Yosemite Panorama Trail Hike

While camping at Yosemite National Park we decided to hike the Panorama Trail. The trail starts at Glacier Point and connects with various other trails. Our hike included the Panorama Trail and then connected to the Mist Trail down to Happy Isles in Yosemite Valley. The day before the hike we bought one way tickets for the tour bus that takes you from Yosemite Lodge up to Glacier Point. They have three tours per day, at 8:30am, 10am and 1pm.  You can take the round trip tour that includes a tour at Glacier Point with bus ride back to the lodge but if you plan to do a one way hike from the Glacier Point area, then the one way tour ticket is what you need. The one way ticket cost $25 per person and the drive took about an hour and a half. On the trip up to Glacier Point the bus driver shared interesting facts about Yosemite and the various points of interest along the way. Once at Glacier Point we took pictures of the wondrous view before heading out on the trail. The trailhead starts at above 7000 feet elevation and is to the west of the viewing area. It starts with a short uphill section before leveling out and then making a gradual decline. Because of the unusual weather this year, with larger than normal amount of snowpack melting, there were areas of the trail that were wet and muddy. In fact, there were a few areas where you had to cross running water and had to be careful not to slip and fall. There are great views from the trail right at the beginning that continue throughout. The beginning of our hike was slow going since we frequently stopped to take pictures and were often mesmerized by the view. We got great views of Half Dome, Nevada Falls, Vernal Falls and Illilouette Falls. There is a very short detour to get good views of Illilouette Falls which lets you see that the falls was full with rushing water, as all the other falls we saw on this trip were. We soon got to the bridge that crosses Illilouette Falls and couldn’t help but stop to marvel at the water flow. As we crossed the bridge we began the uphill part of the hike. We came to Panorama Point which we had read would be a great lookout and one of the best parts of the hike but we thought the views at the beginning of the hike were better. We continued on the narrow dirt trail and came across the occasional muddy or rocky areas. Most of this part of the trail was shaded. We made the climb along switchbacks for nearly 1000 feet before arriving at the top of Nevada Falls. Having made the trip up the Mist Trail to Nevada Falls several times before we weren't quite ready for the immense water flow. It was incredible, unlike anything we had ever seen before. Again we stopped for many pictures as we didn’t know if we’d ever be lucky enough to see the falls like this again. We took a rest break as well to re-energize and hydrate. The top of Nevada Falls is always a good place for a break. We had a choice to head down the Mist Trail or the John Muir Trail back to Happy Isles and Yosemite Valley. We had seen people that had come up through the Mist Trail with soaked clothing and many others with rain ponchos. We had packed in preparation for the Mist Trail so we headed down that way. After putting our jackets on we headed down the steep trail. When we’ve hiked this trail in the past we enjoyed the light mist that we would get from the falls after the initial dry rocky area but this time the moisture was more than refreshing…we got drenched!  It was like rain was coming from all directions. We had to be extra careful on the steep, soaked steps. We tried to take pictures but couldn’t keep the lens dry long enough so we only managed a couple of shots when we were under the shelter of a tree. We continued down the wet trail and by the time we made it to dry land we were soaked from head to toe.  Nonetheless it was a fun experience. We continued on to see Vernal Falls and again were impressed with the amount of water there. We had never seen it like this before. The trail nearly leveled as we crossed the bridge at Vernal Falls and made our way to Happy Isles which is at about 4,000 feet elevation. The total hike was about 8.5 miles and took 5.5 hours. We would definitely recommend this hike, especially in spring when the water level is the greatest.

