1309. BART2BART 3 (07/22/23)

Hikers (0):
Distance: 17 miles
Rating: 2 difficulty, 7 beauty
Park info: Garin & Dry Creek Pioneer Parks near Castro Valley

Write-up by Steve

After months of vacation and hiking elsewhere, I returned to the Bay Area "full time". Decided to partake of the Bay Area Ridge Trail's Challenge of doing five segments before the end of September. While trivial on paper, wanted to do it with some flair.

Didn't have time to send out the notice until the last minute. Jarda mentioned the night before that there were already two hikes scheduled on the PINCH side, so wasn't expecting company.

The hike went off without a hitch, starting at Union City BART and ending at Castro Valley BART. It was a little hazy, but not too hot. Since no one signed up, I took the most expedient "use trail" to the ridgeline, which was new trail for me. Once there, turned up Whipsnake Trail to reach the Bay Area Ridge Trail, which heads along Walpart Ridge (but the highest point on the ridge is not on the route). Near the end of the route, I looped deeper into the Five Valley area than the official route, which is why the hike turned out longer than listed.

Still met up with Sophie and Rainer for drinks in Castro Valley at the end. They were saving their legs for a 10k race very early the next day. . .but not their livers. That's the spirit!

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