BART and Bike to Nature
Minimize your carbon footprint — and your waist size — with a BART-bike adventure to one of these Bay Area beauty spots
Alameda Creek Trail and Coyote Hills Regional Park
Soar like a bird as you bike along the paved Alameda Creek Trail to San Francisco Bay — and pick up pointers from the many varieties of feathered friends for whom this marshy waterway is known. Follow the trail on the south bank of the creek (the north bank trail is intended for horseback riding) to Coyote Hills Park, with a nectar garden that attracts birds and butterflies and views of the South Bay from the park’s hilltops.
How to Get There
Take BART to the Fremont station. Bike just about a mile, starting on Mowry Avenue to Paseo Padre Parkway, where you turn right. (Note: Mowry and Paseo Padre are busy thoroughfares, so use the bike lanes and be careful while riding.) Follow Paseo Padre to Decoto Road and turn right again. Decoto Road will take you to the Alameda Creek Trail. The bike ride along the trail from Decoto Road to the entrance of Coyote Hills Park is about 5 miles.
Lafayette Reservoir
Hiking, jogging and even boating are on the menu here. Bliss out with a leisurely 2.7-mile stroll and enjoy views of this tranquil reservoir from the Lakeside Nature Trail; haul up the steeper and longer (4.7 miles) Rim Trail; or rent a rowboat, paddleboat or kayak to get a workout while enjoying classic Northern California scenery from offshore.
How to Get There
Take BART to the Lafayette station. Exit by taking a left onto Deer Hill Road until it soon ends at Happy Valley Road, and take another left. When Happy Valley Road quickly ends at Mt. Diablo Boulevard, go right and follow it about half a mile to the entrance of the reservoir, which is on the left.
Wildcat Canyon Regional Park
If you want to get a workout on your mountain bike, Wildcat Canyon is the place to go. Offering stunning views as you wind up, down and around its grassy, oak- and laurel-splotched hills, this park features 25 miles of trails and colorful explosions of wildflowers in spring.
How to Get There
Take BART to the El Cerrito del Norte station. Then bike northwest on the flat Ohlone Greenway toward the signed I-80 Bikeway, which will take you to McBryde Avenue, where you will go right and then straight at the stop sign to continue onto Park Avenue. The park entrance is a quarter-mile beyond the stop sign.
San Bruno Mountain State & County Park
Up for a climb? This tranquil island of open space offers a mountain summit of 1,300 feet, with panoramic views of San Francisco and the central Bay Area — which translates into a delightful venue for a hearty hike or mountain bike climb. Some trails are steep, with more than a 50% grade. Visit in the spring to see a carpet of wildflowers and in summer to spot one of the park’s rare, endangered butterflies, which are found in few other places in the world.
How to Get There
Take BART to the Colma station. Then take E Street to where it ends on Clark Avenue and go left. Follow Clark to Chester Street and go right, and then take Chester all the way to Royce Way, which will be a left. Number 91 Royce Way is a trailhead into the park.
Anthony Chabot Regional Park
Two hilly loops around Lake Chabot, a 9-mile loop for hikers and a 15-mile loop for mountain bikers, make this regional park an awesome place for some fresh air and exercise. If you’re an angler, here’s your chance to reel in a big one — the lake is stocked with big, healthy trout, catfish and bass. You can even treat yourself to a guided kayak tour around the lake if you want to work out that upper body as well.
How to Get There
Take BART to the San Leandro station. Then take an easy 3-mile ride via bike lanes on Estudillo Avenue to the start of a bike path leading to Lake Chabot. Be sure to continue left on Estudillo after the 580 undercrossing, rather than taking the right on Lake Chabot Road.
Bringing Your Bike on BART
• Unless you have a folding bike, never board the first car of the train. During rush hour (7–9 a.m., 4:30–6:30 p.m.), don’t board the first three cars.
• Only board cars that can comfortably accommodate you. If a train is too crowded, wait for the next one.
• Keep your bike under control with a hand on it at all times.
• If possible, stack bikes next to each other in the “bike space” on each car.
• In the event of an evacuation, leave your bike on the train.
• Use BART elevators or stairs, not escalators, and enter and exit BART by pushing your bike through the wide fare gates, which are orange.