any good viewpoint trails in san jose area that can be driven to, hiked to or walked to? i want great views of the city the bay and preferably not widely known if possible
There are fabulous trails all around Monterey. Throw a stick and you will find one.
Some of my favorites are just south on the 1. All along the coast, you can pull over and go.
I don't know of any free camping in the bay area. In the Stanislas Nat. Forest (east of the San Joaquin Valley - central valley) you can camp free. You can get a map from the forest service showing all the forest roads with names like 6N27. Some of these roads require a good stout truck and 4x4 isn't a bad idea either. There are many lakes accessable too with good trout fishing.
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Some good short hike viewpoint trails can be found in the hills between Almaden and South San Jose. There's also good stuff up by Castle Rock, but you have to drive up to Skyline...
if you are looking for a view of sj/peninsula, my favorite is Sierra Rd. It is a fantastic bike ride if you are used to hills, but its also not a bad drive and has a few good lookout spots.
I have been frequenting Almaden Quicksilver County Park for a while now, which is my recommendation. I usually enter from the McAbee entrance, but the Guadalupe Landfill next door, has started to leak some hazmat of some sort and they closed that section of trail.
So, yesterday I entered from the Mockingbird Hill entrance, which has a picnic area and a restroom (the other entrance does not) and ran out of the parking lot. It is a bit steep in some areas, but what a beautiful trail system. Single tracks that meander through the oaks and cross several seasonal creeks on foot bridges.
I will definitely be returning to this park. It looks to stay cool in summer too with the tree cover.
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