Sunol Wilderness: Little Yosemite; 7.2 miles, 1,700 feet climbing

We'll be exploring Sunol Wilderness's Little Yosemite, and other rocks in the area. We'll be following a trip from Instructor Ruth Hanna's geology class from Las Positas College (http://lpc1.clpccd.cc.ca.us/lpc/hanna/new/sunol.htm), but adding another loop to get the hike up to about 7.2 miles. We seem to average 2 MPH, plus lunch, so we'll probably be back around 3:00/3:30 (although last time we finished at 4:00).

*** Sorry, I first published this as a Saturday hike. We are going on Sunday. ***

If you're worried about making the whole hike, you can hike about two miles up the road through Little Yosemite, then return down this road before the group heads off up in to the hills. If you take this shorter option, you should have no problem finding your way back.

From the EBRPD website:

Exploration will reveal sandstone outcrops with fossils deposited in what was once ancient seabed. Great boulders of greenstone, schist and metachert indicate a turbulent past. The massive basalt outcrop at Indian Joe Cave Rocks provides sport and challenge to rock climbers.

We'll be on trails with names like Eagle View and hiking near High Valley Camp, where the views are breathtaking. We'll also stop at Cave Rocks.

Restrooms, food. and water: There are restrooms at the start, but I don't think there is running water there. There is no food sold in the park, so bring plenty of water and a lunch. We'll have lunch somewhere near the top of our climb. Weather:

In the event of rain, we'll start up to Little Yosemite (on a fire road), then decide when we get there if it's too wet to continue, or if we want to slog it out in the drizzle and mud. 10 day forecast: https://www.wunderground.com/forecast/us/ca/sunol/94586?cm_ven=localwx_10day

A bit of rain will help the creek in Little Yosemite run higher

Past hikes here (with photos and comments):

• Dec 2015 https://www.meetup.com/SF-Bay-Area-Geology-Hiking/events/108726972/
• Jan 2012 https://www.meetup.com/SF-Bay-Area-Geology-Hiking/events/46546972/

Etc:

From 9:45-10:00 will be a brief background talk about the geology of California, if you've heard this before you're welcome to show up at 10:00. $5/car entrance fee (may have gone up; carpooling encouraged, leave a comment at the bottom if you can ride/drive). No dogs allowed. Kids are welcome if they can handle the length and climb. Ride with GPS map (http://ridewithgps.com/routes/877650) (showing elevation profile). Every Trail Guide (https://www.alltrails.com/explore/recording/sunol-geology--2) (I'll be adding more both before and after the hike. You can download this guide to either i-Things or Android-things (phones or tablets).

$2 donation helps with Meetup fees and buys me lunch or a cup of coffee :-)