Redwood Peak

DATE: Saturday, March 28, 2020
DISTANCE: 9.22 miles
ELEVATION GAIN: 1,667 ft.
TIME TAKEN: 3:28
SUMMIT: Redwood Peak 1,619
DIMOND CANYON PARK
JOAQUIN MILLER PARK
REDWOOD REGIONAL PARK
ALAMDEA COUNTY, CA
CONTRA COSTA COUNTY, CA


PHOTO ALBUM
MAP

Redwood Peak is the high point of Redwood Regional Park in the Easy Bay Hills, as well as the high point of a long NW-SE running ridge, which is kind of a northwestern extension of the San Leandro Hills trajectory, the western frontline of hills running from East Oakland to Castro Valley. I had been curious for years what was the highpoint of that ridge up there, because I can almost see it from my front door. A blackish green tree studded prominence in distance, at times sun crowned, at times fog shrouded.

As the world and the Bay Area was reeling with Coronavirus lockdown, I was trying to use my now abundant free time to get some hiking in, to visit some places I’d been meaning to visit over the years.  With Saturday projected as a rainy day, I though it would be a good time to finally pay a visit to Redwood Peak. I knew that the summit is tree covered, so I wouldn’t be missing out on any views due to the clouds, and the waterway of Dimond Canyon, through which I planned to ascend, should be gushing with spring runoff, for a lush riparian hiking experience. The third bonus for which I hoped, was that the rain would keep other people indoors, and I could hike in isolation.

Well, it didn’t rain very hard at any point during the day, and even though the parking lot at the Dimond Recreation Center, where I began, was completely empty, I encountered quite a few people out on the trails that day. Various configurations of runners, hikers and dog walkers. Few of them hiking alone. I cursed them all for being out, and then cursed myself for being part of the problem. I began the hike by following the course of Sausal Creek up through Dimond Canyon, a path I have followed three of four times before. This is one of my favorite hikes in Oakland, probably one of the best urban hikes you can do in any city. I did things a little differently this time by remaining in the creek bed the whole way up. There’s an intermittent trail, but mostly a bunch of rock skipping and puddle jumping. The artificial waterfalls created by public works projects past are minor obstacles. Beyond the Leimert Bridge and some hydrological infrastructure, the main trail was rejoined, which carried me out of the canyon, past the desolate Montclair Golf Club, and a temporary return to civilization at Monterey Boulevard.

Canyons of Oakland

The conveniently placed pedestrian tunnel carried me beneath the Warren Freeway, and I reconnected with the park system at Palos Colorados Trail, which took me into one of Joaquin Miller Park’s finest redwood canyons. Up to this point, this was almost a duplicate of a hike I had done with my brother Alex back in January, 2018. Where I diverged from that was when I took a left and headed up the Cinderella Creek watershed, following the trails in a northeasterly direction, gaining altitude and curving around the north of the park, and eventually leaving it as I crossed Skyline Boulevard. Like I said, there were still a lot of people around, but all the facilities, like the PAL camp, and the Chabot Observatory, were closed, leaving a somewhat ghostly shoulder season vibe. Throughout the course of the day, and especially up past the border with Redwood Regional Park, I made a series of wrong turns and meandering loops, which I blame upon the overabundance of trails and roads in this highly civilized park. Not that I was in a big hurry or anything, but I did not take the most direct course! My peregrination led me through gnarled oaks, a magic faery circle, and even a banana slug encounter. Eventually, I found my way up the the top, Redwood Peak. Even though it was completely forested, there was still a noticeable summit (more than I was expecting), a rock outcropping, and a U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey benchmark. It was a nice spot, which I would have remained at longer if not for the imminent arrival of a party of five adventurous youths. So off I went, back down the mountain.

I took the West Ridge Trail past the observatories, went back across Skyline Boulevard, through a parking lot, and then down the Scout Trail to the Castle Park Trail. This was the only section of the day that had a view out to of the trees. My intention was to cut back down to the Palos Colorados Trail, but I somehow went the wrong way on the Sunset Trail and ended up getting dumped in a neighborhood. Rather than retrace my steps back into the park I decided to walk through the residential area, down Castle Drive to Ascot Drive, past Joaquin Miller Elementary School. For a road hike, it wasn’t too bad. Ascot Drive even has a trail along part of it. I re-crossed the Warren Freeway, and then returned the way I came, back down through Diamond Canyon, back down to the rec center parking lot, which had a few cars in it by now, and couple of people ill-advisedly smoking weed together. Now, when I leave my front steps and look left down the street, which points at a distant redwood covered hill, I know what I'm looking at, and another piece of the grand puzzle is filled in.

FURTHER READING
•Bob Burd: A quick jaunt to Redwood Peak
•East Bay Trails: Another approach to Redwood Peak
•Redwood Hikes: Good photographs and description of Redwood Regional Park
•Oakland Trails: Information on the mosaic trail markers

Map by Alltrails