Round top challenge

ABOUT this time three years ago, I laid down the Clouds Rest Challenge in this column. Forget those flimsy New Year’s resolutions that will evaporate by mid-January. Instead, I said, commit to a grand summer goal that both excites you and scares you. After six prep hikes throughout the winter and spring, 70—yes 70—people completed the 13-mile round-trip hike to that iconic Yosemite peak.
You may dismiss the Clouds Rest Challengers as the hard-body Lycra crowd trading a day at the gym for a mountain adventure; not doughy couch potatoes like you and me. In fact, they were people of every size, shape, and age. Many families came, including a number of septuagenarian grandparents.
Like many of them, you might wonder, “Can I do it? Do I have the stuff to tromp up a 10,000-foot Sierra peak?” Many Clouds Rest Challengers who expressed grave doubts in January learned in July that they were capable of so much more than they thought.
Since then, we have been to the top of Mt. Tallac (9,738′) on the edge of Lake Tahoe, and this past summer, Mt. Hoffman (10,856′) in Yosemite. Our goal for 2016: 10,381-foot Round Top Mountain. I’ll meet you at the trailhead at 9:00 am, Saturday,
July 16.
Round Top is one
of only three mountain peaks over 10,000 feet that are visible from Lake Tahoe. The Woods Lake trailhead is near Carson Pass on Highway 88, about a half-hour drive from South Lake Tahoe. Our route will be a seven-mile loop, and we will climb 2,300 feet to
the summit.
Challengers from earlier trips will be pleased to hear the word “loop” describing this trip. Paths to earlier objectives have all gone out and back the same trail. More than any prior challenge, the walk to the mountain will be much more than just “getting there.” We will pass a miner’s cabin and two mountain lakes. Wildflower displays in this area are legendary, and we will be there at the peak. And don’t forget the summit view. On clear days, you can see Mt. Diablo.
Couch potatoes and doubters, arise! You can do this, and nothing equals the satisfaction you will feel when you stand atop such a magnificent peak trying to comprehend a limitless 360-degree view beneath you.
The first prep hike is our sixth annual New Year’s morning hike. It is always a great way to start the year. Meet at 9 a.m. at the brand new Coyote Valley Open Space Preserve. We will hike the Arrowhead Loop Trail, a beautiful four-mile hike that goes up and across Coyote Valley’s west side hills.
The preserve is at the west end of Palm Avenue off Santa Teresa Boulevard north of Morgan Hill and south of Bailey Road. Bring drinking water. Dogs are not permitted.
Here is a schedule of the six prep hikes this winter and spring for the Round Top Challenge. Bring a friend, and join us when you can. For a detailed schedule with directions and full information, catch me New Year’s morning or email me at

ro********@ms*.com











. See you on the trail.
Round Top Challenge
Prep Hike #1: Coyote Valley Open Space Preserve. 9 a.m. New Year’s morning. Arrowhead Loop Trail. 4 miles. Moderate difficulty.
Prep Hike #2: Almaden Quicksilver County Park. Saturday, January 27, 2016, 9 a.m. From Hicks/Wood Road Entrance: 5 miles. Moderate difficulty.
Prep Hike #3: Sunol Regional Wilderness. Saturday, February 27, 2016, 9 a.m. Maguire Peaks Loop. 5 miles. Moderate difficulty.
Prep Hike #4: Henry W. Coe State Park. Saturday March 26, 2016, 9 a.m. Two loops: Monument/Hobbs/Flat Frog Loop (4.6 miles) with option to add Forest/Springs loop (2.5 miles). Moderate difficulty.
Prep Hike #5: Mt. Diablo State Park. Saturday May 14, 2016, 9 a.m. Grand Loop: 7-mile loop around the summit of Mt. Diablo. Strenuous, but fabulous.
Prep Hike #6: Russian Ridge Open Space Preserve. Saturday June 18, 2016. Bay Ridge/Hawk/Ancient Oaks Loop. 4.5 miles. Moderate.
Round Top: Saturday, July 16, 2016,
9 a.m. Woods Lake trailhead.