16 VeloRaptors and two dogs celebrated the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday with a hike in Redwood and Roberts Parks, starting at the Trudeau Center on Skyline Blvd in Oakland. We knew that there’d be a lot of hikers from the full car park and the “extra hike” getting to the meeting point from where we parked.
It was a glorious day – the kind that reminds you of how wonderful the Bay Area really is – and the absence of significant mud enhanced the experience. From the Trudeau Center we made our way to Dunn Trail, stopping to admire the blue-grey serpentine outcrop, and to inspect the tripping hazards created by unofficial drainage berms installed by guerilla park users (whatever happened to “take only photos, leave only footprints”?). We followed the Dunn Trail up, then down through open areas and bay-oak forest to Baccharis Trail (Baccharis pilularis is the Latin name for coyote bush), where we turned southeast to the junction with West Ridge Trail. Everyone was doing so well that no-one opted for the shortcut up Baccharis in the opposite direction.
Baccharis took us through a flat, open, sunny area with golden sandstone outcrops and sandy areas. Once on West Ridge, we were faced with a couple of steady uphill sections, which everyone handled very well. Three hikers then did the optional excursion to Redwood Peak before joining the others, who’d found sunny picnic tables in Redwood Bowl, near the restrooms.
From Redwood Bowl it was an easy downhill walk along Graham Trail back to Dunn, where we retraced the first part of our route back to the parking lot, admiring the stunning views of the bay. All in all, a very enjoyable morning!