Howling in the Fog

Well, it's August in Richmond, as you can see from this picture here. I ran this trail today, and it would have been rather unblog-worthy, were it not for this crazy fog, and what I heard just after I took this picture.

I was running down the trail, listening to some salsa, as is normal for my long runs, when I started to hear some kind of screaming in the background. I thought it was the song, and was confused for a moment, so I turned my iPod off and realized it was not the music, but sounds coming from the left of me, off toward Havey Canyon. I thought for a brief moment that it was a child, but then the high-pitched barking/whining came through, and I figured out I was listening to coyotes calling back and forth across Havey Canyon. If you have never heard coyotes call back and forth to each other, it's something else. You can tell they're communicating-- Neko could definitely tell something was going on. I did have a brief moment of worrying they were barking because they were trying to tell each other about a mountain lion's presence, but then decided that I was already out there, so I might as well run on and stop thinking about it. Rather cool though-- not something I have ever heard in Wildcat Canyon. I have run into individual coyotes while out on the trails, but never heard such a call-and-response chorus.

My running companion was totally unconcerned by the fog, as you can see here.

Conlon Trail

Conlon Trail 

(Wildcat Creek- Belgum- San Pablo Ridge- Conlon- Wildcat Creek)

(9.09 miles)

I love this trail. This is my favorite, favorite, favorite trail in Wildcat Canyon. It's not exactly a secret (the cows certainly know about it), but it's so rare that I see anyone on this trail that I'm calling it a secret trail. 

I ran this today a bit faster than I probably needed to-- I was running behind schedule but really wanted to run this trail, as I haven't run it recently, and the puppies haven't been out enough this week. I kept worrying the whole time that I was going to be late, so I pushed it the whole way through. This is the longest run I've done since Ohlone, and it felt pretty good.

The trail starts out like Havey Canyon and Mezue from the Alvarado Staging Area-- up onto the ridge and all its steepness, but then continues on Nimitz Way. This is the same paved trail that leads out from Inspiration Point in Tilden, and technically dogs should be on leash on Nimitz Way... just to be clear about that. At the edge of Tilden Park, Conlon Trail forks to the right and up onto another ridge that

 provides, in my view, some of the best 360 degree views in all of the Bay Area. As seen in the first picture, there is a sweeping view of San Francisco, the Bay Bridge and Mt. Tamalpais, but if you turn to the right, you can see Mt. Diablo and the surrounding hills. In front of you, the view of Novato and the north section of the Bay frames the trail. You can even see the Carquinez Strait. Plus, this trail is a really fun two miles of downhill-- it's not technical, but it's steep enough in sections that you can really move. 

It's trails like this (along with the tamales) that help to redeem Richmond when I get

 frustrated with ladders getting stolen or random trash ending up in my front yard. Again, it is entirely possible to have a cow conundrum on this trail: let the doggie owners beware! I have had a couple of moments of cross-country thistle-collecting due to bovine presence on the trails. Today we fortunately saw only one group, and they were huddled under a tree.

So there it is: My Richmond Trail Recommendation #1. 

Mezue Trail

Mezue Trail
Wildcat Creek- Belgum- San Pablo Ridge- Mezue- Wildcat Creek
(5.98 miles)

If anyone was wondering, I love my Garmin. Love it, love it, love it. It's pretty much the greatest thing ever. Well, apart from a perfectly cooked Tarte Tatin, or maybe an unexpected massage, or the last two movements in Bach's Sonata Number 2 in A minor for solo violin. Or a couple of unmentionable kinds of moments. Excepting all THAT, my Garmin is fantastic. My brother is becoming a fan, too. So I am converting more people to running geekdom. Garmin should appreciate my efforts on its behalf.

Anyway, for lack of vehicular motivation, we opted to run in Wildcat again today. We ran the Mezue trail, normally voted "Most Likely to Have Bovine Encounters." One memory I have of this trail involves Jen yelling at a cow, "Get away, you big stupid piece of beef!" Cows in Wildcat are not as docile as they are in Briones. The cows at Briones tried to get away from the dogs and me last time I was there--cows at Wildcat have run AT us (with absolutely no provocation, might I add-- I make the dogs heel around the herd). If you can get over the cows though, this is another dreamy trail.

Mezue starts off like Havey Canyon-- from the parking lot at Alvarado Staging Area, up Wildcat Creek trail until Belgum, at which point you climb straight up to San Pablo Ridge and run with the entire Bay Area spread out around you-- Mt. Diablo in the distance to the left, three bridges and the city on the other side of a glittering blue bay to your right. This trail confirmed what I wrote yesterday-- it's better than the Sea View trail in Tilden.

Once over the rather strenuous uphills, the trail forks just before a corral. I have never seen livestock actually in the corral, but it's a good marking for the Mezue turnoff. The Mezue trail forks right and after a short climb, follows a beautiful downhill stretch (fast, fast!) until the water fountain at the trail intersection with Wildcat Creek, at which point the trail follows the well-used Wildcat Creek trail back to the parking lot.

