Skip to main content

Urban Trails: Peninsula and San Jose is Ready for Preorder!

Note: Preorder bonus mentioned at the bottom of this post!

On December 21, 2022, I hiked in Pulgas Ridge Open Space Preserve to explore the first route for my upcoming book, Urban Trails: Peninsula and San Jose. It took two and a half years to hike the remaining 49 routes, write them up, get them tested, and go through three intensive rounds of editing. After all that work, the book is finally ready for preorder on Amazon!

  

What's Inside the Book?

Writing this book was largely a solo endeavor, so now I'm excited to share my work with you. Here's a bit about the book!

The goal was to find hikes within a one-hour drive of San Jose. I chose 50 routes between Pacifica and Gilroy, which is a huge area. Here is a glimpse at the table of contents. I wanted routes with various difficulty levels, and aimed for 25% easy, 50% moderate, and 25% hard. That said, the Peninsula and South Bay are hilly, so here's where we ended up: 14% easy, 62% moderate, and 24% hard. A full 16% of the routes are right in San Jose, but don't be fooled — there are some wild parts of San Jose, like Santa Teresa County Park. 

 

My Favorite Hikes by Season 

While I love all the routes in my book, I do have a few favorites to share. 

In spring, Almaden Quicksilver County Park is green, gorgeous, and full of wildflowers. It also has historic mining equipment throughout, so you can learn while you hike. 

In summer, escape the heat and enjoy the ocean views and breezes in Pacifica! The Mori Point route is the cover image for my book!

In fall, visit Montalvo Arts Center, hike the trails and have a picnic on the lawn. The wooded trails have art installations throughout and there is a beautiful lookout over the Santa Clara Valley.

In winter, Uvas Canyon County Park, the waterfalls (which are largely dormant in the summer) come to life and the park feels like it turns into one large waterfall. Ladybug clusters also form around the park in December/January — it is a sight to see!

Preorder bonus! 

If you preorder, Urban Trails: Peninsula and San Jose, send me your receipt, I'll invite you to a preorder only book talk I'll offer a few dates and times this fall!

Location: San Francisco, CA 94110, USA

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The San Francisco Roundabout Trail - An urban hike fueled by determination, grit, and pain meds

On October 5, 2025, five of us met before dawn at the corner of John Muir Drive and Sklyine Boulevard. Our goal: Complete the new 38-mile Roundabout Trail . To walk the route in one day, we’d have to keep our bodies moving for over half a day with minimal stops, witnessing the sunrise, the full day, and the sunset. I’d walked up to 34 miles in a day on the NYC Shorewalkers Great Saunter , but 38-miles was terra incognita for me. Internalizing my learnings from the Great Saunter, I popped some “vitamin I” — or ibuprofen before we even started walking.   Stats:  Distance: 41.67 miles — 3 miles longer than predicted. Every extra step hurt. Steps: 81k steps — and I felt every single step beyond 60k. Time: 14 hours on the dot (6:30 am - 8:30 pm including all stops). Company: Started with 5, picked up 4 en route, and ended with 4   The Roundabout Trail is broken into five sections, and we decided to start somewhere in the middle of section 4 w...
Post a Comment
Read more

Hike all of SF Post 6: Lake Merced Loop

I'm on a mission to #hikeallofsf . These are the stories of my hikes. _______________ ______________________________ _________ The Lake Merced Loop at 4.2 or 4.5 miles Hike Name: Lake Merced Loop Distance: 4.2 - 4.5 miles Elevation: <100 feet Difficulty: Easy to moderate Time: 1.5 - 2 hours Dog Friendly: Yes, on leash Hike Description Lake Merced is located in the Lakeshore neighborhood in the southwestern corner of San Francisco. The Lake Merced loop is not the most scenic hike in San Francisco, nor it is the most peaceful. Despite these negatives, what I like about this hike is that it carries a certain sense of accomplishment with it. It’s a good enough distance that you’re going to be walking for an hour to an hour and a half, and you get to circle an entire natural lake and bird habitat. Much of this route is flanked with busy roads - namely Lake Merced Boulevard, John Muir Drive, and Skyline Drive, so expect to hear some leve...
1 comment
Read more

Two Great Hikes Near Cavallo Point and Fort Baker

Links and images refreshed 7/30/2025   Last year, I went to a wedding reception at the Cavallo Point Lodge and my boyfriend and I decided to spend the night there. The morning after the reception, we wanted to take advantage of our location and get some exercise, so we decided to explore some local trails. I revisited these trails again recently and wanted to write about them so you can take advantage of them, too.     Hike 1: Cavallo Point Loop 2.0 miles, 260 feet elevation gain Strava route to download or duplicate     From outside the hotel’s main building (where the valet stand is) walk diagonally across the large lawn to reach the intersection of Murray Circle and Center Road. There you'll see a (small) trail sign for the Bay Trail. Head straight here onto Moore Road and then take your first left onto Sommerville Street. Start walking along Horseshoe Bay.  When you reach the Presidio Yacht Club after about 0.1 mile, take a ...
Post a Comment
Read more