After hiking over the Carquinez Bridge we drive 1 mile to Carquinez Strait Regional Shoreline…read more There is a 9 spot Free parking lot Bull Valley staging area, I didn't bother checking out cuz it looked full, instead continued on the road that leads down by Eckley Pier had 29 parking spots, Free parking. We walked to the Pier, they have 1 pit toilet we used. Had tp and hand sanitizer. Lots of folks fishing at the pier around 1pm. I asked one guy catch anything he said No. Then we hiked Bull Valley Trail, Carquinez Overlook Loop and back to car. About 2.02 miles. Nice views and about 4 benches I saw and 2 picnic tables at a view point.

I'm always looking for places to get my steps in, but to keep it interesting, I like to discover…read morepaths and trails that I had not trod before. I get bored easily. What can I say? Over the past year, I've been walking my way along San Pablo Bay first around Point Pinole and most recently the San Pablo Bay Regional Trail from Richmond to Rodeo. I've made my way eastward and found this area between Martinez and Port Costa. The centerpiece is the fully paved, car-free George Miller Trail. It winds its way along the hills that hug the coast of the Carquinez Strait. The bicyclists sped by but not that many, and foot traffic was fairly minimal. The views were quite pleasant with Benicia and the Benicia-Martinez Bridge in constant view. I walked further on Carquinez Scenic Drive, a real road but remote and quiet, in order to get to Port Costa. There was a nice short-cut through some pastoral hills where a cow or two would occasionally show up on the path. Definitely worth finding your way here. RELATED - Up for a hike? Here's a collection of trails I've walked and reviewed: http://bit.ly/2OrC8nU

Looking for a hike/walk in Concord before heading to Daeho for lunch !!We did the 4.5 miles loop…read moreand enjoyed some nice scenery !

I would characterize at least 70% of this hike as a walk through the grass. Thankfully, the grass…read morewas dry and there were no random potholes to trip in. we did have torrential rain yesterday, so I'm surprised that grass was dry. the scenery is absolutely beautiful. there are cows, and they did look at me as if they wanted to eat me. I made a few scary noises and they ran. there's a small parking area at the trailhead. if you're familiar with the hills which were alive with the sound of music in the movie, well, the sound of music, those hills have nothing on these hills. these hills are far more beautiful.

Pinole Creek Trail is about half a mile long from the mouth of the creek that starts from the bay…read moreand into the downtown area of Pinole. The creek itself is 10.95 miles long running through town, but the trail is a nice, flat and paved area that many locals utilize to jog, run, walk and stroll. There are several bridges that runs through the creek, including an elevated wooden railroad bridge that is quite picturesque. On the other side of the trail is the Bay Trail, and parts of that trail is not paved, especially from San Pablo Ave. all the way to the mouth of the creek. However, both trails connect to Bayfront Park towards the railroads and Pinole Shores. So depending on what route to take, you can spend quite some time to get your exercise. For us, it's the exercise, walking the dog and being outside. Especially when the weather is nice, it's quite a nice stroll with enjoyable views while being out in nature and still in an urban setting. However, it's the best of both worlds and the city of Pinole does a great job of maintaining the trail. Along the creek is also Fernandez Park, with kids' playground, community center, basketball court and a baseball field. It gets busy during the weekend with plenty of outdoor activities for both adults and kids alike. The creek is a mixture of both salt and fresh water that attracts countless of wildlife. I think there's always a family of ducks that are always swimming or just hanging around the banks of the creek. There's definitely fish in the creek since you'll spot their activities on the water. And the many types of birds that will stop to take a bath or feed during their migration. At the mouth of the creek where it meets the bay, there's a waste water treatment plant, and depending on where the wind blows, you might get a whiff of an unpleasant smell. However, it's quite a nice area to explore during low tide as you can walk a pretty good distance off shore. Make sure your wearing the right kind of footwear since it's very muddy. Doing this activity makes me feel like a kid again. Here's a little secret: On both sides of the trail, there are rows of bushes that grow wild berries. People forage these bushes all the time and we've done our fair share of foraging. I've even made several milkshakes as a result of our foraging. I'm not gonna tell you which are the sweet ones, I'll let you figure that out yourselves. Oh, and the bushes are very thorny so be careful. Don't say I didn't warn you.

Hubbers and I don't live too far from here, and since our 6-month-old pup has now been trained to…read moretake walks, there was no better idea than to come and finally check this place out. We lucked out and came through on a nice clear late afternoon. The trail is available for walkers (for both 2 and 4 legged creatures) as well as bikers. People were conscious at social distancing (given the current pandemic crisis we're currently going through) which I thought was really cool. We really enjoyed it. We even lost track of how far we went because we got distracted looking out the water. The only thing I would suggest for improvement is maybe to have more trash bins. Don't get me wrong - the trail is generally nice, but it would be better if I wasn't seeing a bit of garbage here and there. (Yeah, there are some undisciplined people out there, shame on them.) Hubbers, our pup and I liked it so much we made a return visit in less than 48 hours. Definitely a good go-to to catch some fresh air and getting some steps in!

Join us on our journey to Green Valley Falls. Being the City of Vallejo's water supply, the creek…read moreand two waterfalls are closed to the public. If you want to check it out, you can sign up online for a guided tour, which only happens one or two times a year. We didn't feel like waiting, so we found our own way in... https://youtu.be/WFKupoHZrs0

Nice camp. Camp Hostess is awesome. Unfortunately the state Park rangers r lazy and well, just…read morelazy. Unbelievably loud music? They drive right by the offenders. Adjacent camp blocking access to our ADA site? Ranger doesn't care but is super hostile about parking to unload our gear, because we couldn't access the site. Visited two weeks prior to our stay. Weeds in camp were knee high. When we returned they were waist high. ZERO camp maintenance. No cleaning prior. No taking the dirt for trash. The only ranger action I witnessed was rangers standing around laughing it up. Also. The phone to the stations has been "full on f Messages" for at least 3 weeks.