The one caveat I would present is the muddy slop trail runners will find during the wet season. Most of the run dries out fast, as it's exposed for most of the run, but the cow-dominated section is also the muddiest--during rainy season, expect to spent at least a quarter mile unable to run through the sticky East Bay mud. (I swear, the mud in Wildcat and Tilden has a higher clay content than the mud in Marin, but no one has confirmed or denied said hypothesis yet.)

Beyond that, this trail is another which gets far less use than one would expect for such an accessible trail. We saw just two groups of people, two single hikers and two bikers once we turned off Wildcat Creek trail. As can be seen in the picture, my two running buddies love this trail-- again, dogs under voice control can be off-leash in Wildcat, and when you have two border collies at the house, this is a very, very good thing.

Havey Canyon

Havey Canyon

Wildcat Creek-Belgum-Nimitz-Havey Canyon-Wildcat Creek (6.3 (?) miles)

Havey Canyon. Yet another undiscovered jewel of Richmond's Wildcat Canyon. This is a gorgeous, challenging (albeit not super long) run with sweeping vistas, varying landscape, steep uphill and some great downhill--all within 5 minutes of the Solano Ave. exit off of 80 East. Is it Richmond's reputation? I have no idea, but I do think the dramatic views rival anything I have seen from other East Bay parks. (Ok, Marin might have something over Wildcat Canyon, but my house was much cheaper than it would have been in Ross...)

Anyway, I digress. The trail at Alvarado Park climbs from the parking lot and then continues to ascend up Belgum trail until reaching the San Pablo Ridge trail, as seen in the first photo. Belgum trail is named for the Belgum Sanitorium, now a collection of very interesting ruins that I promise to cover in another post--today I was too focused on getting up the hill to take pictures.

For the next two miles, the trail runs along San Pablo Ridge. It is almost always windy on this trail, making it an ideal trail for summer when Briones gets too hot. (As you can see here, Richmond gets the wind from the Bay, making summer barbecues annoyingly cold by 7:30 p.m.) This trail is (in my opinion) one of the most overlooked trails in the East Bay. From this

 trail, it is possible to see the Golden Gate, the Bay Bridge, Mt. Diablo and sometimes even the Benicia Bridge--all while standing in the same spot. It is also rare to see other people on this trail. Even on a Saturday afternoon, I might see two other groups of people. 

The Belgum trail ends at the paved Nimitz Way, which one could follow all the way to Tilden's Inspiration Point, but the Havey Canyon trail heads right, down into (funnily enough...) Havey Canyon. I love this section of the trail. Havey Canyon is sheltered, with abundant greenery framing the trail. (At this time of year, it has an abundance of poison oak as well-- be forewarned.) This 1.5 mile trail is a wonderfully fast downhill section as well--not too technical and steep enough that you can get up some great speed. And yes, I continued to practice my new downhill technique... 

At the end of Havey Canyon, the trail meets up with Wildcat Creek trail, which heads back to the parking lot. This is a great trail for dogs as well, with the understanding that there are cows on the loose at times... I have come close to having a bovine encounter or two. If you're not trying to run long but want to get your heart rate up, this trail is a wonderful option. Bring the puppies and get thee to Wildcat Canyon!

O Richmond, My Richmond...

Wildcat Creek Trail

(4+ miles)

First, that's the city, not the district (note the lack of article). Many people might not associate Richmond with trail runners... and you would be correct. There aren't a whole lot of us out here, and I think it's too bad, because Wildcat Canyon is a great place to run. It's true that it does not have the wealth of trails that grace Marin, for example, but it's a consistently underutilized area, so you can leave the VERY urban 23rd and Rheem, for example, and be running on a hill with no one around in a matter of minutes.

According to the East Bay Regional Parks website, Alvarado Park (the picnic area adjoining Wildcat Canyon's open space that is barbecue central on sunny weekends) used to have a pavilion and dance hall that later turned into a roller rink. I don't usually run around the park, but it's a great place to go back and have a picnic after a good run.

Additionally, Wildcat Canyon is pretty dog-friendly. Like Redwood, you must have your dog on a leash in developed areas, and clean up after them, but they can run free in undeveloped space areas, which is most of the park. The one caveat to running with dogs is the preponderance of cows once you leave Wildcat Creek Trail and head up toward the ridge, where the better trail running is. Neko and I have had a couple of "cow encounters" while running, particularly on the Mezue Trail.

I was going to post about the run I did last Sunday, but then I felt some loyalty to Wildcat Canyon and decided to instead to start with highlighting a very basic, midweek out-and-back 4+ mile run that follows Wildcat Creek until the intersection of the Mezue Trail and Wildcat Creek Trail. There is a drinking fountain with a dog bowl that makes a good turning point. This trail is basically flat, and true trail aficionados will grumpily point out that the first mile or so is actually on pavement. It's true, but it's still beautiful on days like today when the ceanothus is in bloom and the hills are covered with vetch, the purple flower in the first picture. It also makes for an easy no-thinking-necessary run when you just need to get some miles in to calm the border collie(s).

In another post, I'll give some ways to add a little more to your run as well as get off the road for a bit. I'll also cover Havey Canyon, Mezue and Conlon Trails, but I thought I'd start with the most basic of Wildcat Canyon options.