Summary: This hike is just about an hour from our house in Vallejo, and five minutes from Livermore. There is a lake for boating, fishing, swimming with a beautiful recreation area for BBQ, fields for soccer, kite flying, and throwing the frisbee. Yet you can hike out of this along the full length of the lake, or up into the hills where we did where there are no crowds, and you may even see a bobcat like we did.
The Map:
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The Pictures:
The Story:
This was a discovery for us. We were headed to do a completely different hike, to Murietta falls, but when we got to the park, the ranger told us the area we wanted was closed. I would arrive earlier in the day to do the Ohlone Trail to Murietta Falls anyway. That hike is a 1700 ft climb and 6 miles each way. So, we left that for another day. We grabbed a map and set out for a wander.
The Map:
View Del Valle Regional Park in a larger map
The Pictures:
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The Story:
This was a discovery for us. We were headed to do a completely different hike, to Murietta falls, but when we got to the park, the ranger told us the area we wanted was closed. I would arrive earlier in the day to do the Ohlone Trail to Murietta Falls anyway. That hike is a 1700 ft climb and 6 miles each way. So, we left that for another day. We grabbed a map and set out for a wander.
Check out the Del Valle Regional Park website for all the basic info. It was $6 to get in, and the map is included. You can stay close to the car, and have tons of fun, or you can hike or canoe into a lakeside campsite. This is one fun place.
We hiked along the lakefront where picnickers, fisherman, and kids playing swarm. It is very multicultural, and great people watching. We hiked past the last parking lot, and you can hike the entire length of the lake. At the point where the trail turns uphill to get around Badger Cove, we turned around, and decided to make our way back in the hills to get some views. I'm so glad we did that. For one thing, this gives you incredible views, but we also left people behind us for the most part. We encountered only one other couple, and after them, we saw a bobcat.
We saw him at Hidden Canyon, and he was just walking up the trail towards us. We stopped, and he continued to walk torwards us a little bit, then he cut off the 
trail. There is one picture where he can faintly be made out in the trail, but my camera is better on big scenes than on zooming in on moving wildlife. This is only the second time that I've seen a bobcat on my hikes, and it was a real thrill. He looked like a really muscular big housecat, but he had the bob tail, and the tufted ears with black tips. I've done some research since, and to me he looked more like a Canadian Lynx, which are threatened in the lower 48, but I don't know if that's possible. Here's the blurry pick. Decide for yourself.
trail. There is one picture where he can faintly be made out in the trail, but my camera is better on big scenes than on zooming in on moving wildlife. This is only the second time that I've seen a bobcat on my hikes, and it was a real thrill. He looked like a really muscular big housecat, but he had the bob tail, and the tufted ears with black tips. I've done some research since, and to me he looked more like a Canadian Lynx, which are threatened in the lower 48, but I don't know if that's possible. Here's the blurry pick. Decide for yourself. We'll definitely be back to Del Valle Regional Park for kayaking, and more hiking.
