Quick and Close to Home

Weekends are the only time we can hike, but they're usually also some of the only times we can catch up with friends and work on projects. John and I had a busy Sunday last weekend, but wanted to hit the trail at least a little, so we headed to San Jose's Alum Rock Park, about a 20 minute drive from where we live.

We set out to go up the trail we usually take--the Boccardo Loop Trail--because it's a trail we can usually do in about 2 1/2 hours and it has some good steep hills. However, it was a hot day and Boccardo Loop has very little shade. Also, it's one of the trails where we've seen the most rattlesnakes, and the warm season is when we've seen them the most (in fact, Alum Rock seems to have a pretty high concentration of snakes of all kinds in general. It's actually kind of amazing I'm willing to set foot in the park! I wish snakes no harm, but I'm not eager to hang out with them.)

It wasn't the hottest day we've had this summer, but warm enough that about two hills into our hike, we decided to head towards the shadier side of the park. The trails on that side don't offer as much of a climb, but there's much more protection from the sun.

Alum Rock Park is located in a long canyon, along a creek. On our hike into the park, we took the North Rim trail, which follows one edge of the canyon and then dropped down into the canyon, which is always shady and beautiful. Alum Rock Park is a favorite spot for family get-togethers (spring through fall, it's usually packed on weekend holidays like Easter and Mother's Day). The park has wide lawns and many picnic grounds. Although once or twice we've grabbed some sandwiches and had a quick bite at a picnic table there before hitting the trail, we'll have to invite a bunch of friends and make a day of it some time.

Seemingly at odds with being such a picnic hotspot, the park is apparently home to a number of mineral springs that smell terrible--like sulfur. A century ago, people headed out to the park to "take the waters" and enjoy whatever health benefits the mineral springs were thought to have had. I guess the thinking was, if it smelled so bad, it had to be good for you? Anyway, around the park, there are still a number of little stone huts, some with built-in benches, where people would sit to breathe in the stinky vapor of the water. There are also some cool old stone bridges, and my favorite, this very grand set of steps for a bridge that's now clearly very different than the one they were built for.

This bridge was part of our walk across the canyon floor, and then we headed back up the other side of the canyon on the Switchback Trail. No false advertising here--the Switchback Trail has plenty of long switchbacks, winding up the hillside to a ridge where you can pick up the South Rim Trail, which you can take directly back down into the canyon, or follow it down another set of switchbacks on other side of the hill and then back into the canyon.


The top of the Switchback Trail offers some nice views that look farther back into the hills, as well as some nice views of the valley, when it's not too hazy.

The last time we took the Switchback Trail, we continued down the switchback side of South Rim Trail to get back to the canyon floor, but the trail lacks shade and it was pretty narrow, with a lot of weeds and grass growing into the path--the kind that makes you feel a little paranoid about ticks. It wasn't something we felt like dealing with that day, so we turned around and went back the way we came.

There's a bench on the ridge at the top of the Switchback Trail that faces the view of the valley. John hits the water bottle and enjoys the view.