Welcome the New Year with a Hike Around Majestic Mount Diablo:
Mount Diablo State Park (Oak Knoll Picnic Area)
Summit Rd, Walnut Creek
Friday, January 1st, 2016
9:30am – 2:30pm | $10 (car fee)Start the New Year with a fairly strenuous hike around Mount Diablo! We will begin at the parking lot immediately west of the Oak Knoll picnic area. We will soon cross the Summit Road and head uphill on the Juniper Trail to Deer Flat Road. We’ll contour around until we get to the pass on Moses Rock Ridge and then head down to Deer Flat. From there, we hike to Murchio Gap where we will pick up the Bald Ridge Trail and use that to get to Prospectors Gap. The North Peak Trail will take us to Devil’s Elbow and dramatic views of the burn area from the 2013 fire. We will use the Summit Trail to take us back to Oak Knoll. This is a 7 mile loop with about 2600’ of total gain. Steady pace with lunch break. Wear layered clothing and bring a lunch or snacks and plenty of liquids. Be prepared for mud and poison oak. Rain cancels.
This is a variation of Hike #38 in the newly released Hiker’s Guide to Mount Diablo State Park.