Beautiful hike in the Spring, and a bit hot and dusty in the Summer…read more Be aware, there are many ticks here in the Spring. I went hiking with my friends here in April, and both their dogs had tons of ticks crawling around in their fur. If you are hiking without dogs, tuck your pants or leggings into your socks and avoid the taller grass if you can. You can also spray tick repellent on your shoes and socks before starting. That usually does the trick. Very fun and laidback hike otherwise. We've been visiting this trail for years now, and always have a nice time. Great views, and rolling hills. Can't ask for much else, locally.

"Hot Dusty Trails, but Lots of Free Maps"…read more I love the East Bay Regional Park system, but this is probably my least favorite park. The main trails are just dirt tracks wide open to the elements. You can imagine how it is on a summer day out here. If you enjoy dusty, desert-like environments with no water, and dying of thirst, you'll love this park. I try to come here once a year. Honestly, that's enough. Besides the main staging area, there are a few tricky entrances to the park. In the California Highlands condo complex, there are a few trails that eventually lead into this park. Keep in mind that those entrances are not open to bikes. I found out the hard way. There is an interesting side trail called Donlon Point. I believe it's the highest point in the park. There's a good view up there, plus lots of cow material. There is drinking water and a modern restroom at the staging area. Additionally, there are plenty of free maps at the gate. That's one great thing about the East Bay Park system. They are not stingy about giving out free maps. The day that I visited, the parking lot was nearly empty. You will not have trouble finding a parking spot. On the other hand, there's probably a good reason for that. As a local alternative, I recommend Las Trampas. The trails there are more interesting. Check out the Camille trailhead in Alamo.

WEEKDAY VISIT REVIEW OF LAGOON…read more HIGHLIGHTS *Free parking *Low entrance fee *Plenty picnic areas with picnic tables *Plenty change rooms *Very clean public spaces *Attentive lifeguards *Free life jackets to borrow ENTRANCE FEES Under 1 free 1-15 $2 15-65 $3 Senior $2 Cash and card accepted You get a wristband once paid. Ten feet deep swimming area requires a test. You need to be able to swim 20 yards. Shallow area fenced off from deep waters. This lagoon water is cold but not super cold. Fun family day place, especially for toddlers, preschoolers and young children.

0 Star I had a…read moredisappointing experience at Cull Canyon Regional Recreation Area. The welcome reception staff seemed inconsistent in how they treated guests. I noticed some guests (mexicans) were allowed to skip the line or enter without having their wristbands checked, while others were required to show wristbands even when they were not swimming. When we had questions, staff members were not helpful and often ignored us, which made us feel unwelcome. The restroom facilities were also in poor condition. The bathrooms were dirty, had a strong unpleasant odor, and did not appear to be cleaned regularly. Overall, the customer service and facility cleanliness did not meet expectations. I hope management addresses these issues and ensures all visitors are treated fairly and respectfully.

Emerald Park is one of the best in the Tri-Valley area. It's ginormous and it caters to pretty much…read moreeveryone. A really great outdoor space for activities, events, and leisurely walks. I always love visiting during the weekday or on a weekend morning. The paved trails and endless and there's also a beautiful rose garden area.

We enjoyed ourselves. The park is huge and has something for everyone. The weather was perfect!…read more #GoSee

Really sizeable, spacious park that has lots of fields to host sporting events. There's a small…read moreamphitheater, skate park, events center, and until it is the location of local government offices. I'm not just reviewing this place on a recent, pleasant dog walk (which is a great place to do and they have doggie fountains here as well). No... my roots go way deeper here. Growing up in the area before there was the large Target and City Lot nearby, before the local government offices, this park is where me and a close knit group of friends would go every night. We weren't causing any trouble. We just didn't really have anywhere else to go, but we all looked forward to hanging out most nights, especially during the summers. We would skate in the parking lot or possible play basketball (they had a few full courts where the offices are built now). At one point a few of my friends worked with the city to help design and build out the skate park (I see there names on the plaque to this day in late 2025). I remember my friends putting on and being part of small music fests that was held in the amphitheater area. I even remember working some events held at the event building on the south side of the park. Just a great park with lots of parking, events schedules, and just every day things to do. Lot of personal memories as well.

