Calero Reservoir County Park, San Jose, CA

Lots of horses here.

Point Lobos State Park, Carmel, CA

Nice coastal scenery. Bring a warm jacket.

Almaden Lake Park, San Jose, CA

Urban lake with small playground area. Good for jogging.

Henry Cowell Redwoods State park

Situated near Felton, CA, this park provides great views of redwoods.

Pacific Grove, CA

San Mateo Central Park

Montara State Beach, CA

This beach is nice, but it gets chilly here. Dress accordingly.

Lake Elizabeth, Fremont, CA

Good for a casual stroll. It gets a bit crowded and there are also lots of geese.

Sanborn County Park, Saratoga, CA

This is a pleasant, moderately steep forest hike. There is a $6 vehicle entry fee.

Cuesta Park

Uvas Canyon County Park, Morgan Hill, CA

I recently went on this hike with my SO, after my uncle had suggested this park to me. A good place to go in early spring to see waterfalls.

Baylands Park, Sunnyvale, CA

I went here on a Sunday afternoon with my brother. It is flat with a good view of the marshlands. Popular with drone operators.

Bishop Ranch Regional Preserve, San Ramon, CA

Morgan Territory Regional Preserve, Livermore, CA

Good for a weekend afternoon. Mt. Diablo is visible from the Volvon trail.



Note: getting to the park requires driving on a narrow 1-lane road. Exercise caution.

Lafayette Reservoir

This short hike around the reservoir was good for a summer jog.

McWay Falls

This waterfall is one hour south of Monterey, and worth the drive.

Sycamore Valley Regional Open Space Preserve

This park is not crowded, but not isolated either. Good for a 2-3 hour hike.

Somewhere in the tri-valley area

In early June I took an impromptu hike on a sunny afternoon.

Ed R. Levin County Park

On a Sunday in early May, I hiked here. It features beautiful views of a lake and the bay.



Note: Certain trails in this park go near a cell phone tower. I turned back early to avoid it (possible EM radiation exposure risk).

Pleasanton Ridge Regional Park, Pleasanton, CA

On a warm weekend afternoon I hiked here.