Day Five: Franklin Ridge Loop trail, East Bay

I left Monterey just before 6am.  I wanted to get out of town before stores opened.  That also meant I'd be hitting the Bay Area during rush hour.

My hike today was an unplanned hike in Martinez, an oil industrial town in the East Bay along the Carquinez Straight.   I pulled into town because I needed to get out and walk after the 3.5 hour drive in dense traffic. I found the Rankin trail by following signs to "Regional Park." I parked off the Carquinez Scenic Drive, walked up steep Foster Street and got on the Rankin Trail.  This trail continued uphill, past the cemetery, before joining the Franklin Ridge Loop and Bay area trail.   This was a 4.5-mile loop hike along a ridge that overlooked the water.  How verdant it was here!  This was like walking a Volksmarch in Germany.  Black cows grazed along the hillside to my north, where I spotted what looked like a small dairy farm.  I could hear the commuter trains and ships blasting their horns below and traffic speed by on the Benicia-Martinez bridge (I-680), but now I was all alone.  The open spaces in California always impress me because they provide the room for exercise and are away from the crowds.

Parts of the trail were still muddy from recent rains.  The ridge trail was exposed, but at two miles the trail then descended, then looped around a canyon creek where more shade provided some cooling.  Zeke ran down to the river just as another lone dog walker went past me.  Did he even see me behind the trees?

I enjoyed this walk.  It was still cool out, with the marine layer (fog) still in the higher hills.  The trail is well-marked, with more horse trails off the ridge trail that go down into other draws.  I had walked two hours and it was now late morning.  I was ready to continue my drive to Travis Air Force Base outside of Fairfield.

I was at a Taco Bell in Cordelia when I realized I was missing my credit card.  I had left it at the brew pub in Monterey and the employees have it.  I told them I'd be back Thursday and they said they'd keep it safe for me.  Luckily there is a branch of the Armed Forces Bank on Travis, where I withdrew enough money to last me two days.  I certainly didn't want my son to pay for our meals!

I showered at the base fitness center and had coffee at the Starbucks (an excuse to surf the net as well) for another two hours.  Eric wouldn't be getting off work till 4pm and I had time to spare.  I waited for him to call me back and he just told me to stop by his apartment and chat with Margaret, which is what I did.

Eric didn't get home till almost 6pm.  His supervisor had a last-minute meeting to discuss unit improvements and that held him up. We were all hungry by then.  We drove in separate cars (because Zeke rides with me) to Los Reyes restaurant in Vacaville.  Eric and I had eaten here before at my last visit to Travis AFB two years ago.  It is a nice Mexican restaurant in old town, off a creek.   I would have enjoyed a post-meal walk in town but Eric was tired so we just drove back to his place.  Within an hour he was in bed and I was up till past midnight in the living room on their couch.