A few more details on the New Year’s Day hike:

Start time is 10 a.m. Monday, Jan. 1, 2007.

Rain does not cancel (at least not for me).

It’s at Monte Bello Open Space Preserve in the Santa Cruz Mountains.

To get there: Take the Page Mill Road exit off Interstate 280, go west on Page Mill for about seven miles up into the hills. For door to door (well, trail) directions, check this Google Maps link. Page Mill is curvy and apt to be crowded with road bikers, so leave yourself a half-hour to complete this stretch of road.

It’s an easy hike to Black Mountain summit, five or six miles (round trip) max and minor elevation change — a hangover should not be a detriment (and besides, if you’re in the Big Leagues of partying, you will have avoided Amateur Night alcoholic exertions). The route’s quite scenic, especially when weather fronts are moving through. Here’s one pic from the first hike of 2005:

Among those tempted to attend: Dan Mitchell, Tom Clifton, Steve Sergeant (if he’s not snow-camping that weekend). The Illustrious Fedak has not said if he’ll appear, but he did surprise us at Mission Peak on Thanksgiving. Come along and see if he can keep his Two-Heel Drive outing attendance at 100 percent.

As for those of you who aren’t coming due to the unfathomable fate of living outside the Bay Area of California: Why not plan your own First Hikes and travel with us in spirit?

For those who are coming, it works very simply: The train leaves the station at 10 a.m. sharp. If you’re late, well, you’re at a pretty place in the mountains with trails nearby. There’s a trail board with maps nearby — just grab one and hit the trail. It’s an out-and-back, so you’re apt to bump into us along the way. Reading this blog places you in the Hiker Elite, which means you can get by without RSVPs, instructions on what to wear, weather updates, etc.

I’ll post more reminders as the Big Day nears.