Hidden Trail - Found! - Mar., 25, '11

Walking Distance: 1.0 mi.
Walking Time: 39 min. (12:30 - 1:09 p.m.)
Start and End Point: end of cul-de-sac, Rock Harbor Point, Hercules, CA

Thank you to Laura at the Bay Trail group in Oakland for helping me solve the puzzle about where this (solid red line on Bay Trail map) trail was located, near the Rodeo and Hercules border. I had been trying to locate this trail from the north end, from Lone Tree Point -- near 2nd Street, which is not really possible. There appears to be a parcel of private land or two that might be preventing access between Lone Tree Point/East Bay Regional Park land and this trail.

The best way to get to this red line trail is to approach it from further south. Turn from San Pablo Ave. onto Victoria Crescent Circle (not shown on map). At the end of this U-shaped street, turn onto Victoria Park toward the Bay. At the end of Victoria Park is a small park with a children's play area. The trail is just beyond this park, toward the Bay.

The Bay Area has received quite a bit of rain the past few weeks, and there were a few puddles of water on part of this paved (asphalt) trail. But, it was still a very pleasant walk.  I'd be willing to bet this path is normally quite dry. There were plenty of benches to sit on, relax and enjoy the occasional passing train, and views of the Bay.

I've noticed the past few weeks that the undeveloped areas in this part of Hercules harbor a large number of ladybugs, also known as ladybird beetles. I hope these can still thrive, despite ongoing development in the area. I've always liked these tiny, bright red-shelled beetles with black spots.

Wildlife:

2 red-winged blackbirds; 29 ladybugs; 1 small brown lizard; 1 domestic cat (watching something in tall grass); 1 kite (the kind people fly) in tree; 1 pillbug; 3 little brown jobs

Hercules Market Hall - Mar. 12, '11

Walking Distance: 1 mile
Walking Time: 1 hr., 25 min. (2:05 - 3:30 p.m.) includes two stops
Start and End Point: Public parking lot, San Pablo Ave., Hercules, CA

I realized I'd skipped part of San Pablo Avenue, from Sycamore Ave. to the end of Highway 4. (Highway 4 is also known as John Muir Parkway.)

So, today I returned to walk these few blocks, and also to stop in at the Hercules Market Hall, a unique development with some interesting stalls, shops, and a children's play area. Food and drink vendors include Shaw's Texas Style BBQ and Moschetti espresso. There was a bocci ball court, an outdoor theater space; and a farmer's market is scheduled to resume there in May 2011, barring any local budget cuts. Funding reductions are being felt in several Bay Area towns I've passed through. I hope this small Market space will be able to continue. It seems well-suited for several different types of community activities.


Following my stop at The Market Hall, I crossed San Pablo Ave. (please cross at the light carefully, as cars coming off Highway 4 are not always paying attention); and I walked to the end of Highway 4/John Muir Parkway.

While not part of the Bay Trail, the Western tail end of John Muir Parkway was a peaceful stretch to walk on a weekend. The road dead ended within a few long blocks of the San Francisco Bay. Given the presence of earth-moving equipment (and the dirt colored pad/area seen in Google Maps snapshot (upper edge of image, above right) at the end of the road, close to the Bay, I suspect this area will be further developed soon.

I'm not sure what all this development will mean for this ladybug that I passed on the sidewalk, or the rest of the birds, butterflies, and other wildlife in the area. I'll be curious to return a few years from now to find out.

I hope the city also continues to make this busy interchange pedestrian friendly, as I think this might help direct more traffic to The Market space as well.

Wildlife Sightings:
1 ladybug; 4 pillbugs; 2 crows; 3 red-winged blackbirds; 4 little brown jobs (LBJs); 5 white butterflies

Hercules, Pinole Creek - Mar. 9, '11

Walking Distance: 3.7 miles
Walking Time: 1 hr., 45 min. (12:35 - 2:20 p.m.)
Start and End Point: Public Parking lot, small shopping center on San Pablo Ave., Hercules, CA

Today I combined two trail segments, by walking a large rectangle that spanned Hercules and Pinole. Actually, the shape of the route I covered was probably closer to a large squiggle.

First, I walked Southwest on San Pablo Ave. (shown as double red lines on Bay Trail map) toward Historic Old Town Pinole, stopping to watch four turkeys cross San Pablo Ave. and head down a gully toward the railroad tracks. After crossing the tracks, they headed uphill toward some houses. (If you take out a magnifying glass, you might be able to spot all four turkeys in the cropped, horizontal image, at right.)

I enjoyed walking through historic Pinole. There were several possible meal stops here. I paused for lunch at Sam's doghouse, a family run business, where I was able to buy a Fritos boat to go with my hot dog. In amongst several historic houses, I was surprised to see a horse almost hidden in some yellow flowers, behind a fence. I'm sure the horse wasn't used to seeing many pedestrians either.

