Wild Cat Canyon
2.10.01
 The hills
were alive with the sound of music and aching calf muscles.
Sometimes the Bay Area weather gods smile upon the inhabitants and in
the
middle of winter, it is summer. The two really aren't that different. One
is greener.
And so on this beautiful, sunny day, Karen and I decided to go on a
hike at Wild Cat Canyon Park because I had been there several years previously
with my mother. If I only I had remembered the angle of the hike. But that
comes later.
We decided to make a nice big loop of it. And after scrounging for water
bottles (prepared we were not) we set out on a fairly steep, but paved
incline along one side of the park.
 We chatted,
we strolled, we came to the hard part. The trail loops back into the park
proper over hill and more hill. We set out well enough. It was incredibly
pastoral. Cows grazing on the green grass. Birds singing. We could see
over the surrounding countryside for miles. There are excellent views of
the Bay, S.F., Marin, and the East Bay. The air, newly washed by rain,
was incredibly clean and refreshing.
Now, I should mention that while Karen and I are in descent shape, we
are by no means veteran hiking machines, full of sound and fury.
| At this point, Karen using an incredibly cool trick, realized that
we had only two hours until sunset. Based on our current rate of speed,
and those darn hills, we weren't going to make it.. |
|
(Look (carefully) at the sun. Count how many fist lengths from the
sun's position to the horizon. That is roughly the number of hours
until sunset.) |
Thank God for lazy cows. Along one side of the hills was a lower, rambling
cow path.
 We resumed
strolling and chatting, the hills with their incredible views to one side.
We passed a couple of women hola hooping on a hillside (I love the Bay
Area), and down into the remnants of someone's orchard. There were flowering
trees, Eucalyptus groves, and palm trees.
And just as our legs were beginning to say, "What the heck do you think
you're doing?" we got back to the car.
Wild Cat Canyon is located near San Pablo Damn Road off Hwy. 80 in Pinole.
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