Jetties at Cooley Landing

This is where I started, the entrance to the Stevens Creek Trail at Dale and Heatherstone in Mountain View. I took the Stevens Creek Trail to Shoreline at Mountain View Park. This route is covered in detail in my Stevens Creek Trail Tour.




This section of the Bay Trail, called the Renzel Trail, runs between Bayfront Expressway and the Emily Renzel Wetlands in the Palo Alto Baylands. This route is covered in more detail in my Palo Alto Baylands Tour.


The Bay Trail ends at Faber Place. Faber Place ends at Embarcadero Road. I turned right on Embarcadero and followed it to the trail entrance at the Palo Alto Baylands. I turned left on the Marsh Front Trail, which follows around the former Palo Alto Yacht Harbor and leads to the newly-opened EcoCenter (ahead).


This used to be the Palo Alto Yacht Harbor. It has become silted-in and is now a tidal marsh.


This is the EcoCenter, housed in the renovated Sea Scouts building. It is closed on Sunday when I was there. Run by the Environmental Volunteers, it has a nature center, which is open on Monday, Thursday, and Friday from 11-1:30 and Saturday from 10-3. The boardwalk on the side of the building is actually the pedestrian route of the Bay Trail. The bike route runs behind the building.


The Marsh Front Trail ends at the San Francisquito Trail, which runs west past the Lucy Evans Baylands Nature Center above, with the long wooden boardwalk leading through the Harriet Muddy Marsh to the edge of the Bay.


This a view looking northwest across the Harriet Muddy Marsh at Cooley Landing.


This is a view across the marsh at the Dumbarton Bridge, the Dumbarton Crossing train trestles, and the Hetch Hetchy pipeline.


The trail passes between the Palo Alto Airport and this channel which carries treated water from the Regional Water Quality Control Plant to the Bay. Birds flock to this channel.


The Bay Trail reaches San Francisquito Creek. A short spur leads to a bench overlooking the mouth of the creek on San Francisco Bay.




This is the bridge over San Francisquito Creek leading to East Palo Alto.


This is a view of San Francisquito Creek looking upstream from the bridge.


This is San Francisquito Creek downstream from the bridge.


After the bridge, the Bay Trail runs ruler straight between to the Faber-Laumeister Tract on the right and East Palo Alto parks and homes on the left. This route is covered in more detail in my Ravenswood Tour.


The Faber-Laumeister Trail leads through the tract of the same name. It's a dirt trail that leads out to the edge of the Bay.


The Bay Trail runs between a power substation and the marsh. It finally reaches Bay Road.




To the northwest of Bay Road is Ravenswood Open Space Preserve. 1.2 miles of trails lead through the marsh to the edge of the Bay.


This paved section of trail next to Bay Road leads to Cooley Landing.


Ahead is the parking lot for Ravenswood Open Space Preserve.


These are the newly-renovated trail signboards for Ravenswood OSP.


This is the unpaved parking lot for Ravenswood OSP.


Phase 1 for Cooley Landing has been completed. This sign shows the future development phases for Cooley Landing.


This sign (distorted by the wind) shows the final plan for Cooley Landing.


This sign marks the entrance to Cooley Landing.


Here is a picnic area overlooking the Bay.


This ramp leads right down to the Bay. No fishing here.


At the end of a long jetty at the southeastern tip of the peninsula, some fishermen just caught a shark.


Near the end of the trail is a very large steelhead trout.


This bench is at the end of the trail, next to a concrete arroyo lupine.


This sign shows plans for restoring the boat house.


This is the northeast point of Cooley Landing, showing the old steel pier and north jetty. The pier was built in the late 1960's and was used to raise boats into and out of the water.


This is a view of the south jetty.


Next to the old boat house is an artist's conception of how it will be turned into a visitor center.


This is the plaza on the north side of the boat house. The boat house has been boarded up and fenced off for future restoration. The total distance I've traveled to this point is 13.1 miles.




This is the steel pier from the north side.


There used to be a dredge stored at Cooley Landing. It was burned by vandals in 2008. There are plans to create an interpretive exhibit about the dredge in this spot, overlooking the Dumbarton Bridge.


A concrete relief of our state flower overlooks the northwestern side of the Cooley Landing peninsula.


The endangered clapper rail lives in the pickleweed marshes along the shoreline in this area.


This is the shoreline of Ravenswood OSP at the entrance to Cooley Landing.


Phase 2 of the Cooley Landing project calls for the restoration and landscaping of Bay Road. This is Bay Road now. It should look a lot better after Phase 2.


Heading back, this is San Francisquito Creek near the Baylands Athletic Center, where the paved San Francisquito Creek Trail ends.


I head back up Embarcadero Road again to the Palo Baylands, taking the Marsh Front Trail to the right this time. The Palo Alto Yacht Harbor marsh is full at high tide. The chevrons on the hills of Byxbee Park are in the background.


Byxbee Park was initially built on a partially-closed landfill. Now that the landfill is totally closed, the park will gradually expand to take all of the former landfill area.


This is the pole field at Byxbee Park, designed to be reminiscent of pier pilings.


In the slough next to Byxbee Park is a temporary art piece called "Water Lilies." Recycled plastic water bottles make up the floating mats. The work is a comment on water pollution, recycling, reuse, and environmental sustainability. It will be in place until September 2012.


Across the mouth of the Palo Alto Yacht Harbor is a pier leading to the sailing station. Small boats and wind surfers can access the Bay from here.


The bare skeleton of Hangar One at Moffett Field and the NASA wind tunnels can be seen over the sloughs and marsh of the Palo Alto Flood Control Basin.


There are lots of runners, walkers, and bicyclists on the wide, flat dirt trails of the Palo Alto Baylands. This is the Adobe Creek Loop Trail. Ahead is a short section where the open waters of the Bay lap against the shoreline.


The channel in the foreground leads to the Bay. The tide gates control the water to Mountain View Slough in the background. In the background are the hangars at Moffett Field.


Back in Shoreline at Mountain View Park, this is the Coast Casey Forebay.


On the other side of the trail is this viewing platform on Charleston Slough, a popular spot for bird watchers and photographers.


The Bay Trail in Shoreline Park runs above Mountain View Slough.


The trail turns inland along Permanente Creek.


The trail runs between Whisman Slough and retired landfill hills that are now a protected habitat for burrowing owls.


Ahead is the start of the Stevens Creek Trail.


This is the start of the Stevens Creek Trail. In the background is the intake for NASA's giant retired wind tunnel.


This is the Moffett Blvd. bridge on the Stevens Creek Trail.


This is the huge bridge on the Stevens Creek Trail that crosses Central Expressway, the Caltrain and Light Rail Tracks, and Evelyn Avenue.


On the home stretch. The Stevens Creek Trail runs through Sleeper Park south of El Camino Real.


Just before the new bridge over Hwy 85, there is nicely-landscaped park area with lots of new plantings.

I finally reach the end of the trail at sunset, a total distance of 25.8 miles.