Central Park in San Ramon looks pretty standard at first, but ended up being better than expected…read more I came for a friends' kid's birthday party and even on a weekend it felt open and not too crowded. The grass was green and well kept, and there was plenty of space for kids to run around. The covered picnic areas with a roof was so nice and perfect for rainy days or a hot sunny weather, and it offered many things to keep kids entertained such as a good-sized playground. It's clean, easy, and works well for group gatherings. Only downside is the restrooms were available but not very clean, and parking can get a bit tight. Overall, a reliable spot for things like birthday parties without feeling chaotic.

Our guide was Joe, and he was great to work with, very knowledgeable and also very fun. I requested…read morea half day run for Mother's Day weekend, and my family of 4 (kids are 13 and 10) all had a blast.

We've rafted twice more with All-Outdoors since my last review - Goodwin Canyon in October 2022,…read moreand then Middle Fork American River again this past month (both 1-day trips). The last time we rafted Middle Fork American was on a cold, gloomy, drizzling day in October 2019 - so we had to give it another go in warmer weather. This time around was just as memorable. Two of us in the boat ended up falling out in the water at Tunnel Chute, which happened so fast that I barely knew what had happened - thankfully, there was a nice calmer stretch of water right after through the river tunnel, so we were easily able to get back into the raft. (Thank you to our guide, Troy, for hauling me back in, and for being an awesome guide in general!) Plus this was one of the photographer spots, so the action was all captured for us to laugh about later. Later, after our tasty sandwich picnic lunch, we had a few unexpected events happen, starting from the portage down Ruck-a-Chucky Falls. Shout-out to all three guides in our group - Troy, Shea, and AJ - for handling things so calmly and getting us all back where we were supposed to be! We had plenty of calm stretches floating down the river as well. The canyon is beautiful and quite peaceful. We saw a ton of dragonflies flying above our heads, masked ducks chilling on rocks and diving underwater, and wild grapes and blackberries growing alongside the river. We'll be back again for another trip with All-Outdoors! Maybe we'll try a 2-day or 3-day trip next time.

Finally checked off biking Ironhorse Trail starting from Dublin BART to Walnut Creek BART station…read more(18 miles)! Popular trail among local walkers, joggers, cyclists. Mostly flat trail passes through mostly residential neighborhoods (some luxurious backyards), various schools, Bishop Ranch, downtown Danville, Alamo, edge of Walnut Creek. Nice views of green hills. Little shade on trail so best to go during cooler weather. Took about 2 hrs at casual biking speed with snack break in Danville. FYI As of 3/18/23, construction in progress at Dublin entry to trail. Entry from adjacent street near the park.

I have been on this trail about a million times it's not perfect, but it's pretty darn good,…read more Just keep in mind that there are a lot of sections where the roots have lifted the pavement. So, be careful, or else you may trip. Other than that, it's a great asset.Some sections of the trail have drinking fount, but not many.

HEMME CREEK TRAIL REVIEW: First time on this trail and it's easily one of my top 10 trails in the…read moreBay Area. You can park at the Ringtail Cat Staging Area, where there's about 8-10 parking spots. This trail is a loop that takes you literally through a stream. It's lush and woodsy, and there's a pretty steep elevation before you get a breather through a meadowy field of trees and grass. It wasn't crowded, so we took our time and enjoyed the Zen-ness of our hike. From the parking area, there's about a 1/4 mile path before you reach a metal gate where the loop begins. If you go right, you'll start with the Shred Wizard Creek part of the loop. If you go left, you'll start with the Ringtail Cat part of the loop. It's about 3 miles with a 720 foot elevation. There aren't many markers, so I recommend using AllTrails to keep you on track. We started with the creek, and it was so fun. The trail zig zags over the stream at least 25 times. There was one part of the trail where you had to walk in the stream, but it's so shallow we didn't get our socks wet at all. It can be a bit muddy. This was our favorite part of the hike. It's so green and lush. Once the creek part is done, there's a pretty steep climb to get to the Ringtail Cat part of the loop. This part is also very nice as you walk through grassy fields and trees. There's less shade here. There's still more hills and valleys along this part. Overall, this was so much fun, the scenery was beautiful, and you get quite a workout.