After all these years of hiking in Contra Costa county we finally decided to go on a hike at…read moreOursan Trail in the Briones area. We parked at the Oursan/Bear Creek Trailhead staging area which is an about 1/2 mile down from the Briones Park Main Entrance on Bear Creek Road. It's fairly large parking lot in comparison to the other entrance at the corner of San Pablo Dam Road and Bear Creek Road. Both the Oursan and Bear Creek Trail require an EBMUD permit which can be purchased at the EBMUD website or at their Headquarters on San Pablo Dam Road. The trail runs along the beautiful Briones Reservoir to the left and the hills of Briones, Lafayette, Orinda and El Sobrante. The trail length is about 1 to 10miles, but you can hike as far as you can and turn around. We hiked about 3 miles in and then turned back since it was getting late. This trail is moderate to easy with a few up and down hills. A few are fairly steep and luckily I had my walking poles to help me. We had our normal tennis shoes on, but the next time we will definitely wear our hiking boots. This is probably one of the best hiking and most serene trails we've been on this year. The trails we've been on at Tilden Park are nice, but Oursan trail is different. On our entire hike we only saw 5 other hikers. If you are looking for a nice trail with very few hikers and spectacular views of the Briones Reservoir, and the hills of Orinda, Lafayette and El Sobrante this is the trail for you. We encountered some cows, but they were off in the distance and were not an issue. Other hikers have told us that the best time to do this trail is in the spring when all the flowers are in full bloom and the hills are nice and green. Dogs are allowed, but will need to be on a leash. No bikes are allowed.

I had been curious about Briones Reservoir because driving on Bear Creek Road, it looked inviting -…read morethough it turns out to be quite a restrictive area when it comes to recreational activities. That explained the complete absence of any boats, canoes, or kayaks on the water. I had read about this particular trail online as it hugs the northern side of the lake from two different staging areas. I stopped first at the Briones Overlook, but found the trailhead blocked by some major excavation occurring around the dam. I then drove over to the Bear Creek staging area which has the trailheads for both the Bear Creek and Oursan Trails. I inadvertently walked on the Bear Creek Trail for a bit but it was dull as dirt, so I went back to get on the right track. I knew I needed a EBMUD permit and indeed I wrote down my permit number on the sign-in sheet. Good thing I had a pen in my pocket because someone stole the one that was attached to the clipboard. From the outset, there was a gentle climb before the reservoir came to view, and then it got very woodsy and surprisingly hilly. That was where the moderate part of the trail came in because I had to side-step a lot of loose gravel to make it down some of the slopes. The trail eventually evened itself out though some stretches were overgrown with tall stalks. I went as far as Hampton Trail and then headed back because the total distance was almost ten miles. That was enough, right? Especially since there were no benches or restrooms en route. I did run into a couple of snakes which froze the moment I walked by. My testosterone clearly intimidated them. RELATED - Up for a hike? Here's a collection of trails I've walked and reviewed: https://bit.ly/2OrC8nU

One of my favorite places to visit in the bay area. It's a great place to go hiking or even for a…read morescenic drive but it is a drive with more twists and turns up throughout the hills. It's a beautiful place to catch the sunset but only if the clouds allow it. There's a few places to pull off the road to get a better view if driving as well.

One of the great views of the Bay area is Grizzly Peak…read more I came to visit and my friends took me here to get a view of the Bay area as a whole and it was so amazing. The winding roads that led to the peak were definitely something this Florida gal was not ready for but it was worth the drive! Not too long but definitely a bit winding path upwards. The view is free and you can see all parts of the Bay here, especially if it's a clear day. It seems like a lot of locals (especially kids) come here to hangout. A nice spot to detour and take people from out of town to hang.

A great walking trail…read more Stopped by for my daily walk and was reminded why this is one of my favorite places to be active. Features: Walking paths Benches Dog friendly Fishing Water views Shade some Parking The trail picked up by the watering plant in Pinole. Small parking lot, don't feel too safe walking it alone. Definitely will walk it again with a friend.

Beautiful biking and walking trail along the SF Bay trail. Clean. Paved. Safe. And you see the…read moreamtrack line roll by.

Great 1 mile hike. Perfect one hour jog. Great views of San Pablo bay. Highly recommend.read more

Access to more people. The island is kind of wasting away. The city of Vallejo should sell the…read moreisland because they can't afford to maintain it. You have all these streets that were put up and no houses. The historical buildings are nothing more than rat and bat nests.

January 2019: A new year - a new beginning - but some things remain the same. We went for our new…read moreyear walk - this time around the trails at San Pablo Hiking Trail. Located on the western side of Mare Island, this is a perfect trail for someone who prefers to take things easy. The 4-mile long level trail makes for an easy walk. As one strolls along the trail - one earns incredible views of Mt. Tamalpais, Mt. Diablo, the East Bay Hills, the Carquinez Strait, Napa Valley, and San Pablo Bay. Along the trail is a seasonal wetland filled with local shorebirds and waterfowl. There are pictured-signboards to guide you and explain some of the animals and plants in the area. I enjoy walking this trail because it's in my own back yard - plus, no dogs and bicycles are allowed. It makes walking easier because we don't to fear what we might step on.