This is the waterfall at the upper end of Laurel Canyon as seen from the north Hidden Springs Trail below the Muriel Wright Center. See the pictures from 12/26/12 on the left to see this waterfall with more water. The next few pictures below are telephoto shots taken from the Hidden Springs Trail.


Telephoto view of Mt. Hamilton.


Telephoto view of Metcalf Road.


The tracks in the hills south of Metcalf Road are the trails at Motorcycle County Park.


Looking up at my destination: the top of Coyote Peak.


I head up the Hidden Springs Trail to the south. This is the flat part of the Hidden Springs Trail, leading up to Coyote Peak.


This is the creek that parallels the steep part of the Hidden Springs Trail as it climbs up the hill. The creek feeds the waterfalls in Laurel Canyon.


The Hidden Springs Trail levels off at this small pond. This pond has to fill up and overflow in order for the upper falls in Laurel Canyon to form.


The Hidden Springs Trail (left) ends where it joins the Coyote Peak Trail (right). In the background is downtown San Jose. The Coyote Peak Trail continues uphill to Coyote Peak.


This is a view from the Coyote Peak Trail below the summit. On the left is the Pueblo Area parking lot where I parked. In the center is the Muriel Wright Center. In the background is most of Silicon Valley and the Bay Area.


Looking to the northeast, Baldwin School is in the lower center, the HGST plant and former IBM site is in the center left, the Edenvale Research Park is on the center right, and Mission Peak is at the top, right of center.


This is Big Oak Valley, with the Los Capitancillos Ridge of Almaden Quicksilver County Park behind it, with the Sierra Azul Range and Mt. Umunhum in the background. Rancho San Vicente (part of Calero County Park) is on the left.


This is a view looking back down the Coyote Peak Trail towards the rest of the park.


These shiny green serpentine boulders are at the head of Big Oak Valley, looking towards the Almaden Valley.


This is the Coyote Peak Trail continuing to the west, where it is a service road used by trucks for servicing the antenna on Coyote Peak. To the left is the Coyote Valley.


This is the view looking down the Coyote Valley towards Morgan Hill. Hwy 101 is along the base of Coyote Ridge on the left. The property below is owned by IBM, whose Silicon Valley Lab is hidden behind the hills below.


This is the viewpoint looking north at the top of Coyote Peak. Most of the pictures below were taken from near that bench.


This is a panorama taken from the top of Coyote Peak. It is made up of multiple shots. The above is a thumbnail. Click on it to see a high-resolution version. The pictures below are telephoto shots taken from the peak.


This is the Muriel Wright Center. For many years it was a correctional center, originally for girls, then later for teenage girls and young boys. It will now be used for the County Parks volunteer program and for housing work crews.


This is IBM's Almaden Research Center, located adjacent to the park. Part of IBM's property is provided as an easement for the Stile Ranch Trail.


The box on the ridge is the former Almaden Air Force Station on Mt. Umunhum. It once supported a radar dish that scanned the skies of the Bay Area looking for enemy bombers during the Cold War. It is now owned by the Mid-Peninsula Open Space District and will be opened to the public eventually. The hills below are in Almaden Quicksilver County Park.


The hill in the center is Bernal Hill. The top of the hill is on IBM property. The Vista Loop Trail in Santa Teresa Park is on the far right below the power tower.


This is a view looking over the Bernal Hill Loop Trail, below Bernal Hill. They Hwy 85-87 interchange is above it on the right. Oakridge Mall is on the left. The black buildings higher up on the left are the Pruneyard Towers. The white tower on the upper right of center is Stanford's Hoover Tower.


This cropped extreme telephoto view shows Stanford's Hoover Tower on the left and Valley Medical Center in the lower middle.


This is a view looking over Hwy 85, with the open field of the Martial Cottle Ranch in the center. The hangars at Moffett Field are on the upper right. The mountain to the right of center is Mt. San Bruno.


The Martial Cottle Ranch is the green area below center. Above it is Communications Hill. Mineta San Jose Airport is on the right. Great America is right of center. Downtown San Francisco is above it on the other side of the Bay. Behind it is Mt. Tamalpais in Marin County.


This is a stronger telephoto view showing Communications Hill, Great America, and downtown San Francisco. The Bay Bridge can be seen on the right.


Mineta San Jose Airport is on the left. Downtown San Jose is in the center. Coyote Hills Regional Park is above center. Downtown Oakland is on the right.


In this stronger telephoto view, San Jose City Hall is on the left. The salt mounds at Newark are in the center beyond the Bay. On the horizon are the buildings of downtown Oakland.


In this mild telephoto view, the HGST plant is on the right. Lowe's is above it on the right. The open area is the former IBM plantsite, which is being developed into a shopping/residential area. East San Jose and Milpitas are higher up on the right.


Below is Hwy 85. Above it is the HGST plant. Hwy 101 is above it. The Evergreen Valley is on the right.


The ridge in the background includes Mission Peak, Mt. Allison, and Monument Peak.


This extreme telephoto view shows the observatory domes on Mt. Hamilton.


This wide angle view shows the Coyote Peak Trail coming up to Coyote Peak.


After descending Coyote Peak, I took a short trip to the top of the Boundary Trail, along the park's southeastern boundary, next to IBM. This is a view from the Boundary Trail, showing the northern part of the Coyote Valley. Tulare Hill is on the left. The seasonal lake is next to Santa Teresa Blvd. IBM's property is below on the right.


This is a view from the Boundary Trail, looking down on IBM"s property at the north end of the Coyote Valley. El Toro Mountain in Morgan Hill is to the right of center.


This extreme telephoto view shows the top of El Toro Mountain.


This is an extreme telephoto view, looking towards the south end of the Coyote Valley, Morgan Hill, San Martin, and the hills above Gilroy. After this, I came back down the trail.


At the end of the hike, this is a view looking back along the Hidden Springs Trail leading down from Coyote Peak.

Page created by Ron Horii, 1/26/13