Back Valley Located…read morebetween San José and Morgan Hill is a gorgeous ±348-acre park that offers a no-frills hiking experience and superlative views of The Valley. This is one of OSP's smallest parks, but what it lacks in size it more than makes up for in quality. The Good: * Free to visit! * Mountain biking on certain trails (check map & signage) * Horseback riding on certain trails (check map & signage) * Restrooms in the parking lot * Picnic tables along the trails * The Arrowhead Trail Loop (±4 miles) is fairly easy, but does have a few decent uphills. However, we did it with three young children of varying ages, so it really wasn't an issue. * Great place for wildflower viewing--especially one year we barely had to leave the parking lot to be ensconced in Poppies! The Meh: * No dogs allowed * No trash cans, so pack it in and pack it out The Ugly: * The parking lot seems to have doubled since the last time we were here, which is a good thing because it used to fill up fast. It is still fairly small and only holds 27 cars--assuming no horse trailers are parked. There is also NO parking on Palm Ave. Conclusion: Small but mighty!

I hiked Sat 4/17/21 at Coyote Valley OSP, Morgan Hill. It's a 40min drive from North Fremont, Free…read moreparking, but on Saturdays have to be there before 8am. Park opens 7am-Sunset. Only 1 unisex vault toilet, it had tp and hand sanitizer. We did the 4mile loop hike: Heart's Delight Trail and Arrowhead Loop Trai, it's a One-Way trail due to Covid19. Gentle hills so there is climbing, they call it challenging, but it's really just moderate. Some views. Nice short hike in Morgan Hill.

Beautiful views and great trials and wonderful running water with alot of greenery good parkingread more

not bad! it's relaxing and has pretty scenery, though bring some water in case you get thirsty…read more there aren't many water fountains or restrooms until later.

Took the scenic route today and came across the Uvas Reservoir. The water line was low however it's…read morea nice place to fish, picnic, or go for a hike. It was very calming and relaxing to be among the trees. I saw lots of bicyclists ‍ riding down the hill, taking in the breeze.

We stumbled upon this park after having to turn around from Uvas Canyon County Reserve for not…read moreknowing to reserve a spot ahead of time. The hike was about less than 30m around the reservoir; it was beautiful, and we got to see plenty of wild flowers and cherry blossom. There are plenty of parking spaces and some picnic benches. Pics were from Feb, so I'm not sure you still can see the wild flowers now. Overall, it's a very pleasant hike.

Henry Coe has been in my "to hike" list for quite a while. It's the largest in the State Parks…read moresystem and while, technically, in the South Bay, requires a long, windy drive once you're off the 101. It can seem overwhelming to pick a day hike, given the vastness of the park, so I'd recommend coepark.net. That site lists several day hikes and shares route maps. It was a huge help to me, when deciding to hike the trail to Frog Lake. Henry Coe is popular for backpacking but moderate day hikes can be found and the loop to Frog Lake and back was a wonderland of green hills, tiny wildflowers and vast views of the Diablo Range. It's more about the journey than the destination and I enjoyed hiking through various eco systems that included marsh-like trails, rolling green hills, woodland and a small lake. Parking is self-paid or via the CA State Parks pass. There's a nice visitor center with rangers helping to acclimate you to the park, along with flush toilets and a small gift shop. You feel like you're in the foothills, while really, just a 30 minute drive from Morgan Hill. Now that I've acclimated a bit to the park and its hikes, I'm finally going to add Henry Coe to my State Parks rotation

Wonderful start park with various options for different levels of outdoor enthusiasts. If you are…read morelooking to camp and hike, you can make a reservation for either the camping site or the backpacking site. For the camping site, all you need to is drive up to your reserved camping spot, and start unpacking, then you have access to water, bathrooms and many hiking trails. The backpacking site will require to hike in and then set up all your gear. Be sure to do your research so that you're not stuck out there without water. This state park affords to the visitor extremely beautiful sunsets and sunrises at the campsite and nearby viewpoints. Astronomy hobbyists will also enjoy the evening scenery, where many astronomical phenomena are visible. As a precaution avoid the yellow grass as ticks do make these areas their habitat!

