a loop in the diablo range

A Loop in the Diablo Range

so this morning i decided to do a loop that i have done by car before, but never on two wheels. the diablo range runs on north - south on the eastern edge of the san francisco bay area. formed by uplift of two different faults, the hayward and the calaveras, both splinter faults of the more famous san andreas.



several old roads wind up into the hills connecting historical ranches, (and now mega mansions) to the masses in the flat valleys below.



sierra road climbs quickly into the hill, and has been prominately featured in the bay area leg of the tour of california bike race.





it twists up hill, climbing into the heat and dry grass covered hills.





i do a christmas bird count up in this area every year, and it is a great place to see golden eagles. i was not disappointed as this juvenile buzzed me. that's better than a 7' wingspan. one of the largest eagles in the world, it's capable of bringing down prey as large as young deer.





fog shrouded san jose down below, the temp climbed 15˚F even at 8:30am. the mountains on the far side are the coast range, then the pacific ocean. the windward side is covered in coastal redwoods, the tallest species of tree in the world, the tallest scraping just shy of 400'.





a few miles away, in the rain shadow, the mountains are much drier, and smokey warns of the high fire danger.





the road is all paved, but not much traffic at all, i saw 1/2 dozen cars, easily three times the number of bicyclists and only one other motorcycle.





ranching is still king up here, cows happily munching away for most of the way.