INCH Hike: Ohlone Wilderness Trail

583. Ohlone Wilderness Trail (09/22/07)

Hikers (10): David, George, Helen, Nani, Paul, Peter, Ramesh, Ross, Sabine, Steve
Distance: 28 miles
Rating: 6 difficulty, 9 beauty
Park info: Ohlone Regional Wilderness from Del Valle to Mission Peak

Write-up by Peter

As promised after the last OWT hike, we hiked the trail in the reverse direction this time, starting at Mission Peak at 7am on a rainy morning on the last official day of summer.

1, 2, 3, ... INCH!

The hike itself was fairly uneventful, except for the steady rain which followed us all the way from Mission Peak and past Sunol. Luckily it let up as we began the long climb up to Rose Peak from Sunol Backpack Camp (well, at least that's where I was on the trail -- most others were ahead of me).

I had expected the reverse Ohlone hike to be a lot easier than the "regular" Ohlone -- it was, but not by as large a margin as I had imagined. In particular, the stretch from the backpack camp to Rose Peak was definitely not as gently graded as I had thought it would be. Many others made similar comments after the hike.

Since it was definitely easier, I am downgrading it from a Level 7 to 6, partially due to the easier grade and partially due to the cool weather. Before the hikers rise up in revolt, keep in mind that a Level 7 is supposed to be twice as difficult as a Level 6. Mississippi Lake is a Level 6. Was this hike twice as difficult as Mississippi Lake? I don't think so.

Other random notes:

Half of us made the optional side trip to the top of Mission Peak. Three did it the right way and came back down and hit all the signposts on the OWT. The other two (you know who you are) took the easy way (shorter and less elevation loss) down the other side. [Note: Ignore the fact that "those two" were home before the stalwart author finished the hike. . .]
In a similar vein, Nani made me backtrack down from Rose Peak the same way I had gone up so that I would not miss any of the OWT. Later on, I realized that this effort was in vain because I had missed a few yards of the OWT when I took a different route back down from Mission Peak (not the backside trail) thanks to George, so I did in fact miss about 100 yards of the trail. Since I had always taken the Rose Peak bypass in the past, it means that after 4 traversals of the OWT I still haven't done every foot of the trail. Damn these optional side trails!!!
We saw some good wildlife on this hike -- plenty of deer and wild turkey. I saw a tarantula. I also heard a boar grunting in the bushes on my way up from The Gulch. Sabine also saw a boar.
Every time I hike this trail, I always want to make a side trip to Goat Rock, about half a mile south of signpost #20, right in the middle of the OWT, but never get around to doing it. I'll plan an upcoming hike to go from Sunol to Goat Rock and back -- about 13 miles.
Last, but definitely not least, big thanks to Lily, Diane, and Sue for picking us up after the hike and for bringing beer and snacks!