So easy to get distracted these days by things that don't matter, or matter a lot but are then…read moretwisted by people that don't matter into tools for deception and sheep herding. Fall down this rabbit hole to your great detriment. For those that have fallen and are in the rabbit hole, fear not. The rabbit hole only feels durable. As a matter of fact, it isn't. It's paper. You can tear a hole in it and be free. El Toro Mountain will tear a hole in your rabbit hole wall. Wake up early because in afternoon summertime Morgan Hill has a temperature equivalent of a stage in the inferno below. But in the morning it's generally cool and still and there aren't a ton of humans out and you can get up and down this mountain in like an hour if you hustle and an hour of exertion in this space with the view at the top and birds and dust and voila, no more rabbit hole. On the way up the steep bit all you're thinking about is damn this is steep and not much else. At the top after good exertion you're rewarded by a view, maybe a fellow traveler, and the realization that this is what matters, not what they're trying to do to us. If I lived in The Hill I'd be up this mountain once a week come rain or come shine. In rain I bet it's a messy affair. There are two ways up. I've so far only sampled one. Go to the West Hills Church on DeWitt. You can park down DeWitt from the church or on Spring Avenue. Walk onto the property with the church on your left then up the paved driveway to the school. Keep the school on your left and head for the back of its parking lot and there you'll find the trailhead. Which is dirt road for access to a water tank and the powerlines and it's gated and ppl say you aren't supposed to be going up there but ppl do and you should too. Probably don't go on school days and don't park in the school lot even if the gate is open bc somebody could close it while you're escaping the rabbit hole and you'd come back and be locked in and that would be a drag. Be it El Toro or Diablo or Mt. Umunhum or whatever is closest to your backyard - sample it on a regular basis. Keep yourself sane. Keep your heart strong. Do it for you and the folks that love you. You'll be a whole lot more fun to be around.

Ok so supposedly it cost six dollars to get in to the parking lot. Um... the parking lot I went…read moreinto had nowhere to pay, none, zip,zippo, nadda "not that I'm complaining lol!! Looks like they are doing seismic retrofitting stuff so we couldn't walk over this cool bridge that was over the stream, lots of chain link fence and construction going on... sad face. Wifey and I were able to sit on a bench near the stream "which honestly was quite beautiful if you didn't look to far up" We sat there for about 2 hours watching the Black Phoebe's fly around catching bugs. Beyond that there doesn't seem to be much else going on in this parking lot site. There is another entrance, haven't been there as of yet, maybe that entrance will be better.

Lake it Easy This…read more±4,300sq ft county park is home to Santa Clara County's largest reservoir at a whopping ±1,300sq ft. (±7 miles long). The Good: *Visitor Center at 19425 Malaguerra Ave, Morgan Hill, CA *First come, first served picnic tables *hiking trails *Horses welcome *Dogs are welcome The Meh: *Only a few miles of trails are currently open *$6/day entrance fee The Ugly: *A large part of the park is currently closed due to seismic retrofit construction project and not expected to re-open until 2030--if we're lucky! *Access to the lake--including fishing--is currently prohibited due to the construction. Conclusion: Not really worth a visit until after the construction project is done.

This is a small park near the Nob Hill Trail Park. There is a really nice picnic area, and it…read moreboasts the Peace bridge. It is a peaceful area with the mountains in the background.Some educational signs and a bronze statue of the California grey fox are there too.Nice photo opportunity when the weather is right.

