Oakland Trails: Dimond to Chabot

Yesterday, K and I joined Stan Dodson and a small, hearty group to hike from Dimond to Chabot Space and Science Center. Stan is the manager of La Farine Bakery on Fruitvale where we began the hike. But he's also the founder of OaklandTrails.org and the producer of the documentary Trailhead: Discovering Oakland's Gateway to the Redwoods. We were joined on the hike by local historian (and Legendary Local) Dennis Evanosky, who is also part of the documentary.

It didn't take long from our start before we were in Dimond Park. There we got our first look at Sausal Creek. A restoration project that was completed earlier this year included daylighting a 180 foot section of the creek that had been culverted for decades. It's made a huge difference in the park, adding both the to visual beauty but also the support for local wildlife. We continued up the Sausal Creek watershed into Dimond Canyon, and saw some of the projects that the OaklandTrails.org volunteers have been involved in. Stan's fundraiser for the Trailhead documentary was so successful that he had some money left to have trail markers made for the route, too. Which is a good thing, as the route takes a few non-obvious turns.

We stopped at various points to catch our breath, hear some info from Stan or some history from Dennis, or just admire the views. Even with the stops, we finished the 5.5 mile, 1,500+ foot climb in about 2.5 hours. At Chabot, we hopped on an AC Transit bus for a 10-minute ride back to our start on Fruitvale Ave. It's amazing to have such a beautiful, natural area within the bounds of Oakland, and that can be reached on foot, by transit or by car. From the trails near Chabot, you can connect to hundreds of miles of trails, including the 550-mile Bay Ridge Trail.

Stan leads the hikes not just for the general public, but for school groups, after-school programs and others. And OaklandTrails.org does trail maintenance, patrols the parks to help users and looks for fallen trees and other hazards, and works to improve the trails. To donate or volunteer, check out OaklandTrails.org to learn more. You can watch the Trailhead documentary there, too. You don't need to wait for one of Stan's guided hikes, though. Maps are available online, trail markers are there, so get out and explore some of the natural beauty here in Oakland!


See the photos full-size here.

Oakland Urban Paths: Oakmore Highlands

Saturday we had perfect weather for the largest ever turnout for an Oakland Urban Paths walk. There were 70+ people and at least 6 dogs who joined us to explore Oakmore Highlands and Sausal Creek.

streetcar crossing the bridge
photo from Oakmore Homes Association

We started by crossing the Leimert Bridge. It was built in 1926 by developers Harry and Walter Leimert so they could develop Oakmore Highlands. It originally had Key System streetcars running over it as well as cars and pedestrians. In 1947 the poles used for supporting the streetcar power lines were converted to street lighting. The 117-foot high concrete arch bridge was designed by engineer George Posey, who also designed the tube to Alameda.

Back across the bridge, we headed up the Bridgeview Path stairs. The stairs were built when the original development was, but had fallen into disrepair. After some resistance from the city, they finally agreed to fix them up, with the proviso that the homeowners keep them clean. In 2005 there was a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the reopening of the stairs. Compared with many stairs around Oakland, these ones are now in great shape, with repaired concrete and new railings.

We walked up and down more stairways, and I pointed out the WPA stamps in one set that date them to 1939. I also pointed out some sidewalk stamps, and mentioned Andrew Alden's method of estimating the age of a neighborhood. Up several streets, passing lots of beautiful homes and some lovely views, we made it to the high point of our journey. The house there is marked by a mailbox labeled "Hilltop House". We even saw a red-tailed hawk soaring overhead. Past more houses (including that of Mayor Jean Quan) we came to a dirt path at the end of a cul-de-sac. That led us to some wooden stairs, which led us to the back of the Mormon Temple property.

Mormon Temple

Before touring the grounds, we talked a bit about the temple. The temple was built in 1964, and a NY Times article a few years ago said it has an approximately $35,000 per month electric bill. If you've ever seen the temple at night, it's not hard to see why—the brightly-lit temple is visible from all over the Bay Area at night. One of our walkers who lives not far away related two things: (1) the light from the temple is bright enough to light up her house (2) back during the rolling brownouts, the temple complied with requests to power down to ease the demand on the electrical grid. The FAA quickly requested they turn the lights back on, because the temple is used as a landmark for pilots flying under visual flight rules (VFR). We walked across the immaculately maintained grounds, and then to the base of the temple to take in the views.

