It was exciting to see that the Ohlone Wilderness was open again … this meant one thing: Rose Peak! My usual Sunday Beer Bucket Run group needed a host, and I stepped up to lead the 18 mile round trip from Sunol to Rose Peak. We started a little after 8:30, with five of us heading out from the trailhead near Camp Ohlone Road. We followed along past Little Yosemite (stopping long enough to get a pic). There was some evidence of the heavy rains from the winter, with washouts noted around the “W” tree. We turned up Backpack Road and into Sunol Backpack Camp to head into SF Water District land en route to Ohlone Wilderness. The wildflowers were in bloom along the trail. Overall, the conditions of the trail were generally good, with a few spots having high grass. Very runnable/hikable.

We continue heading along the Ohlone Trail, heading into the low clouds, then dropping down past South Fork Indian Creek and up past a bunch of cattle as we climbed up the last ridge. It got a bit colder at the top, and only caught a little glint of blue sky peaking through the clouds. Just before we got to the summit, we ran into a couple of our friends who had run from the Del Valle trailhead. We summited Rose Peak, and unfortunately did not get the views I got the last time I was up there. I recalled they used to have a summit log in a PVC tube many years ago. Not sure where that went. Also recalled another time (in March, 2002) I went with a friend from Sunol to Del Valle, when we got snowed on from Indian Creek all the way to Rocky Ridge. No snow today.

We made our return back to Sunol following the Ohlone Trail, dropping back into the Valley. There were plenty of people on the trail as we passed Little Yosemite a second time. We finished on the bridge over Alameda Creek, and true to Beer Bucket Run fashion … found a picnic spot and shared a couple of snacks and libations afterwards.