Yay, so I was able to go on another awesome hike with “V”, my buddy Mike, and 24 other people from the Society of Outdoor Cardinals (formally Stanford Outing Club) this Saturday. =)
The plan was to start at Mitchell Canyon Road ranger station and then hike to the summit for a total distance of around 14 miles. Well originally it was supposed to be 16+ miles however “V” was helping to mentor a new trail leader and so the new guy chose to do the more direct route. I like “V”s meandering hikes a lot better although this one was definitely still very enjoyable.
Beginning of the hike
We started the hike at 10am and although it was a bit chilly to start with, we warmed up quick. I totally dug the great climbs. Ah, me quads and hammies were loving the workout. Thank you Jerry for all the lunge and squat workouts in bodypump. 😉
By 1:30 we had reached a point where we could see the summit but still had a ways to go. See the stone building with a blue roof? That’s the summit station.
View of the summit from Prospector's Trail
Once we got to the summit we took some time to go through the visitors center and enjoy the view. Mike also asked one of the curators if they were familiar with the story of an anchor getting launched and lodged into the side of Mt. Diablo after a munitions explosion at Port Chicago in 1944. They were not. We were disappointed. After the hike I searched for more information on that story and all I could come up with regarding the anchor was this. Oh well, I’m still willing to believe the story. =)
Mike, "V", and me at the summit observation deck.
From the observation deck we saw a sleek white glider that buzzed us several times (very impressive) and a few hang gliders who fortunately did not “find each other” even though they were doing loops within close proximity of each other. We then had lunch and relaxed a bit before preparing for the trip back down. Oh yeah, we also took a group photo and fortunately for me this nice cyclist woman offered to take the picture so I could be in it this time. Yeah! =)
Group photo from the parking lot at the summit
On the way back the sun was significantly less glary so I could see the mountains and scenery a lot better. Off in the distance I noticed a large cave which sparked my curiosity as to what might be living there. Mike and I probably spent 15-20 minutes hypothesizing on whether the cave was habitable and whether you could actually burn a fire inside the cave without succumbing to carbon monoxide poisoning when all of a sudden he interrupted to point out a deep cave just to the left of us on the trail. I had to take the opportunity to climb in and check it out. Very cool. =)
Super cool cave... I like it. =)
We finished the hike almost perfectly on time (~6pm) just when we were starting to lose the light. This was the first SOC organized hike I’ve done for 2009 and it set the tone for an awesome year. “V” said he would be organizing a hike from Sunol/Ohlone to Mt. Rose and back next Saturday that should be about 21 miles. I’m totally in! Guess I’ll be doing that one on my own though since Marshall can think of about 12 better things to do on his days off (which he said includes root canals, I don’t think he really means that) and I want a happy husband. 😉
For the rest of the pictures check out my Picasa album. Until next time, this is Jettagirl signing out. =)
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