Snatch Some Sunshine

Some of the Monday hiking crew had already made their Pix in the Parks pilgrimmage to this site, and it held no appeal for my companion last Friday. Could I squeeze in a quick visit after this morning's showers? The forecast for the next week or so is ... [wait for it]: Rain.

This is not the bench you're looking for.

Although a longer hike would be possible, I had time for the recommended 2-mile loop (easy, save for the mud). How many times have I biked past the Rancho San Vicente area of Calero without so much as a glance? I need not have worried about whether I'd find a parking space; apart from two guys wrapping up their trail work for the day (and lots of startled ground squirrels), the acreage was mine, all mine.

The ridgetop to the east is still dusted with snow, and more is promised. It's not uncommon to see white summits once or twice each winter; it is uncommon for the snow to stick around for weeks.

We get to enjoy this land because it was purchased to save it from being developed. The nearby mansions are a vivid reminder of what might have been (artfully framed out of my photos).

With most of the hike traversing rolling green meadows, I was surprised to round a bend into a rocky landscape. There is history here, adjoining the quicksilver mines at New Almaden.

Now it's just a place that happy hikers can share on a whim with the local flora and fauna.

As I returned to the start, the afternoon sun graciously illuminated the blades of the Aermotor across the road. [Which, of course, I could not resist.]