Sunday was a rough day and I spent 3 hours on the phone with Verizon, so when I was done we really needed to get out and spend a little time in nature. This park was only a 10 minute drive, so away we went!

I continue to be amazed by the incredible parks here in the Bay Area. We are so close to so many major companies and millions of people, but we can easily access dozens of beautiful parks and nature preserves where life is just quiet.

Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge (that’s a mouthful isn’t it?) has many educational programs in addition to the trails, but all that was closed when we arrived a 6 pm Sunday. Instead we headed right for the Hilltop Overlook where we could see the San Francisco Bay and Menlo Park on one side, and Fremont and Mission Peak on the other.

After the overlook we returned via the Newark Slough Trail, 1.4 miles in all. We saw scores of little snails on the path, a great number of different birds, and some unidentified furry mammal that dashed away from the path. The trails were wide and flat and we could have easily brought the stroller.

We saw a fair number of people and their pups, but it wasn’t crowded and was really peaceful as the sun dropped over the Bay.

I also have to say that I found their parking lot particularly attractive. It definitely gets you excited to explore a park when you start taking pictures in the parking lot!