Then we headed to Monterey Blvd. which parallels highway 13. A short, unexpected tunnel led us under the freeway to the corner of Joaquin Miller Park, and the former site of Camp Dimond. It was a Boy Scout camp from 1919 until 1948, and along with cabins and other permanent structures, it featured a 300,000 gallon pool with a special sand filtration system.

We headed back under the freeway and down to the trail head for the Bridgeview Trail. There, volunteers with Friends of Sausal Creek were finishing up a morning of working to restore and protect the watershed. The trail descends to the creek and back up the other side of the canyon, then is relatively flat, running almost down to the bridge where we'd started. But it was quite a change from the streets and stairs we'd been on up to that point.

Thanks to everyone and everywoof who came out for the walk. I hope you had as much fun on the walk as I did leading it! Special thanks to area resident John Tuttle who told us about the history of the Leimert Bridge and Oakmore Highlands, and to Megan from Friends of Sausal Creek who told us about the work that FOSC does to restore and protect the watershed.

The next Oakland Urban Paths walk will be Saturday, April 13th. We'll be exploring Oakland's parklets.

Lots more pictures from the walk:

Oakland Urban Paths: Oakmore Highlands

Oakmore Highlands

Saturday, Oakland Urban Paths explored the urban stairs and pathways of Oakmore Highlands and how they connect to watershed and regional trail systems. A group of 30 people and one dog met on Leimert Boulevard in front of Rocky's Market for the vigorous walk. We were joined by some members of Friends of Sausal Creek to hear about their work in restoring and protecting the Sausal Creek watershed.

Oakmore Highlands is a development dating back to the 1920s. Developers Walter and Harry Leimert owned the Park Boulevard Company, which built the bridge in 1926 and ran the Key System line across it to develop Oakmore Highlands. It's hard to see from the road, but the bridge features a sweeping arch across Dimond Canyon, and is 357 feet long and 117 feet high. It was designed by engineer George Posey (who also designed the Posey tube). You can still see the steel poles that held the overhead lines for the Key System trains.

After a brief exploration of some of the stairs in Piedmont, we came back across the bridge and started up a series of four stairways. One was built by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in 1939. We wound around the streets to the upper end of Fruitvale Avenue, then to a hilltop overlooking the Greek Orthodox Cathedral and the Mormon Temple. The Mormon Temple was dedicated in 1964, and according to a NY Times article, averages a $35,000 per month electric bill. As it's completely lit up at night and visible from all over Oakland and beyond, the large electric bill is no surprise.

Dimond Canyon

From there we walked down Monterey Blvd., parallel to highway 13. Our leader, Paul, pointed out the tunnel under highway 13 that connects to trails in the nearby hills and Joaquin Miller park. We left the sidewalk and went into Dimond canyon. That may look familiar to long-time readers—K and I explored it last spring. The folks from Friends of Sausal Creek (FOSC) showed us areas where restoration work has been done and where there are plans for more. If you're interested in volunteering with them, see the FOSC website. Note that the creek runs all the way from near highway 13 down to the estuary in Fruitvale.

We returned to one of the stairways we'd first climbed for a group photo. Special shoutout to Doug Beyerlein of publicstairs.com who sent along the stair buttons. And a woofout to Joey, who was a great dog during the walk. Although this was a bit shorter walk (4.53 miles) than last month's Rock and Walk, it more than made up for it with the elevation changes. Next month's walk should be a good workout, too, exploring from the Laurel to Leona Heights. Hope to see you there!



Lots more pictures from the walk:


See our route on Google Maps.

exploring the Sausal Creek watershed

Sometimes I think I've explored other parts of Oakland better than I've explored the hills where K and I live. When I'm elsewhere in Oakland, I tend to try new routes, go through different neighborhoods, seek out new things. Closer to home, we tend to stick to the same places—I don't know how many times we've hiked the same trails in Huckleberry and Redwood regional parks, or taken the same routes to Montclair Village. So yesterday, K and I decided to hike someplace new.

Many Oaklanders are probably more familiar with the middle stretch of Sausal Creek, where it passes through the Dimond and the topographically named Sausal Creek neighborhood, roughly parallel to Fruitvale Ave. The Dimond has some awesome wayfinding mosaics (featured on Oaktown Art) to point people towards it. But the upper part is fed by Shepherd Creek and Palo Seco Creek, then cuts the Dimond Canyon through Oakmore, draining a large section of the Oakland hills.

