Maureen had volunteered to spend a Sunday working at the snack bar at Golden Gate Fields to raise funds for Horses Honor, a group that rescues unwanted horses. I thought about going along just to watch the races, but decided to go hiking instead. I'll try to go to the races another time.
I wanted to try someplace that I hadn't been to recently, so Darby and I spent about an hour driving to Antioch and Black Diamond Mines Regional Preserve. When we got there I realized that it had been longer then I thought since I had been here -- probably about 30 years.
It didn't look much different than I remembered, but at the Somersville Road entrance, I was told that there was now an underground visitor center, and that dogs on leash were welcome there. So Darby and I walked a short ways up the hill past mounds of tailings to the entrance. After going through a tunnel, we came into a room carved out rock with interesting displays about the mining history of the place. I thought it was very nicely done.
Nearby, there was a sign for a trail leading to the Hazel-Atlas mine where they lead mine tours. I wasn't interested in a tour, but I thought I would check out the mine entrance. It had a concrete portal similar to the visitor center entrance. Apparently lots of work has been done to make these mines safe for visitors in the years since I was here before, when there were only fenced off open holes.
The Chaparral Loop Trail continued steeply up the little canyon, climbing over sandstone boulders. Most of these hills north of Mt. Diablo are steeply rounded grassland with a few oaks here and there. But here in the mining area, the terrain looks much different -- rugged, rocky hills with chaparral and pines. It feels kind of more like the Sierra foothills than the bay area.
At the top of the ridge, I turned right, intending to make my way to the Black Diamond Trail. To get there, I had to descend a couple hundred feet into another little canyon to the Manhattan Canyon Trail, then climb steeply up the other side of the canyon. From the map, I thought it might be possible to cut across off-trail and avoid this down and up, but I couldn't see any easy way across thick chaparral and very steep slopes. It was a warm day, and getting warmer, and I was sweating pretty good by the time we reached the Black Diamond Trail.
We left behind the steep single-track trails, and continued on a wide fire road. I also noticed that we were leaving the area of rocky chaparral and pines and entering an area of smooth grassy hills with oaks. Gently climbing around a hill, the views to the east showed a dramatic transition between the coal-bearing sandstone layers and the rest of the hills. We could also see far out into the central valley.
I had chosen the Black Diamond Trail partly because I wanted to check out the possibility of reaching the high point of these hills, about a half mile south of the park boundary. I could now see that there wouldn't be any real barriers besides a lot more climbing and the worry of getting caught trespassing. I also considered the possibility of descending off-trail to the Nortonville site to make a loop. I could see down into that canyon, but not enough to see if there would be brush or cliffs. It was hot, and I was tired, so we turned around and headed back down the way we had come.
We followed the Black Diamond Trail all of the way down to the Nortonville-Somersville pass. It was a bit annoying that it was not all downhill; there was some climbing involved too. We walked through the Rose Hill Cemetery, and checked out some of the interesting gravestones of 19th century miners.
Looking at the map, I realized that we had visited only a small portion of the park. I hiked most of the trails there years ago, and I'll probably check them out again, but I was quite satisfied with what we had seen today.
I wanted to try someplace that I hadn't been to recently, so Darby and I spent about an hour driving to Antioch and Black Diamond Mines Regional Preserve. When we got there I realized that it had been longer then I thought since I had been here -- probably about 30 years.
It didn't look much different than I remembered, but at the Somersville Road entrance, I was told that there was now an underground visitor center, and that dogs on leash were welcome there. So Darby and I walked a short ways up the hill past mounds of tailings to the entrance. After going through a tunnel, we came into a room carved out rock with interesting displays about the mining history of the place. I thought it was very nicely done.
Nearby, there was a sign for a trail leading to the Hazel-Atlas mine where they lead mine tours. I wasn't interested in a tour, but I thought I would check out the mine entrance. It had a concrete portal similar to the visitor center entrance. Apparently lots of work has been done to make these mines safe for visitors in the years since I was here before, when there were only fenced off open holes.
The Chaparral Loop Trail continued steeply up the little canyon, climbing over sandstone boulders. Most of these hills north of Mt. Diablo are steeply rounded grassland with a few oaks here and there. But here in the mining area, the terrain looks much different -- rugged, rocky hills with chaparral and pines. It feels kind of more like the Sierra foothills than the bay area.
At the top of the ridge, I turned right, intending to make my way to the Black Diamond Trail. To get there, I had to descend a couple hundred feet into another little canyon to the Manhattan Canyon Trail, then climb steeply up the other side of the canyon. From the map, I thought it might be possible to cut across off-trail and avoid this down and up, but I couldn't see any easy way across thick chaparral and very steep slopes. It was a warm day, and getting warmer, and I was sweating pretty good by the time we reached the Black Diamond Trail.
We left behind the steep single-track trails, and continued on a wide fire road. I also noticed that we were leaving the area of rocky chaparral and pines and entering an area of smooth grassy hills with oaks. Gently climbing around a hill, the views to the east showed a dramatic transition between the coal-bearing sandstone layers and the rest of the hills. We could also see far out into the central valley.
I had chosen the Black Diamond Trail partly because I wanted to check out the possibility of reaching the high point of these hills, about a half mile south of the park boundary. I could now see that there wouldn't be any real barriers besides a lot more climbing and the worry of getting caught trespassing. I also considered the possibility of descending off-trail to the Nortonville site to make a loop. I could see down into that canyon, but not enough to see if there would be brush or cliffs. It was hot, and I was tired, so we turned around and headed back down the way we had come.
We followed the Black Diamond Trail all of the way down to the Nortonville-Somersville pass. It was a bit annoying that it was not all downhill; there was some climbing involved too. We walked through the Rose Hill Cemetery, and checked out some of the interesting gravestones of 19th century miners.
Looking at the map, I realized that we had visited only a small portion of the park. I hiked most of the trails there years ago, and I'll probably check them out again, but I was quite satisfied with what we had seen today.
4.3 mi. -- 1000 ft. up and down
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