Bishop Ranch is such a small, out of the way part of the East Bay Regional Park district, that it isn’t often listed in the trail books. And with possible good reason. Almost from the moment you enter the park, you’re faced with the steepest climb ever– I’m talking K2 scaling here– but the views in spring are absolutely worth the effort.
Bishop Ranch is so small that the park brochure for it is combined with Las Trampas Wilderness. It’s nestled in between suburban tracts and is a popular walk for local homeowners. Despite the incredibly steep parts of the walk, neither of my children complained once about it, but I feel this is an anomaly. Therefore, it may not be perfect for kids, but by golly, taking them will build character, and isn’t that what it’s all about?
While this walk, like all the parks in the East Bay, is best enjoyed in the spring or winter when the grass is still green and the temperature isn’t blazing hot, the breeze up here can make this a fine trek in the summer.
Take a picnic and eat it at the summit or in the shade on the way down. It’s a small but hearty walk, and definitely worth checking out. If your kids are small, consider taking incentives like little treats to get them up the steepest of the hills.
This is the first and very steep hill. But it gets better after that!
Your pay off is this great view.
A great view of Mount Diablo.
The park is dog friendly and our pup, Fergus, really liked it.
Shade is possible!
Here is a modified look at the loop you can do. It’s much longer and harder than it seems, because of the hills, but the varied terrain makes this a good, solid walk.
Information:
- http://www.ebparks.org/parks/bishop
- Best time to go: spring