We headed to the western part of Joaquin Miller Park, just off highway 13, to one of the upper parts of the Sausal Creek watershed. Looking at some very helpful maps from the Friends of Sausal Creek, it turns out we're actually in the watershed at home. We're on the Shepherd Canyon side of a largish ridge, and Shepherd Creek feeds into Sausal Creek. (Also check out great info on the geology of the area on Oakland Geology.) We started with a short, steep hike up to Visionary Ridge, to a viewpoint favored by Joaquin Miller himself. We hung out there for a while, admiring the sweeping view of Oakland.

redwoods

Then we headed further up Palo Seco creek. There are gorgeous redwoods, which while not as old as the ones in Muir Woods, are every bit as beautiful. The area was heavily logged in Oakland's history, with redwoods being used for ship's masts and building construction, but new trees have grown up since then. We crossed the creek and walked down a narrow trail on the other side.

Eventually we reached highway 13, where the creek temporarily dives underground and under the freeway, and so did we -- there's a pedestrian underpass linking Mountain Blvd. and Monterey Blvd. A short walk took us back into redwoods and a trail following the creek. Near the Montclair Golf Course, Palo Seco Creek joins with Shepherd Creek to form Sausal Creek. From there it flows down Dimond Canyon. We ended our exploration at the Liemert Bridge over Dimond Canyon, but the creek continues through Oakmore, the Dimond and along Fruitvale Ave., with various parks providing access to it.

Sausal Creek joins the estuary

The lower part of the Sausal Creek watershed is considerably less glamorous than the upper part. Just before the creek reaches International Blvd., it goes underground, resurfacing where it drains into the estuary. There's a very small park near the Fruitvale Bridge, and a marker embedded in the concrete to note it's Sausal Creek.

More pictures in my Sausal Creek watershed album:

Sausal Creek watershed

Vive la...Oakland?

La Farine Bakery

Inoticed yesterday we were getting dangerously low on coffee, so today I rode down to Peet's for a resupply. But because I wanted a bit more exercise, and I've been wanting to check out La Farine, I rode down to the Dimond district. Our closest bakery, Montclair Baking, is more into cakes and pastries, whereas La Farine is big on bread. (Farine is French for flour; the ingredients in a traditional baguette are flour, water, salt and yeast.)

So I zipped down to the Dimond -- it's almost all downhill getting there, so it's a fun ride. I bought a pound of beans at Peet's, and sipped my iced coffee (it's hot today, though not as hot as it was over the weekend) and headed over to La Farine. It didn't disappoint. Lots of breads, and they all look beautiful. So I pondered which to buy while I worked on my coffee.

spiffy solar-powered
trash compactor

Afterward I sat and people-watched for a while. It's a great spot to watch from, and various businesses including Peet's and La Farine have provided benches to make it even better. It was mostly a nice experience, except for the mentally ill guy on the next bench who was babbling racist things to the Asian guy sitting there. I did some quick grocery shopping at Farmer Joe's, and kept an eye on the situation across the street in case it escalated.

As I was about to hop on the bike and head for home, a young woman asked if I knew of an ice cream place nearby that her friend had mentioned. I told her I didn't live nearby so I didn't know the area well, but was pretty sure there was one nearby (she was on foot, so I didn't think she meant Loard's down MacArthur near Fruitvale Presbyterian, and to be honest I didn't remember it at the time.) She said she'd keep asking around. I checked on the Google G1 phone, and saw Tango Gelato on the other side of MacArthur. I told her about it, and we agreed it was a great day for it. I pedaled off for home, and saw the storefront for Tango...papered over. So I road back and told her before she walked all the way up. I wish I'd remembered Loard's, as it's only about 1/2 mile away, albeit in a different direction. Sigh.

France? No, Oakland

So finally heading for home, I road up Fruitvale and through Oakmore. I stopped to take a picture of this interesting apartment building, which looks like it would be more at home in France. Having just been up the street from Fruitvale Presbyterian, I immediately thought of Monte of the monteskewed blog. Until recently he was the pastor at FVPC, but he and his family moved to France for him to take a call at a church there. An exciting opportunity, but it sounds like settling in there has had its ups and downs.

Oakmore Highlands

I was also reminded of my post a while back, what's in a name? I'd always thought of the area I was riding in as Glenview, but Google and Yahoo maps showed me that it was actually Oakmore. But a sign down the street stated it was Oakmore Highlands. Huh? Not as mysterious as the Village Market website saying it's in Montclair, but I'd never heard of Oakmore Highlands before.