REVIEW OF MIDDLE RIDGE TRAIL. The areas of Henry Coe Park nearest the headquarters (elevation…read more2,800 feet) include Flat Frog Trail, a valley with Coyote Creek (elevation 2,100 feet) running down the middle, Middle Ridge (elevation 2,900 feet), and another valley (elevation 1,640 feet). Beyond this other valley is Mt. Sizer and Blue Ridge Road (elevation 3,274 feet). Middle Ridge is flanked by these two valleys. This info from topo map available from hikingproject dot com. Our hike of March 7, 2021 took us from park headquarters, north along Flat Frog Trail, north along the short Frog Lake Trail, and towards the southeast on Middle Ridge Trail. Then, we took Fish Trail and descended into the valley with Coyote Creek, crossed the creek, and ascended the opposite side of the valley on Fish Trail. Coyote Creek can easily be crossed by stepping from stone to stone. Our starting and ending point was a trail marker located near park headquarters, where this trail marker has arrows pointing to Flat Frog Trail, to Fish Trail, and to Forest Trail. The length of this hiking loop, consisting of Flat Frog Trail, Frog Lake Trail, Middle Ridge Trail, and Fish Trail, was 6 1/2 miles. Most of Middle Ridge Trail is on a 100 foot wide, fairly flat meadow, situated at the very top of Middle Ridge. The meadow is peppered with many trees, and many areas are free of impenetrable tangles of bushes, vines, and weeds. Along the trail are many patches of Indian Warrior plants. Indian Warrior is related to Indian Paintbrush. Indian Warrior is a parasitic plant that thrives by attaching itself ot the roots of manzanita, including the bigberry manzanita found at Henry Coe State Park. PHOTOGRAPHS of MIDDLE RIDGE TRAIL, FISH TRAIL (return route), and COYOTE CREEK (needs to be crossed during return route). ( 1 ) Trail marker pointing to Middle Ridge Trail. The marker states that Middle Ridge Trail is 0.8 miles ahead. ( 2 ) Many large pine cones are found near Middle Ridge Trail. I placed it in a tree and took a photo of it. ( 3 ) Weirdly shaped dead tree and nearby Indian Warrior. The wood is entirely gray colored. ( 4 ) Bird's eye view of an Indian Warrior plant. ( 5 ) Field of about 50 Indian Warriors near Middle Ridge Trail. ( 6 ) Y-Shaped part of a dead tree. Each branch of the Y has a crevice that is long and narrow, where each crevice is surrounded by sinuous streaks of white-colored wood and light brown-colored wood. Obviously, this Y-shaped object is a space alien, and likely a distant relative of E.T. ( 7 ) Another weirdly-shaped dead tree near Middle Ridge Trail. ( 8 ) Typical view of Middle Ridge Trail, showing a well-worn dirt path surrounded by grassy areas that are flat and free of bushes. ( 9 ) Photo of trail marker on Middle Ridge Trail that identifies Fish Trail. You need to take Fish Trail in order to return to Park Headquarters. Fish Trail leads you down the slope of Middle Ridge and to Coyote Creek. Once you have crossed this creek, you will find another trail, and this is also called, Fish Trail. ( 10 ) Photograph of a gruesome-looking pumpkin growing on a manzanita. This is next to the descending part of Fish Trail. ( 11 ) Photo of a manzanita next to Fish Trail, where half of the tree-trunk is covered with orange bark, where the other half is gray-colored and is free of orange bark. The photo also shows part of the trail decorated with a pattern of shadows created by the sunrays passing through branches of nearby trees. ( 12 ) Hiker crossing Coyote Creek. ( 13 ) Photo showing Coyote Creek and of the ascending part of Fish Trail on the far side of Coyote Creek. ( 14 ) Mossy stones sitting in Coyote Creek. REFERENCES ( 1 ) Teddy Goodrich (2005) Names on the Land. A History of Henry W. Coe State Park. ( 2 ) Robert J. Keiffer (2012) Indian Warriors Welcome Spring at HREC. University of California Hopland Research and Extension Center. ( 3 ) Michele Driggs (2013) The Record Searchlight. Redding, CA. ( 4 ) Toni Corelli (Botanist, Curator Emeritus of the Carl Sharsmith Herbarium) Plants That Like Hosts.

Nice trail to combine with other trails if you are visiting the park. Beautiful, peaceful and…read moremoderately trafficked on a Saturday afternoon.