View of Nevada and Vernal Falls from top of Panorama Trail

Illilouette Fall

View of Yosemite Falls

Right above Nevada Fall

Nevada Fall

Vernal Fall

June Events

Here are a few things going on in June

6/5    See Jane Half Marathon and 5k races in Alameda
6/5    Mt. Diablo Trail Run   8k, 25k and 50k races
6/5    National Trails Day
6/6    Hook and Ladder Run 5k and 10k races in Livermore
6/6    Women's Fitness Festival 5k race in Sacramento
6/12  Henry Coe 5k and 10k trail races
6/13  Run to Play 5k and 10k races in Castro Valley
6/13  Tour de Cure cycling event in Palo Alto
6/20  Rotary Spirit Run 5k and 10k races in Pleasanton
6/26  Run on the Square 5k and 10k races in Lodi
6/26  Bear Creek 5k, 10k and Half Marathon races at Briones Regional Park
6/26  Ales and Trails cycling event in San Rafael
6/26  Great American Backyard Campout


REI Free Clinics (all at 7pm)
    POLES for Hiking, Walking and Exercise
          6/10 Brentwood
    Backpacking Basics
          6/2 Berkeley
          6/3 Brentwood
          6/8 Fremont
    Lighter Side of Backpacking
          6/8 Stockton
    Hiking John Muir Trail
          6/8 Berkeley Camp Cooking Basics
          6/15 Stockton
          6/16 Fremont
          6/18 Brentwood
    Car Camping Basics
          6/19 Berkeley

Avenue of the Vines 5k

We ran the Avenue of the Vines 5k at Woodbridge Winery in Lodi today. We headed out very early since the race started at 7:15am. There was also a Half Marathon race that started at 7am. Being early, there was ample parking at the parking lot nearby. People who arrived after the lot was full were able to park along the street sides. The entry fee included the usual cotton t-shirt, wine glass, goodie bag and entry into the afternoon wine tasting with lunch. The Half Marathon racers received a technical t-shirt instead of cotton and a finishers medal. Chip timing was used for both races and they both started right on time. The 5k race route was an out and back on flat streets surrounded by grapevines. The route for the Half Marathon was a loop course on flat streets surrounded by grapevines and mustard seed fields. Weather was just slightly cool to start and just a bit warmer as the morning went on. It was great weather for a race. There was one water station on the 5k race and a mile marker at the 1 mile mark. Water and an energy drink were available after the race, but no postrace snacks which was disappointing. There was no race day registration, but race packet pick-up was very organized. Overall a nice course with good weather, just missed those post-race food goodies!

Start of the 5k

Race T-Shirt and Wine Glass

Mount Madonna Hike

We did about a 2.5 mile hike while in Mt. Madonna. We drove towards the ranger station and parked in the lot at the Lower Miller Trailhead. We headed out on Lower Miller Trail until we got to the beginning of Mount Madonna's Miller Estate and Nature Walk. We took this nature walk trail and followed sites number one through eight. This allowed us to see what is left of Henry Miller's Summer Home which was occupied by his descendants until 1922. Henry Miller was originally a butcher from Germany. Once in California he became one of the largest landholders in the US by owning ranches throughout California, Oregon and Nevada. Most of the land was used for cattle, sheep and pigs. After spending time exploring the remnants of the estate, we continued on Lower Miller Trail. We then took Loop Trail to Iron Springs Trail. We could hear just a faint sound of water running through the springs but never actually saw the water. We then took Blue Springs Trail which had us walking through part of the Archery Trail. We didn't see any archers but were still cautious enough not venture off the designated trails. We took Upper Miller Trail back towards the parking lot. Up until this point most of the hike was shaded and cool. Once on Upper Miller trail though, the trail was more exposed and we were glad it wasn't a hot day. We saw a few banana slugs on our way back. Before arriving at the car we took a short detour by the Ranger Station to see the White Fallow Deer. The hike took us about an hour and a half. We plan on going back and maybe hiking by the Sprig Recreation Area.

