Spring is quickly approaching, marking one of the best times to visit Mission Peak. At an elevation of 2516ft, its far from the tallest peak in the area behind Rose Peak (4816ft) or Mt Diablo (4856ft), but is also far more accessible. Our trip here brought us out on a foggy day which gave us a nice dreamy view of the surrounding valley.

Mission Peak Essential Info

Length: 7 mi
Time: 3 hours
Difficulty: Moderate
Website: East Bay Parks Website
Parking fee at Ohlone (EBParks members still need to pay): $4
Hours From Ohlone:  6am – 10pm
Hours From Stanford Ave:

Dec 23 – Mar 31: 6:30am – 8:00pm
Apr 1 – Dec 22: 6:30am – 9:00pm

Dogs and Bikes OK.

1 liter of water per person advised! Summer noon hikes up are ill advised due to lack of cover from the sun for most of the trail.

Getting There

Ohlone college is located near the northern Mission Blvd exit off of I-680. From either direction on 680, take the Mission Blvd/238 exit. Proceed east onto Mission Blvd (If coming from the South Bay, veer right if from the North, veer left). Turn left into Ohlone College at Pine street. Continue onto Aquatic way (Pine st veers right) and park in the parking structure on your left. Remember to pay the parking fee!

The Trail

The trail begins just off of Pine St. If you’ve parked in the structure, it’s located just across the roadway. If you’ve parked elsewhere on the Ohlone campus, you’ll need to walk over to Pine St and take it up towards the parking structure and the aquatic center.

Checkpoint: Overlook

After a few twists and turns up a steady incline take a quick breather and take in your first views of the Sunol Valley and Mt. Diablo.

Checkpoint: Junction

As the trail nears the summit, it joins with trails coming from the Stanford Ave. staging area. With a bathroom and picnic table, it’s a good rest stop before tackling the final ascent.

Checkpoint: Summit

The most challenging section of the trail is scaling the summit with it’s craggy boulders and uneven rocks. Take your time and use your hands to help maintain balance.

With views all around and the iconic sight tube post, the summit is a great reward for those who make it up! Once a post for exploring other features of the Bay Area via sight tubes, the “Peeker Pole” has been turned into a famous selfie icon.

Return

Return on the same trail as you came in. For a little diversity, you can also try to descend via the Hidden Valley trail to the Stanford Ave staging area, and then take an Uber/Lyft back to Ohlone.

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Situated just by Highway 84 and a slew of office parks, Coyote Hills is an easily accessible get away. The Red Hill trail is a trail that runs along the bulk of the “Coyote Hills”, peaking at Red Hill and eventually terminating at the Alameda Creek Trail. It’s a steep hike that provides excellent views over the bay.

If you’re looking for a longer day, Coyote Hills also acts as a gateway to the Don Edwards refuge to the south and the Alameda Creek trails to the north. It’s even trails and proximity to urban areas makes it a popular spot for trail running.

Coyote Hills Red Hill Trail Essential Info

Length: 1.5mi
Time: 1.5hrs

Difficulty: Moderate (steep/narrow sections)

Address: 8000 Patterson Ranch Rd, Fremont, CA 94555
Hours: 8am – sunset
Entry fee: $5 per vehicle
Dogs allowed on non-marsh trails. Bikes allowed on major trails.

Website: East Bay Parks

Getting There

From highway 84 east, exit Ardenwood. Follow the road to commercial drive and turn left. You’ll pass a parking lot on the left which is free (and gets full fast!). Go through the entry gate and turn left and into the Quarry Staging Area. If you’ve arrived at the visitor’s center you’ve gone too far!

The Trail

This short, introductory version of the Red Hill trail starts with a gradual ascent on the southern side, taking you past the South Marsh and the salt ponds. It’ll peak with a steep ascent just shy of Red Hill and then return via the Glider Hill trail, down past the visitor center and the Main Marsh. As can be seen in the map, the many intersecting trails allow you to customize your experience and length of your hike.

Starting at the Quarry Staging parking lot, take the paved trail towards the South Marsh. You’ll pass the Dairy Glen camping area on your right taking the short spur closer to the marsh.

Checkpoint: South Marsh

The trail arrives at a crossroads with the Meadowlark Trail. Make a right towards the Bay View Trail. At the first intersection, veer right to the Red Hill trail which will begin a zig-zag ascent up the first hill.

Checkpoint: Salt Ponds

After ascending the first hill, you’ll get a great view of the Dumbarton bridge and former Cargill salt ponds.

With the levees broken to allow bay waters to naturally circulate, the salt ponds have begun to attract migrating birds who use the San Francisco Bay as a rest stop along their migratory routes.

From the salt pond view, the trail will begin to run directly along the ridge-line, following the ups and downs of the hills.

Along the peaks, small outcrops provide an exploratory break.

Checkpoint: Glider Hill Trail

After descending down the first peak, veer right to take Glider Hill Trail down to the visitor center. Alternatively, if you’ve got the energy, continue along Red Hill trail to the vista atop Red Hill.

Glider Hill trail will zig zag down the hillside and take you directly to the visitor’s center.

To return to the Quarry Staging area, cross Patterson Ranch road road and take the Bayview trail east, away from the bay. Here you’ll pass the Main Marsh before arriving back at the parking lot.

Checkpoint: Main Marsh

Alternatives

• Bayview Trail
  • Easy hike around the Coyote Hills, closer to the water level
• Alameda Creek Trail
  • Explore one of the major river outlets of the south San Francisco Bay
• Chochenyo Trail
  • Explore the Main Marsh

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Golden Eagle Trail  Essential Info

Length: 2.3 mi
Time: 1.5hrs
Difficulty: Easy
Hours: 8am – sunset
Dogs (leashed), Bikes, Equestrian allowed

Website: http://www.ebparks.org/parks/vargas
Trail map: Vargas_Plateau Map

Vargas Plateau Regional Park

Behind what is quickly becoming one of the most congested bottlenecks in the Bay Area, Vargas Plateau provides a critical corridor from the parks covered by the Ohlone Wilderness Trail (Sunol, Fremont Peak) to the bay wetlands (Coyote Hills, Don Edwards). Having resolved neighborhood issues regarding road traffic, East Bay Regional Parks re-opened the park in May, 2017.

This hilly area, covered by California’s familiar grassland and oak trees, provides ideal environments for bay raptors and their prey.

Getting There

To get to Vargas Plateau Regional Park, exit at Vargas road along I-680. If going up 680 North, simply follow Vargas road until it turns into a one-lane road. If going down 680 South, turn left onto Vargas road; right will bring you back towards the entrance to 680N

About 1.5mi along, turn right onto Morrison Road. After another .5 mi, the parking lot and trail entrance are easy to find on the left hand side of the road past a highly visible barn (see pic below).

Golden Eagle Trail to Vista Point

Start

From the parking lot, the very gradual Golden Eagle trail brings you across the open hills, towards an outcrop of rocks seemingly sprouting from the ground. The rocks are just beyond the fork which splits into Deer Gulch Trail and the Upper Ranch Trail.

Fork

The fork towards the Upper Ranch trail takes you past the open fields of the park residence. The flat open space provides plenty of habitat for rodents and their predators in the sky.

Curving around the base of the viewpoint, the trail upwards crosses the Upper Ranch trail loop at two points before a moderate climb up a gravel path.

Vista Point

The vista point provides views of Mission Peak as well as the Quarry Lakes area in Fremont.

Return

From the vista point, you can return along the same path you came in, or do the Upper Ranch loop which will add about 3 miles to the overall hike.

Wildlife

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