hiking

Quicksilver Trail in San Jose

 in Fitness  tagged hiking / hiking gear / outdoor fitness by

quicksilver trail san jose historic hiking trails san jose quicksilver mines san jose hiking outfit ideasview silicon valley

wearing: silver hoops / tee shirt / backpack / sweatshirt / spring nail polish / jeans / hiking boots /

Quicksilver Trail is a popular hiking trail in the southern part of San Jose. It’s an interesting trail because it goes through the old and historic Quicksilver Mines; which are a big part of San Jose history. There are several mines in the area dating back to the gold rush; some of which were still in operation in the early 1900’s. This trail is a fun way to share and learn about our local history, while getting a great outdoor workout.

The Quicksilver Trails are steep. I would not recommend bringing a small child or stroller on these trails. They go up in elevation quickly, so it is a good idea to be old enough to handle the pitch of the trail; and to also be fit enough to tackle the terrain. It is a great workout, and worth the effort. The views at the top of the various trails are outstanding.

In case you are wondering what Quicksilver is, it is actually mercury. It was used during the gold rush as a reduction agent for gold and silver; before the industry switched to cyanide.  Quicksilver from San Jose was an important product during the gold rush, and essential in helping the area grow. It’s fun to hike through the old mines, and share this history with your kids. My kids enjoy the trails, and they always find it fun when we come across an old building or mine shaft. I recommend staying out of any mine remnants. It is not safe to climb into old buildings and mines.

There are several entrances to the Quicksilver Trails. Our favorite is on Whispering Pines Drive between Whitbourne Drive and Pierce Ranch Road. There is plenty of parking on the street across from the homes in the area. This is a neighborhood filled with homes and children, please respect the neighbors by driving slowly, not blocking driveways or mailboxes, and keeping noise to a minimum. During peak season such as weekends and summer, I recommend going before 10am. It gets crowded.

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This is an incredible hike! I hope you enjoy it as much as my family and I do!

Thanks for stopping by!

XOXO
Cathy

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Petrified Forest in Calistoga

 in Fitness / Travel  tagged calistoga / family / hiking / hiking gear / lifestyle / napa valley / outdoor fitness / staycation by

hiking trails calistoga petrified forest calistoga calistoga hiking trailscalistoga petrified forest historical petrified forest

wearing: silver earrings / lipstick / long sleeve tee / sweatshirt / backpack / jeans / nail polish / hiking boots /

Our family loves the outdoors, and hiking! So, when I was researching hiking trails in the Napa Valley, I came across The Petrified Forest located in Calistoga. I had no idea we had one here in the Bay Area! This sounded amazing, and like something we needed to check out. We are so glad we did!

The Petrified Forest in Calistoga features petrified redwood tress which are frozen in time. They fell over about 3.4 million years ago, you read that right, 3.4 million years ago! The trees were knocked down forcefully by a volcanic explosion from a volcano located behind present-day Mount Saint Helena. It is no longer a mountain, and it is dormant; buried behind our current mountain. The explosion was so forceful, it toppled a redwood forest filled with trees which have been aged at over 2000 years old at the time of the explosion. Can you imagine? Trees which were already 1000-2000 years old, toppled over by a volcano, then preserved under the ash for 3.4 million years! It’s incredible!

We took the 11am guided tour which was incredibly interesting. Our tour guide taught us so much about petrified wood and the history of the forest. He was incredibly nice, and so informative! We really enjoyed the tour.

The tour is also a hike, so if you go, wear a good pair of hiking shoes or boots. My hiking boots were perfect for the terrain. Also be sure to allow enough time for the tour. It was roughly 1.5 hours which was not only a good hike, it was a lot of time to learn a ton of information from our guide. We loved it!

You can learn more about The Petrified Forest on their website.

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Have you seen a petrified forest before? What did you think?

XOXO
Cathy

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Emma Wood State Beach and hiking trail Ventura

 in Fitness / Travel  tagged adidas / beach / hiking / ventura by

emma wood state beach emma wood state beach ventura central coast beaches ventura beaches

wearing: pearl earrings (similar here) / sunglasses / lipstick / green tee (old, also love this tee) / Chloe bag / nail polish / black wide leg workout pants (similar here) / black and white jacket (around waist) / adidas sneakers /

Anytime we travel, we always try to work in at least one hike. Since we love hiking as a family, we always enjoy checking out the trails in a new place, and being able to see the local vegetation and terrain.

Ventura is nice little beach town, so we thought it would be fun to hike on a trail which paralleled the beach. Emma Wood State Park is a huge beach area off highway 101 which includes camping, and hiking trails. We decided to go on a really easy trail with the kids which we picked up at the group camp-grounds. The trail was paved, and it attracted many families on bikes, as well as serious bike riders. Walking on this trail wasn’t as peaceful as we thought it would be since we had to be very aware of the bike riders. If you are looking for a more serious hike, there are plenty of trails away from the beach. If you just want scenery, this is a great trail for beach views.

The total hike was about one mile. It parallels the beach, and the railroad tracks, which is fun if you have a child who loves trains! Although my kids are on the older side, they still enjoy seeing a train go by. We saw two trains pass while we were there, and the kids stopped to wave at it as it went by.

This beach has a lot of stick structures which beach-goers have made over time. It’s fun to sit inside one of the tee-pees or climb on the rocks which line the back of the beach. If you are along the coast in Ventura, this is a fun beach day! You can do an easy hike, enjoy the scenery, watch trains go by, and enjoy the beach! We even saw people fishing, so I assume you can do that too!

Stay tuned for more coverage from our road trip to Ventura!

Thanks for stopping by!

XOXO
Cathy

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