DATE 4/15/2014
IDS 680 639 634 8251 670
GROUP turtle_back_1 chicken_coop_hill_1 bullet_hill_1 san_pedro_n1_1 san_pedro_hill_n2_1
TITLE China Camp State Park
Continued...
Following a nighttime hike in the Marin hills, I was awaken early from the quiet Novato
neighborhood where I'd spent the night by the sounds of motorists heading off on their
morning commute. I had to be back in San Jose in the afternoon, but figured I'd get some
hiking in while I wait out the morning rush hours. I drove south to San Rafael then
exited east to China Camp State Park. The park, along with several other park entities,
covers much of San Pedro Mountain, surrounded by city on three sides and the SF Bay on
the fourth. In addition to the highpoint, there were a number of lesser (in all cases,
much lesser) named summits that I planned to visit while in the area.
Turtle Back / Chicken Coop Hill / Bullet Hill
These three hills lie in a line along the north of San Pedro Rd overlooking
the salt marshes lining SF Bay. They are all rather small and take no more than a few
minutes to reach the top. All of them have parking available along the road,
but it's not much effort to hike all three from one starting point. The two outside
hills, Turtle Back and Chicken Coop Hill have official trails
encircling them, but not actually going to the top. Still, there are use trails
that can be found reaching to the summits, useful in avoiding the
bounteous poison oak that grows on the slopes. Views from the tops are
limited due to the oak woodlands found there. Bullet Hill, the easiest of the three, has
fewer trees and better views and is the only one with a signed trail to
the top. I spent about an hour hiking maybe 2.5mi to cover all three plus some
additional trail segments within the state park. I followed a good portion of
the Shoreline Trail through Miwok Meadows and along the base of San
Pedro Mtn. The trail (and most others in the park) appear to be very popular
with mountain bikers who were far more numerous than hikers. The trails
are good for both activities, and quite scenic too. There were lizards,
wild turkeys, ravens, a skink, squirrels galore and
some fine flowers along the way. A nice hike, but
with almost no elevation gain, not much of a workout.
San Pedro Mountain
With more than 750ft of prominence, San Pedro Mountain at least offers a good workout. It
can be approached from at least three different directions, but since I was already
parked on the north side, I left my car where it was and set out to climb it from that
side. This one had some effort to put in, some 1,300ft worth and about six miles all
told. There are several possible trails to use from the north. I used the Back Ranch and
Ridge Fire Trails for the ascent and returned via Bay Hills Drive and the
Bay View Trail. The route took me through portions of Harry Barbier Memorial
Park as well as San Pedro Open Space Preserve. There are occasional views to
San Pablo Bay and inland from the trails that
follow through oak woodlands that dominate the north side of the mountain. There are two
summits to San Pedro Mtn, neither of which have much to offer in the way of views. The
north summit, a small clearing with a utility shed, appears to be slightly higher than
the south summit according to the GPS. The south summit,
about 1/4mi away, has a more
substantial tower complex surrounded by a fence. But the better views are found from
various locations on the way to and from the summits. My descent route took me through
the Back Ranch Meadows Campground. It was here that I learned that I was
supposed to pay
a $5 parking fee and/or a $3 trail fee. This was the first time I'd ever seen a fee
charged simply to use a trail. My wallet was back in the van but I doubt I would have
bothered to pay unless pressed to do so.
Back at the car, I continued on San Pedro Rd heading clockwise around the mountain. I
stopped briefly to visit what remains of China Camp Village,
the Chinese shrimp fishing community that flourished in the 1880s. There are a number of
buildings still standing, maintained by a collection of volunteers who
could be seen around the area, talking to visitors, working to repair garden fences and
other activities.
San Pedro Hill
The last named summit in the area shown on the topo map, San Pedro Hill was the highpoint
of what is now a gravel pit. It can be reached most easily from
McNears Beach Park found just outside China Camp SP and north of the quarry.
From the parking lot, I hiked a short distance south through a grassy area
lined with palm trees, scrambling up the slope at the back to reach the edge of
the quarry. San Pedro Hill as depicted on the topo map is now a large pit. I
wandered over to what remains as the highest point found at the edge
of the quarry, a disappointing pile of tailings mixed with rusting cables and other
detritus, brush growing over much of it. Don't get your hopes up on this one...