5-25-13 Huckleberry

Another day when Maureen was busy all day, so I combined a trip to Blick in Berkeley for watercolor supplies with a hike on the Huckleberry Path. This was going to be the hike that I had intended to do in January when I ended up in Sibley because dogs are not allowed here. I intended make a loop that included the part of the Bay Area Ridge Trail between Redwood and Sibley parks. Both trails contour around the very steep east slope of the Berkeley Hills, an unusual area of lush vegetation with many plants found few other places. Much of the trail is a narrow path between walls of huckleberries and ferns shaded by bays and oaks, but there are also dry, bare areas with a couple of different manzanitas.

My plan was to start at the parking lot at Sibley, but it was full, so went a quarter-mile or so south to the small parking area for Huckleberry. I picked up a map and saw that it also included information for numbered stops on a nature trail, so I went back to the car and got my reading glasses (one of the drawbacks of senior-citizenhood). I took my hat too, but didn't need it because the trails are very shady. Very soon after I started, the trail forked, and the left fork led down the hill to the Bay Area Ridge Trail. So I realized that I could make a shorter loop than planned if I wanted, and I kept that in mind. I stayed to the right and followed the original Huckleberry Path a mile and a half or so until I reached Pinehurst Road, not far from the Skyline Gate in Redwood. On the way back, I took the lower trail, which was much like the other but more shaded by bay trees. I wasn't intending a long hike, and when I reached the connecting trail, it seemed like far enough, so I used it to climb back to the start. I can do the rest of the Ridge Trail section another time. A quite pleasant hour and 20 minutes of walking.

3.2 miles -- 500 ft. of climbing