After dreaming about this hike for a while, I finally made it deep into Pleasanton Ridge Regional Park to explore Kilkare Canyon. This 7-mile hike is a variation of the hike to Turtle Pond that inspired me. I originally planned to do that longer hike, but the temperature in Pleasanton exceeded the forecast, and I adapted the hike to maximize shade and minimize direct sun exposure. The route I did was very nice, and I was mostly successful in turning what could have been too hot of a hike into something fun. One of the features of the hike (for me) was the explosion of Mariposa lilies, which are one of my all-time favorite flowers. It was worth it for me to brave the heat to see these flowers blooming in such abundance. With that said, I think that I will make sure to repeat this hike (or a variation of it) when it's earlier in the year--and therefore cooler--next spring.
Kilkare Canyon was not what I expected, but it was really nice nonetheless. It was SO musical! The song birds were just singing their hearts out, and the hills echoed the bird calls. The section that I hiked was lush and wooded with oaks, bays, and sycamores that all benefited from the waters of Sinbad Creek. I saw no other hikers when I was in the interior of the park, but I did see one park ranger who was working on clearing out some of the poison oak. As a side note, that write-up of the hike to Turtle Pond indicates that the bay forest along Bay Leaf Trail is "infested" with poison oak, but it's gone now. Evidently, the rangers are working really hard to manage the forest!
In addition to all of the birds, there were just a million butterflies, not only in Kilkare Canyon but also along the entirety of the park. They seem to be especially attracted to the California buckeye and the thistle. It was lovely to watch them floating along chaotically in the air. I also saw two deer, one of which was wading in the waters of Sinbad Canyon! I took the hike indicated on the map in pink in a counter-clockwise direction, going north to Shady Creek and then south on Sinbad Creek Trail to Bay Leaf. I think that either direction would be nice, but I enjoyed this route because I had the sun to my back in all of the most exposed parts of the hike. Because it is so difficult to get to the interior part of the park, especially Kilkare Canyon, you can expect some significant solitude. The park is quite large, so there is still a lot more to explore, and I plan to go back when the heat of the summer breaks in the fall.
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