NorCal Hikes

Today I am going to share with you guys the recent hikes I have done in the past few months. Its winter now so all I can do is sit with hot cup of masala chai and stare at previous pictures reminiscing heaven. Something about a good hike , or bike ride puts a BIG smile on my face. As much as I love the beach and sand, I need my regular dosage of soil and trees and thorns ;)

1. The Mission Peak at Fremont

'Rising steeply to the east behind the city of Fremont, Mission and Monument peaks form a dramatic backdrop to the South Bay.'
Woke up one Saturday morning and made plans with my buddy Jason to climb the mission peak. By the time we got to Fremont(around noon) the sun was at its worst. 'This 5.6 mile out and back hike is moderately tough, but manageable, particularly if you visit on a cool day and bring plenty of water. Trailhead elevation is about 400 feet.' It was not a cool day and we were not interested in just walking we wanted some adventure. Very close to the trail we noticed a tiny water stream, now dried up and merely a trickle of water flowing. This looked like our 'scene'. Through the water we climbed up and over huge rocks. It was a fun 4 hour trip up and down. Returned home with a wet soaking shoe, muddy pants and a slight cut on my palm.

2. Los Gatos Creek Trail

Fun sunny day to bike and walk around this park. It was a 7mile gravel bike trail. Towards the last mile my brakes failed on me. So with downhill slopes I found myself not only keeping myself from rolling down but also my bike :(. I still managed to have a good time.











3. Almaden Quicksilver County Park trail

Went along with a group of 20 hikers through the Meetup website. They have hiking groups so I decided to try one of these. Was a long 7.5 mile hike exposed and some shady routes too. One side of the hill had the view of the reservoir and the other side we could see Downtown San Jose. '7.6 mile loop through oaks and grassland at a former mercury mine site.'. To sum it all, was a good hike, made new friends that share the same passion for hiking as me and cant wait to go on more of these events.




4. Rancho San Antonio trail
This was my first hike in Norcal. Went hiking with Kow and Alex at 8am, it was a cool hike uphill.
'This 5.5 mile loop hike is easy, with about 800 feet in elevation change. Trailhead elevation is around 350 feet. The hike is flat for about 1 mile, climbs on a moderate grade to about 1045 feet, descends to about 330 feet, and returns to the trailhead on a level grade.'. The final mile was a walk around the county park, where we got to see horses, cows and pigs.



Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed this piece!