Hiking Coyote Hills, part 2

We lingered for a while atop the crest of Red Hill in the Coyote Hills Regional Park. We were winded from the climb; it was short but very steep. And we enjoyed views in all directions. In part 1 of this trek I shared a picture of the view where we could see all the way to downtown San Francisco and Oakland. Here are some of the other views.



Looking to the southwest we could see across the bay to the peninsula. The Dumbarton Bridge crosses the bay.



Looking south we could see the massive extent of the South Bay, far beyond the other hills that are part of Coyote Hills Regional Park.

Part of the reason there are such great views from up here is that we're right on the edge of the bay. There's nothing to block the view for miles. But we're actually not on the edge of the bay....



Red Hill is kind of in the Bay. To the west are wetlands. These used to be tidal marshes connected to the bay. Red Hill used to be an island. Levees built decades ago now connect it to the mainland. So even looking to the west, there's nothing higher than this for miles.



Eventually we left our perch atop Red Hill and started toward home. We didn't take the fast route, though. We looped to the south over some lower knobs. On a lower trail we saw a group of two dozen women dressed in bright red gowns and carrying drums... part of a traditional Chinese celebration, they told us.

By the time we got back to the trailhead we'd only hike about 2.5 miles. It sure felt like longer. Not only because I was hiking despite my back injury but because the views we enjoyed made it seem like we must've hiked at least twice that distance.