David Weintraub - Afoot and Afield: San Francisco Bay Area: A Comprehensive Hiking Guide

From the book

Marin Headlands

The hills surrounding Gerbode Valley, part of the Marin Headlands, are vibrant in the spring with wildflowers, and alive with birdsong and avian acrobatics most of the year, but especially during the fall raptor migration.

Ring Mountain Open Space Preserve

Its slopes are home to a wonderful array of trees, shrubs, and wildflowers, some quite rare, and one, the Tiburon Mariposa lily, is found nowhere else in the world. As a vantage point with great views, Ring Mountains summit rivals better-known Bay Area peaks.

Annadel State Park

This park is one of the best places in the North Bay to see wild turkeys look in damp ravines or along the edges of clearings for large flocks of these dark, iridescent birds, which are slightly smaller than their domestic cousins.

Sonoma Coast State Beach: Bodega Head Loop

Daubs of color are added to the scene by the yellow-and-red flowers of seaside paintbrush, and the magenta blooms of iceplant, a succulent that carpets Californias coastal dunes and sandy roadside embankments. Just offshore, lines of brown pelicans or cormorants may be cruising low over the waves.

Napa River Ecological Reserve

Be sure to stop and admire a large, ropy vine of California wild grape, perhaps more than 100 years old. Also here are two kinds of blackberry California, a native, and Himalayan, and import from Europe.

Mission Peak Regional Preserve

The final climb is on dirt and rock, past a clever observation device that allows you to identify more than two dozen Bay Area landmarks in a 360-degress circle around Mission Peak.

Sunol Wilderness: Little Yosemite

Little Yosemite features in miniature some of the wonders of its Sierra Nevada namesake, including water rushing through a boulder-strewn gorge, sheer cliffs, forested hillsides, and towering rock formations. Stands of western sycamore add color in the fall.

For all my Bay Area friends.

Afoot & Afield San Francisco Bay Area: A Comprehensive Hiking Guide

1st EDITION September 2004

2nd printing July 2007

Copyright 2004 by David Weintraub

Front cover photo copyright 2004 by David Weintraub

Interior photos by David Weintraub

Maps: Ben Pease, Pease Press

Cover design: Andreas Schueller

Book design: Andreas Schueller

Book editor: Elaine Merrill

ISBN 978-0-89997-291-6

Manufactured in the United States of America

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All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, or by any means electronic, mechanical, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the publisher, except for brief quotations used in reviews.

SAFETY NOTICE: Although Wilderness Press and the author have made every attempt to ensure that the information in this book is accurate at press time, they are not responsible for any loss, damage, injury, or inconvenience that may occur to anyone while using this book. You are responsible for your own safety and health. The fact that a trail is described in this book does not mean that it will be safe for you. Be aware that trail conditions can change from day to day. Always check local conditions and know your own limitations.

Acknowledgments

F irst, Id like to thank Tom Winnett, founder of Wilderness Press, for inviting me on this life-changing voyage. Without him, Id still be just a photographer. Thanks also to all the other folks at Wilderness Press, current and former, including Caroline Winnett, Mike Jones, Jannie Dresser, Andreas Schueller, Larry Van Dyke, Roslyn Bullas, and Elaine Merrill.

Many people helped make this book by sharing their time, their information, and their expertise.

In the East Bay: Steve Fiala, Bert Johnson, Alan Kaplan, Juan Carlos Solis, Paul Ferreira, Anthony Fisher, Maryanne Canaparo, Bob Flasher, Pat Solo, John Steiner, Alvin Dockter, and Mike Koslosky.

In the North Bay: Ron Angier, Natalie Gates, Ane Rovetta, Denis Odion, Diana Roberts, Klytia Nelson, Ralph Ingols, Milan Pittman, Angela Nowicki, Lynda Doucette, Paul Larson, Al Vosher, Willard Wyman, Elizabeth Beale, Charles Potthast, Ronessa Duncan, Dawn Kemp, Marla Hastings, Cleve Dufer, Kevin McKay, Bill Cox, Patrick Robards, Gale Lester, Mia Monroe, Bill Michaels, Casey May, Scott Rasmussen, Glenn Ryburn, Fred Lew, Carlos Porrata, Landon Waggoner, Bill Grummer, Cheryl Lawton, Rich Lawton, Val Nixon, Greg Hayes, Bill Trunick, and Martha Wise.

On the Peninsula: Kristi Webb, Stephanie Jensen, John Kowaleski, John Escobar, Michael Newburn, Andrew Martin, Chris MacIntosh, Pete Siemens, Patrick Congdon, Deane Little, Tom Lausten, Lisa Zadek, Craig Britton, Kerry Carlson, Dennis Danielson, Ken Fisher, David Topley, Ward Paine, Larry Hassett, Mary Davey, Allan Lindh, Steve Tedesco, Mort Levine, Herb Grench, Jay Thorwaldson, Stephen Salveter, Elizabeth Salveter, Jane Huber, Janet Schwind, Elizabeth Dana, Rodger Alleman, Lorraine Alleman, Marc Auerbach, Nonette Hanko, Carrie Sparks-Hart, Ken Miller, Joyce Nicholas, Dave Knapp, Matt Freeman, Cindy Roessler, Paul McKowan, and David Sanguinetti.

Friends were enlisted (entrapped?) as photography models and sometimes as hiking companions. Thanks to Laura Wood, Paul Ash, Silvia Fernandez, Elena Ash, Jed Manwaring, Brenda Tharp, Steve Gregory, Vickie Vann, Ken Kobre, Betsy Brill, Mary Thorsby, John Macchia, Angela Macchia, Susan Rouder, George deTunq, Lea Redmond, Otto Schutt, Lee Eisman, Jay Tennenbaum, Jordan Tennenbaum, and Carla Palmer.

Enjoying the trails vicariously, Denise Rehse and Debi Devitt transcribed countless hours of taped notes. Ben Pease drew the excellent maps and made valuable comments and suggestions based on his extensive knowledge of Bay Area trails. Kate Hoffman and Jed Manwaring visited some of the East Bay parks included in this book and provided updated material.

On a sad note, two people involved with my first book, East Bay Trails , have since passed away. Dorothy L. Whitnah, a Wilderness Press author, reviewed my original outline and kept me informed of East Bay happenings. Galen Rowell, a great photographer and East Bay native, wrote the books foreword.

Finally, thanks to my wife, Maggi, for her love and support.

Preface

T his book is the result of field work that began in 1996, when I started preparing my first book for Wilderness Press. Since then, I have logged countless miles, enjoying the beautiful Bay Area in every season, and traipsing from the Sonoma coast to Silicon Valley and beyond. The results of my wanderings appeared in three Wilderness Press trail guides, East Bay Trails, North Bay Trails, Top Trails San Francisco Bay Area, and also in Peninsula Tales and Trails, a history and guide commissioned by the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District. Wilderness Press offers two other trail guides covering regions in the Bay Area, Peninsula Trails and South Bay Trails. So this book is a compendium of trips in the East Bay, North Bay, South Bay, and on the Peninsula.