Coyote Hills Regional Park - Fremont, CA

A lovely Friday morning hike with a friend/old co-worker.

Coyote Hills Regional Park, located in Fremont, comprises of approximately 978 acres of hilly grasslands and marshes. The marshlands are protected so it is a sanctuary for many shorebirds. The park offers bike paths and walking paths and plenty of opportunities for 360 degree views of the Peninsula, San Francisco Bay and East Bay shoreline. Atop the grassy knolls are picnic tables and benches where you can stop to take in the views and have a snack or chat for awhile. There are also several other vista points along the paved paths, some with educational placards about the area.

At the Visitor Center there are educational displays and exhibits, restrooms, a bird and butterfly nectar garden and a few picnic tables. We even got to see some turkeys when we were there. They were very interested in finding out what all of us humans were up to. The butterfly garden was very cute, but unfortunately that day there was not a whole lot of butterfly activity.

The park itself has a lot of history to it pertaining to native american life, the Ohlone Indians and early settlers. A trip to the Visitor's Center gives a glimpse into this past.

This is a quiet and easy going place to walk & hike. The park is dog friendly which is a bonus, the dogs just need to be on leash. Leisurely, easy hiking with rewarding views. There is lots of bird activity as well for those who enjoy wildlife.

Me and Shirley atop a grassy knoll, overlooking the SF Bay

Panoramic - Bay & Marshland (Peninsula to the left, East Bay cities to the right)

Marshland - view of Fremont, Union City and surrounding East Bay area

Monarch Butterfly seen at the Visitor Center butterfly garden

Turkeys....Hiiii :)

Aptos Rancho Trail - The Forest of Nisene Marks SP - Aptos, CA

The Aptos Rancho Trail is a nice detour from the main fire road trail as you go through the main artery of the park. The Forest of Nisene Marks State Park, located Aptos, CA is a beautiful state park surrounded by redwood forest. It is a local favorite to many hikers, mountain bikers, runners/walkers and horseback riders.

After the heavy rains that drenched Northern California this past week, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to check out the water flow in the Aptos Creek. The creek, which snakes its way through the whole park, starts way up in the Santa Cruz mountains. There are many creeks that flow through the park, but the Aptos Creek is the main waterway that flows all the way to the ocean and it is most visible as you enter the front of the park and can continue to be seen for several miles along the Aptos Creek Fire Road. After 5 years of perpetual drought, it was refreshing to finally get some steady rain to fill up the reservoirs and local watersheds.

The Aptos Rancho Trail is a short, scenic trail and relatively flat. It is approximately 2 miles long and it starts from the parking lot at the park entrance/ranger station and pops out at George's Picnic Area. The trail is not a loop, its an out and back, but if you did want a loop, you can walk the Aptos Creek Fire Road back to the parking lot. The Aptos Rancho Trail runs parallel to the fire road, but at a lower elevation and it allows for a much better, up-close view of the creek. The trail also walks you through a couple of redwood forest groves that are quite beautiful and peaceful because of the way the sunlight filters through the trees and branches and hits the forest floor. Standing in these groves is where you can really get a feel for how tall and massive the redwood trees really are. Adjacent to George's Picnic Area is a steel bridge that crosses the creek and provides an excellent view of it in both directions.

Below are a couple of pictures of the flowing creek and forest groves, along with 2 short videos.

Aptos Creek - facing west from the steel bridge (George's Picnic Area)

Aptos Creek - facing east from the steel bridge (George's Picnic Area)

Redwood forest grove with sunlight trickling through the trees

Those are some TALL trees

This is funny - there is still a payphone available in the park

Point Lobos State Natural Reserve - Carmel-By-The-Sea, CA

Point Lobos State Natural Reserve - located in Carmel-By-The-Sea, slightly north of Big Sur

First hike of the New Year, 2017. Honestly, before looking in a California hiking guide book on Christmas, I had never heard of this State Park before even after being down to the Monterey/Carmel/Big Sur area many, many a time. I don't know how that happened, as it truly is a real gem, especially if you like seeing coastal wildlife.

We went on New Year's Day. Weather was overcast with slight wind. Hike is mostly exposed coastal track so it was pretty windy. You do get some shelter from the trees when the path bobs and weaves slightly inland during some parts of the walk.

The 2 trails that we hiked were the: Cypress Grove Trail & North Shore Trail

Both trails offer exquisite views of the Carmel Bay and the Point Lobos State Marine Reserve coastline. There are a plethora of Cypress trees that drape the landscape and it is quite interesting to see how they have grown and survived in the habitat. There is an abundance of marine life that can be seen from the hiking paths along the coast, it is quite amazing and entertaining to watch the animals in their natural habitat. We got the pleasure of seeing pelicans, otters, egrets, a Great blue heron and seals. If you hike by Whalers Cove, along the North Shore Trail, you'll get to see some preserved whale bones and other historical artifacts at the Whaler's Museum. The park ranger that was there when we hiked by had a telescope set-up and we were able to get an up-close look at the Blue Heron, it was awesome. They are some BIG birds..I nicknamed him 'Father Time' because he looked old and wise. :)

Aside from these 2 hiking paths, there are several other paths to meander on that will walk through the forests or over to Sea Lion Cove for more great views along the coastline.

I highly recommend checking this out!! Easy to moderate walk/hike. You can make good time at a leisurely pace, stopping to take pictures and enjoy the scenery.

Headland Cove and Coastline - view from the Cypress Grove Trail

Jagged coastline rocks and colorful vegetation

Cypress tree grove - growing in the direction of the wind

A lone pelican, hurrying to catch up with the rest of the flock

An Egret fishing in the low tidal waters at Bluefish Cove

Preserved whale bones at Whalers Cove

A Great Blue Heron chillin' on a rock at Whalers Cove 

An otter eating some shellfish at Whalers Cove

A New Year's Resolution

As explained in the blog description, this is an online blog or journal about me and Ryan's hiking adventures for the year 2017. For the past few years, my New Year's resolutions lists seem to be getting longer and longer. By the time December 31st rolls around and I reconcile the "list", I am lucky if I have successfully or partially completed at least 1 of the items on my long lists. I find it can be an overwhelming task to improve oneself in too many areas at one time. Instead, this year, I've decided to try something different. I've decided to focus my energy on just 1 resolution, instead of many, to help achieve a "better self".

This resolution is: to hike, often

Since hiking encapsulates mind, body and spirit, I feel like hiking actually achieves multiple goals in one. In an ideal world, one would like to stress less, achieve an ideal body weight, eat healthier, work less, etc. Although these can be difficult things to achieve, I believe connecting with nature both emotionally and through physical exertion does help the human mind in processing these emotions and helps us work to a solution. It is also a great way to get exercise. That is why this year I am choosing to make my goal to hike more often and in new places.

My intent is to keep the postings brief, but interesting by including pictures and reviews or recommendations about the hikes we have taken. The hope is that this inspires people to go for an outdoor adventure of their own or go on one of the hike we have, if they see one that spikes their interest.

With Much Love,
Nicole

"Life is one big road with lots of signs. So when you riding through the ruts, don't complicate your mind. Flee from hate, mischief and jealousy. Don't bury your thoughts, put your vision to reality. Wake Up and Live!" - Bob Marley