Mt. Madonna County Park Website

Mount Madonna Camping

We went camping at Mt. Madonna County Park. The park is only 10 miles west of Gilroy on Highway 152. The park has 118 campsites with the usual fire pit, food locker and picnic table spread out through 4 campgrounds. The are 17 sites with partial hookups for RV's. Also this year they have added Yurts. Yurts are circular domed tent like structures with a wooden floor and canvas sides. We took a look at the yurt on the site next to us. It had two sets of bunk beds and a couch. Bathrooms with flush toilets are located in each campground. And there is one central building for showers.We weren't sure whether we were going to be able to go camping or not so we did not make reservations. We could tell that from the reservation website, that we would have no problems getting a first come first serve site. We arrived around 4:30PM on Friday. We checked with the ranger at the gate who sent us in to pick a campsite that was available. We simply headed into the first campground which was Valley View 1. Valley View 1 has several RV sites at the front, and the back loop is tent sites intermingled with sites that have yurts. We chose site 124 for no particular reason. We weren't picky since all the sites had shade, there weren't many people around and we were only going to stay for one night. We went back to the gate to tell the ranger the site we wanted and paid the $24 camping fee. The rest of the night remained quiet as there were very few campers in our area. Mount Madonna has 14 miles of hiking trails. There is a 1 mile nature trail around the ruins of Henry Millers summer home. There is an archery range along one of the trails. The other thing to check out is the rare white fallow deer. They are kept in a deer pen near the visitor center. We really liked Mt. Madonna, especially how easy it was to get to. We will certainly be camping there again sometime in the near future. 

Mount Madonna Website
Mount Madonna Camping Reservations
Our Hike at Mount Madonna

May Events

Here are a few things going on in May

5/2    Avenue of the Giants 10k, Half and Full Marathon races in Redwoods Park
5/8    California Peace Officers 5k and 10k races in Shadow Cliffs Regional Park in Pleasanton
5/8    Rina's Run 5k and 10k races in Ripon
5/9    Redwood Park Trail Run 10k, 20k, 30k, 50k races
5/15  Tour de Starbucks charity bike ride in Brentwood through REI
5/15  Cycling Festival REI Berkeley
5/16  Avenue of the Vines 5k and Half Marathon races in Lodi
5/16  Tilden Tough 10 mile race in Berkeley
5/16 through 5/23 Tour of California


REI Free Clinics (all at 7pm)
    POLES for Hiking, Walking and Exercise
         5/4 Stockton
    Bike Commuting 101
         5/13 Stockton
    Find the Right Bike for You
         5/11 Fremont
    Great Sierra Backpacking Destinations
         5/6 Brentwood

Great Spear-It Run

We went to the Great Spear-It Run today in Stockton. It was our first time doing this race. It included one mile, 5k and five mile races. The run is part of the three day Annual Asparagus Festival. We registered for the five mile race and the entry fee included a performance t-shirt and admission to the festival. We always like the performance t-shirts over the cotton so we were excited about that. The drive to the race was straightforward and there was ample parking on the surrounding streets since it was early in the day. There were also many parking lots in the surrounding area that charged $10. Finding race day bib pick-up was easy so we had time to kill. The race application and event website all listed race start to be 8am but once we were there it was announced that the one mile race would start at 8am and the 5k and 5 mile races would not start until 8:30. The start time announcement seemed like news to everyone so we don't think we misread the event information beforehand. With an extra half hour to wait for our race we enjoyed the Mariachi Band that was performing and watched the local farmers set up for the local market. We also watched the 1 mile racers, many of them children. "Gus" the Asparagus participated as well. The course for all three races was similar, starting on Weber Avenue along the waterfront and ending at the finish line inside the festival. The 5k and 5 mile races included several turnarounds on Weber Avenue which proved to be good and bad. The numerous turnarounds on the 5 mile course definitely affected our momentum but also gave us ample opportunities to see our spectators, something that we haven't seen in other races we've done. Because the 5k and 5mile races used the same course it did get confusing to race volunteers and racers alike whether they had completed all of the turnarounds before heading towards the finish line. Once we had completed all of our turnarounds we headed to the finish line inside the Asparagus Festival and soon noticed that the finish line was set up too soon in our course. We ended the race at 4.5 miles and not 5miles, which was disappointing. Besides the incorrect distance on the 5 mile course we did notice a few other things that could be improved upon before next year, the water stations and the mile markers. There were two water stations set up but only one was functional and there were only two mile markers, one at the 1 mile mark and one at the 2 mile mark. There were about 1000 race participants in total and the weather could not have been better. We did not stay for the Asparagus Festival after the race since it didn't start for about another 45 minutes or so and we had other plans for the day. We did make a quick stop at the conveniently located farmers market on our way out.

