trail injury" ankle, no less) made the short steep trek up to Hunter Point, caught our collective breath, snapped a couple of pics, then headed back. Kris met us at BJ's for lunch even though she didn't quite make the hike...it was nice to see her anyway!

Next weekend, we're thinking of a Saturday hike, probably East Bay - either the Black Diamond Mines Regional park, or a hike through some historical graveyards (this will be a kid friendly "Adventure Hike"!).

Central Oregon

Well, Glen, the dogs and I decided on an impromptu hike/picnic today. We drove up the beautiful Cascade Lakes Highway to the miles of hiking and biking trails. We got hailed out! We ended up letting the dogs run around and ate our food in the truck. The weather changes quickly around here and as I'm typing this, it is sunny and lovely.

Del Valle - East Shore Trail 3-1-08

What a great day! We had 6 hikers and bikers on this trek. The trail started at the Arroyo Road Staging Area on the north end of the park. Rob and Jeff R. biked in 5 miles to just above Badger Cover and back, giving them 10 miles to add to their biking log. Kathleen, Jeff M., Christa and Laura hiked to just about half way to Badger Cover. We estimate it was about 4 to 4.5 miles round trip....Oh lets just call it 4.5 miles because the first hill at the beginning of the trip was a pain in the butt...literally! We ended our day cruising down the road to Wente Winery for a couple of glasses of chardonnay! Check out the link on the top right hand side of this blog to see all of the pictures in the album for this hike and the albums of the other California Chapter hikes we have taken! See you in two weeks on the next trek!