Went Sunday afternoon to get some exercise and fresh air…read more Paved Rocky Ridge Trail - AllTrails rate it as moderate and steep. Definitely steep, pass by some grazing cows, minimal shade which was fine on cloudy day but I can imagine this to be quite hot in summer. Great view on top of Mt Diablo and SF Bay. Free entry/parking. Pit toilets at parking lot.

It has always been an item on my bucket list to see bioluminescent plankton. However I held very…read morelittle hope of ever seeing it because it was my understanding that you never know when or where it'll ever appear. So when my wife mentioned that Napa Valley Paddle was doing a guided kayak tour though bioluminescent waters in Tomales Bay I had no choice but to book a trip. I've been kayaking exactly twice before and both times on lakes in broad daylight. So I was a little nervous about kayaking in a salt water bay in the dark. Hopefully the water is smooth and it doesn't get too choppy for my wife and I. Also, I had low expectations, maybe the plankton won't be there that night, and if it is, it's probably a very subtle glow that you almost have to use your imagination to see. When we arrived we found ourselves in a parking lot at the Miller Boat Launch in Marshall. We got some basic instructions on kayaking, given life vests and whistles and headlamps set to red light to wear backwards. It was all pretty laid back and chill. As the sun went away and the fog came in we paddled out to Hog Island and by the time we were close to it, it was dark enough that some people were beginning to see the water light up. Fortunately the water was very calm and it was comforting to see all the red headlamps on the water to guide us on our way. We paddked clear across the bay to the other side where there were cliffs making the water especially dark there. This is where we turned off all of our lights. There was no subtlety at all, it was nothing less than magical. The water lit up with every paddle and every splash. It was a smooth blue glow in the dark with occasional spatks mixed in. We spent a good while paddling around and splashing and generally bring awed by the trippy water. Then it was time to start heading back, the goal was to paddle around the other side of Hog Island where the water is also very fun to look at. However the water glowed the whole way there even. Unfortunately this is also when conditions changed. We had a nasty headwind and the water got choppy. We were seriously worried we might capsize as we paddled like crazy to get to the island again. When we finally got there, we were done. We just wanted was to get back to the car and go home and drink hot coacoa. So we kept on paddling as hard as we could while we struggled to keep the kayak heading in the right direction. People were starting to scatter and soon the only lights to follow were at the boat launch we came from. Whether that actually was the boat launch was debatable but it was the only indication of civilization so we kept heading in that direction. Maybe it was because we were heavier than anyone else or perhaps we just couldn't paddle very well but we lagged behind in the dark. To make things even more interesting the conditions continued to worsen. We had to fight the wind and the choppy water harder as we made that last leg of the paddle back to shore. Fortunately the lights we were aiming for did happen to be where we needed to land and although we missed the dock we did get to shore soaked but not dreched and we managed to actually make it without going into the drink. Needless to say, it became an adventure however no one could have predicted conditions would change like they did. Apparently under typical conditions we would have had a tail wind and that part of the trip should have been the easy part. A professional paddle boarder who was with our group told us those conditions were "insane" and it was not something she would have willingly attempted unless it was over a short distance in daylight. So we feel better about ourselves having a hard time making it back. I'm very glad we did this, it's a beautiful memory, and a great story to tell, and I highly recommend going.

We met Tanya downtown at the river walk and she set us up with a Fagan Marsh kayak trip the next…read moreday. Loved talking with Drew beforehand, learning about wetland restoration efforts and how quickly nature can rebound. The slough was peaceful and sparkling on this sunny October afternoon. We observed cranes and fish nibbling at surface snacks. In the distance, you can see Mount Tam and a bit closer--the Brazos railroad bridge. While there is much to see and do in Napa, this experience at the end of our trip was a definite highlight.