After lunch, I turned around and headed back, Northeast on San Pablo Ave. for a few short blocks. Then I turned right to follow the Pinole Creek Trail (purple line on map), through a park, under a large wooden bridge, and toward the Bay and the railroad tracks near Bayfront Park.  I then turned Right onto the Bay Trail (solid red line) toward Railroad Avenue (retracing steps from previous walk).

I don't always stick exactly to the Bay Trail. I sometimes explore new bay-side developments in an area.

In Hercules, there are fairly dense housing tracts going in, south of an industrial park at the end of John Muir Parkway. The remnants of old company buildings (housing?) that were associated with manufacturing dynamite and gunpowder appeared to be boarded up or long gone. The new community looks like it has been very carefully planned. A few small businesses are incorporated into the ground floors of multi-story buildings.

My wanderings through this newly developed area took me along Sycamore, Bayfront, and Tsushima (and a few other streets shown in white, or not shown, on Bay Trail map) to return to San Pablo Ave. Much of this new development was private property, and there was a large tract closest to the Bay which looked like it had yet to be developed. But, parts of this area were somewhat pedestrian friendly.

Wildlife Sightings:
4 turkeys; 2 hawks; 19 little brown jobs (LBJs); 14 ducks; 4 crows; 2 butterflies; 36 pigeons; 4 sea gulls; 1 horse; 1 pillbug; 1 peregrine falcon (top of tall tree); 5 doves; 2 Canada geese; 1 great white egret; 10 red-winged blackbirds; 2 killdeer; 1 bluejay

Hercules, San Pablo Ave. - Mar. 1, '11

Walking Distance: 1.6 miles
Walking Time: 35 min. (2:59 - 3:34 p.m.)
Start and Stop Point: Parking lot, near Linus Pauling and San Pablo Ave., Hercules, CA

This stroll down San Pablo Ave. (shown as double red lines on map) was quite comfortable for pedestrian traffic, due to sidewalks covering the entire stretch. I walked along San Pablo Ave., from Victoria Crescent to the end of Highway 4 (also known as John Muir Parkway), which now terminates at at business park.


I wonder what John Muir would make of the term "office park" or "business park." Perhaps it's better he didn't live long enough to ponder this question. While a successful businessman himself, Muir did value open space. And, there is not much "park" in an office or business park.

There was still some grass and trees in the hills surrounding this stretch of San Pablo Ave. -- enough to support a large hawk soaring above. (see very blurry picture of hawk shown at right). However, the open land seems like it is being developed at a rapid rate, with new dense housing tracts under construction.

I heard a few rustles and caught sight of tiny darting movements in the undergrowth, or what I call "blurs in the bushes" or BIBs for short. These were likely small lizards basking in the sun that were scurrying for cover as I walked by. This makes sense as almost one year ago,  last Spring, I took many pictures of lizards. Lizard season, in areas where they still exist, is about to begin again soon. This will probably make the hawk happy.

Wildlife Sightings:
3 sea gulls; 4 crows; 5 little brown jobs (LBJs); 1 hawk; 1 ladybug; 1 pillbug; 3 blurs in bushes (BIBs - likely lizards)

Rodeo to Hercules - Feb. 28, 2011

Walking Distance: 3.4 mi. (estimate)
Walking Time: 1 hr. 25 min. (4:41 - 6:06 p.m.)
Start and End Point: Unpaved shoulder, San Pablo Ave., Rodeo, CA

Today's walk was part urban sidewalks, followed by a stretch of open space by the water to watch the sunset.

I first walked East on San Pablo Ave., spotting a roof full of pigeons along the way, to the intersection with Railroad Ave. -- my end point in yesterday's walk.

I then turned around and walked through downtown Rodeo along Parker Ave., enjoying painted signs, a bar, a bait shop, burger restaurants, an old movie theater turned into a church, and an abandoned restaurant with a dutch windmill on top.

I took a right turn on San Pablo Ave., and walked up a gradual slope to the intersection with Victoria Crescent, before turning around to head back to my car, and an East Bay Regional Park area (San Pablo Bay Regional Shoreline - Lone Tree Point) near the Bay.

By the time I arrived at the Point, the sun was starting to go down, and there were just a few people there. In addition to an old crumbling wharf, there was a small cove and beach with a cluster of wading shorebirds. An Amtrak train rumbled by, but other than that, it was very peaceful.

Wildlife Sightings:
12 pigeons; 14 LBJs; 12 sea gulls; 14 smaller UBBs; 1 dove; 6 ducks; 1 hubcap