I had a quick something I wanted to do in Dublin but I didn't want to make a special trip. Then I realized Dublin is on my driving route to Mt Diablo. So I checked the weather forecast and it wasn't outrageously hot so I decided to go for it. I would of course have preferred to do the hike with my 3 friends who are also registered for the Six Pack of Peaks, but in these times of Covid that's not easily done – either stay socially-distanced or keep your mask on – not ideal in the heat – and we can't even carpool. My husband also had other things to be doing so I went for it on my own.

I started from Mitchell Canyon Visitor Center and followed  the recommended route, heading out  up the Eagle Springs trail and back down the Mitchell Canyon Fire Road. The first few miles were very quiet but the trails got much busier towards the top. Most hikers were good about wearing masks or stepping aside when passing on a narrow trail. But I did encounter two large groups of 8-10 people, none of whom appeared to have masks with them. Looking at the map my progress seemed to be very slow, but perhaps being on my own made it seem that way. I did make the occasional stop to seek out a geocache, which broke things up a bit.  I was surprised at how much descending there was on the way up, some of it steep. Of course with several smaller peaks on the way up I should have expected that. At the top I encountered two hikers whom I had seen several times on the way up. They remarked on having 3 more peaks to go! I figured they were planning on going back down the same way. Glad I wasn't! I was glad of the smooth descent on the wide fire road – less need for masks – even if it was hotter, lacking shade, and less scenic.

The visitor center at the top remains closed but I was surprised to see everything else open – bathrooms and campground.

The hike took me about 7.5 hours. I'll look forward to going back with my Six Pack friends when social distancing guidelines are relaxed. Meanwhile it feels good to have peak #5 under my belt.