Fremont Older
To see more photos of this park go to: www.LCPhoto.SmugMug.com.
Vital Stats
Getting There
|
Description and MapIn the early 1990's I was living in Saratoga and had just started up in two new sports activities, Mountain Biking and Windsurfing. I don't remember exactly how I became aware of Fremont Older as a Mountain Biking spot, but since it was relatively close to where I lived, I could conceivably bike there, it became my preferred spot to ride. My foray into Mountain Biking turned out to be quite short lived as I ultimately decided I wanted to devote all of my extracurricular time to Windsurfing. (plus I learned the hard way that falling in water going 20 mph hurt a lot less than hitting a trail at the same speed and a whole lot less bloody).
After several years I moved from Saratoga and had never been back to Fremont Older till one foggy day in the Fall of 2012 when I decided to go try it as a hiking spot. I was amazed at how the place had changed. Apparently around the turn of the century they did a complete reworking of the trail system. It's still a very popular Mountain Biking spot but is also popular with Hikers and Equestrians. Though Fremont older is a smaller park, 739 acres laced with 14 miles of trails, it still has a lot to offer. It's a great place for hikers in the Medium to Advanced levels, though transitioning Beginners ready to tackle some slightly steeper trails can also find routes to hike here. There are plenty of alternate routes for variety and cut-off points to customize your hike on the fly. I do have to admit that all these routes makes trail navigation a bit tricky and the signage is, at times, a bit hard to figure out, so definitely get a map and take it with you until you get the lay of the land pretty firmly in your head. There are also several connecting trails that will take you to Stevens Creek County Park. The vegetation ranges from Oaks, Bayberry, Scrub, Grasslands, Eucalyptus and even some Ferns on some of the shadier forest floors. There are some great scenic views of both the Santa Cruz Mountains and the Silicon Valley. At Maisie's Peak, the highest point in the park you get a valley panorama that extends from San Mateo (yet to be fully confirmed as the weather would need to be pretty clear) to the southern foothills of the valley. There are also numerous creek beds that dry in the summer months but I assume have water during the rainy season Though the soil here is quite clay-like so you might want to give it a few days after a heavy rain to hike here. All-in-all a great place to hike. Links
|
Easiest Hikes
|
Medium Hikes
|
Harder Hikes
|