It has been 13 weeks since we walked together. There is enough loosening of restrictions now that Idecided to try for a hike this Wednesday. Things will, of necessity, be quite different: no pink wall carpools, physical distancing including splitting the group into smaller sub-groups with extra space between, masks (to hand if not actually on), any dogs on leash 100% of the time (new EBRPD rule).
My plan is to meet at the main Bear Creek staging area at Briones (where we met for last year's picnic) at 9am and make a loop of about 3.3 miles up Briones Crest Tr and down Abrigo Valley Tr. If we do the up first while it is still relatively cool we will have the shade for much of the return. This is a relatively short hike, so water and a snack should be sufficient. Remember that 1) the forecast for tomorrow is HOT so bring plenty of water and 2) all restrooms are still closed!
Things changed from when I sent out the notice on Tuesday. The heat and the available shade were plenty of reason for a last minute revamp of the route. Nine of us walked out Abrigo Valley and looped CCW up to the ridge and then came down Deer Creek Tr. The steep south end of the Briones Crest Tr, in full sun, just didn't appeal to any of us. It was hot, but there were occasional breezes and it was wonderful to be "on the trail again". Instead of the advertised 3.3 miles we walked 3.7
https://www.flickr.com/gp/momcat_ksw/STksn3
And since I took so few pictures today, here are some bonus retrospective ones from the 2nd week in June:
6-12-2012 Redwood (but nothing worth sharing)
6-12-2013 Ring Mt (but I was out of town)
6-10-2014 Ring Mt
6-10-2015 no hike - rain!
6-08-2016 Mt Diablo: Green Ranch
6-14-2017 Fernandez Ranch
6-13-2018 Ring Mt
6-12-2019 Pt Pinole
https://www.flickr.com/gp/momcat_ksw/74bmG9
