You don’t get a lot of this on trails near town: the feather touch of a spider’s silk on your calves that tells you you’re the first to pass this way today. I got some of that yesterday on the…
Fitness
Hiking as therapy
by tom • April 17, 2009 • 4 Comments
It’s close to an established medical fact that a vigorous walk in the countryside makes people feel better. I’ve even noticed a local guy in the life-coaching business has a little outfit called Head Lands in which he takes people…
Hiking
Cool place to check out: Vasco Caves
by tom • April 16, 2009 • 2 Comments
Vasco Caves Regional Preserve is so cool you can only get in via a guided tour. From the East Bay Regional Parks District Page: Spectacular rock outcrops break suddenly from the rolling eastern foothills of Mount Diablo, providing magnificent scenery…
Henry W. Coe St. Park
Henry Coe backpacking: You know you want to
by tom • April 15, 2009 • 4 Comments
Henry Coe State Park is the only park in the Bay Area that allows camp-where-you-wanna backpacking. All the rest require reservations, and good luck getting a Saturday night at Big Basin or Sunol Wilderness if you haven’t paid for your…
Mount Madonna County Park
A great hike at Mount Madonna County Park
by tom • April 14, 2009 • 0 Comments
Mount Madonna Count Park is better known for its campsites and the ruins of a Gold Rush-era land baron’s summer home, but it does have one charming, little-used trail I happened upon primarily because I was too cheap to pay…
Wildlife
Randy Lloyd on local wildflowers
by tom • April 14, 2009 • 5 Comments
His Waypoints blog confirms my observation: it’s a pretty slow season out there. I had been talking to Dave, my brother in law, about the wildflowers at Henry Coe. They don’t usually go there, but after my brilliant reomendation we…
Hiking
Scenes from Joshua Tree National Park
by tom • April 13, 2009 • 2 Comments
A buddy of mine who covers the entertainment biz in Los Angeles has taken up a new hobby: hiking and picture taking at Joshua Tree National Park. Here’s a Flickr photo gallery: You can see why people get hooked on…
Backpacking
California backpack outing recommendations sought
by tom • April 12, 2009 • 3 Comments
A reader asks for recommendations for a California backpacking trip. The requirements: Leaving in June. 4-5 hours from the Bay Area. 25 miles in 4.5 days. The reader has hiked part of the Lost Coast and may decide to finish…
Briones Regional Park
Briones Regional Park from Bear Creek Trailhead
by tom • April 12, 2009 • 1 Comment
After last week’s puny hike I figured I’d better put in a respectable one this week so I can show my face on the trails around here (not that anybody knows my face, but still). This time I set out…