Alameda Creek Trail Bike Ride

With the EBRPD Trails Challenge in mind, we headed out for a bike ride along the Alameda Creek Trail. This paved trail follows the creek from Niles Canyon to the San Francisco Bay, passing several staging areas along the way. We drove to Coyote Hills Regional Park in Fremont and started our ride at the Bayview Trail near the parks main parking lot. We stayed on the breezy trail for about 0.75mile before it connected to Alameda Creek Trail. Near this junction we were fortunate to be surrounded by many grazing sheep. They were all around us and were not shy. There were bicyclists, walkers and runners all stopped here admiring the sheep and snapping pictures. After we took our share of pictures we continued on the trail. There are mile markers every quarter mile for those who may not want to do the entire trail. On the first half of our ride the weather was warm with just a slight breeze, a perfect day for the ride. There were runners, walkers, bicyclists and a few people on roller blades enjoying the trail. After about an hour we arrived at Niles Canyon where we took a break and more pictures. We made our way back towards Coyote Hills. About 5 miles into the ride back the wind really starting kicking up and making us work for our progress. As we made it back to Coyote Hills we could feel the air beginning to cool. More tired than anticipated, we were glad when we made it back to our car after about 2and a half hours and a 20 mile ride. The trail proved to be good for a leisurely bike ride (when it is wind-free) and would work well for a run as well. Its not the most scenic ride you'll ever take but it was great being able to travel 10 miles in one direction on a paved path and never have to cross traffic.

EBRPD's Alameda Creek Trail Website

Santa Cruz Half Marathon

We ran the Santa Cruz Half Marathon for the first time today, along with 2199 other runners. There was also a 10k race with 1114 runners. We had read about the great views on the race so decided to do it. The views did not disappoint but the weather did. We knew a few days before that the weather was going to be bad but we decided to make it a weekend trip anyway, spending the day before the race at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. The race start was only a few short blocks from the Boardwalk itself so the morning of race day parking proved to be a challenge. Once at the start we could feel the cold breeze but were grateful that it was not raining. The course started out on a street along the coast and there was room for us to spread out but after a couple of miles it quickly narrowed and stayed that way for most of the course. The course had only a few hills and was mainly an out and back route with one loop in Wilder Ranch State Park. Once in Wilder Ranch the paved road was replaced by gravel and dirt and we had to be careful not to twist an ankle. The dirt path through the park was the narrowest part of the course making it difficult to pass other runners. We could definitely feel the wind while in the park but the views were still spectacular. Once out of Wilder Ranch we re-traced our steps back towards the Boardwalk. The course continued to be narrow all the way to the finish, since the street that had originally been closed for the race was now open to car traffic. Nearly two hours into the race it began to rain lightly and the wind began to pick up. Thankful to be near the finish we picked up our pace. The finish seemed very abrupt as we made a sharp right turn only a few steps from the finish line which is on the beach itself. Having the finish line on the beach is nice in theory but caused us to get sand in our shoes and socks and had us questioning whether it was really the best location for the finish. Once at the finish we received our medals and then picked up our t-shirts since they were not handed out prior to the race. This race t-shirt is probably our favorite race shirt to date since there are no sponsors on the shirt. There were also plenty of the usual post-race snacks on the beach. Despite the weather, the narrow course and the sand-filled finish, it was a great race and we would do it again.