Link to flyer

NSC is planning its bus trip to the North Shore, Squaw Valley and Alpine Meadows, dates: March 3 -5, 2017. The sign up form is now available on the NSC website. We were able to keep the same cost as last year. If you’re on the Snowmass trip and have the Mountain Collective pass, you will be able to use your pass on the weekend trip. Please send in your money early so we can plan this trip. We need 35 people to make this trip happen.

Nisei Ski Club Presents a Hike in Alum Rock Park, San Jose, CA – Saturday, August 27, 2016

David Schultz

Due to its location, Alum Rock Park is kind of a secret to many people who live in the Bay Area. While other parks like Mission Peak may be full of hikers, the trails at Alum Rock Park are largely empty.

Located in the upper East side of San Jose, Alum Rock Park encompasses over 700 acres of rugged canyon terrain, with each side of the canyon presenting a different ecosystem. On the shady side, the forests are thicker and taller and on the sunny side, the foliage is more bushes than trees, with sweeping areas of dry grassland. Sage is one of the most common plants in the park and the air typically smells of this fragrant bush.

The Hike

I’ve put together a loop hike based on the South Rim Trail. It’s a good overall length (7.5 miles), is on the shady side of the canyon, climbs about 700 feet so it provides good exercise, and offers excellent views of the park and Santa Clara Valley in the distance. In addition, you pass all of the Alum Rock Park tourist attractions on the way back to the beginning, including the Mineral Springs area which contains active sulfur springs and grottos, Youth Science Institute, and the park ranger station (which is part museum). We’ll have time to stop at these attractions.

The hike will be done at a moderate pace and will take approximately 4 hours, including our stops. If we’re lucky, there’s a chance that we’ll spot some wildlife, including deer, rabbits, fox, bobcats, wild turkeys, quail, and possibly a rattlesnake. (Don’t worry – I’ve only seen a rattlesnake once in over 10 years of hiking in the park.) Overhead, we’ll probably spot turkey vultures and hawks.

After the hike, people are welcome to lunch at my house. I’ll provide food and drinks, and we can relax and take in the views.

Meeting Point

We will meet at David Schultz’ house at 16100 Yona Vista Avenue, San Jose, CA 95127. There is room in my driveway for about 8 cars, plus there’s plenty of street parking. The park entrance is about 1/4 mile away from my house, so we can avoid parking fees at the park and still be close to the entrance. We’ll meet at 10 AM.

Directions:

Take Route 680 to Alum Rock Avenue. Follow Alum Rock Avenue all the way past the San Jose Country Club, where the road bends to the left. Keep bending around to the left, and as the road straightens out, look for Chula Vista Drive. The street sign will also say “To Yona Vista Avenue”.

Chula Vista Drive twists and turns and goes up and down, but it doesn’t last long. After going down a short steep hill, the road rises and offers a great unobstructed view of San Jose to the left. About 50 feet later, you reach the intersection of Chula Vista Drive and Yona Vista Avenue. My house is on the corner on the right side. It’s a brown house with beige trim, and it has a Japanese style roof. Feel free to park in the driveway if there’s space. Pull up as far as you can since we’ll pack the cars in.

What to Bring

There are no drinking fountains until the last mile of the hike, so bring plenty of Gatorade or a similar electrolyte drink. Water is okay, but since you may sweat a lot if the weather is warm, an electrolyte drink is better for replacing lost salts. I recommend at least two quarts of liquid to cover you over the 6 miles of dry trail.
In addition, the following items are recommended:

• Wide brimmed hat for sun protection
• Sunglasses
• Sunscreen (at least SPF 15)
• Snacks for the trail and lunch if you need it earlier than lunch at my house
• Lightweight hiking shoes. The trail is mostly packed dirt, but there will be some loose rocks occasionally. So hiking shoes will be better than running shoes or sneakers
• Jacket in case of cooler weather

Hiking Details

1. From 16100 Yona Vista Avenue, we’ll walk 1/2 mile along Yona Vista and Canon Vista avenues to the park entrance at the end of Alum Rock Avenue
2. After entering the park, we’ll make a quick left onto the Stables Trail.
3. The Stables Trail takes us another .4 mile down to the Penitencia Creek Trail. This is the main trail through the lower part of the park. We make a right onto the trail.
4. Walking along the Penitencia Creek Trail, we’ll cross a bridge over Penitencia Creek, cross over Penitencia Creek Road (the main road through Alum Rock Park), and turn right onto an access ramp that takes us to the Peninsular Trail.
5. We walk along the historic ramparts of the Peninsula Trail (once part of the Alum Rock Railroad), cross back over Penitencia Creek Road, and take a right onto the North Woodland Trail.
6. The North Woodland Trail meanders upwards through a forest of oak, buckeye, and madrone trees. In between them, I’ll point out to everyone the abundant poison oak.

   Poison oak exists throughout Alum Rock Park, often in large bushes, and is identified by its classic three-leaf from one stem arrangement, with mildly serrated leaves similar to regular oak trees, and the leaves are shiny (due to the poisonous oil) and often red in color. Poison oak is a natural part of central California and the park service doesn’t do much to contain it. Basically, they clear the trails of it. By exercising a little caution, you won’t have any trouble with this constant companion.

   In about .5 mile, the North Woodland Trail brings us to a service road.

7. We cross the service road and look on our right for the South Rim Trailhead. Getting on the South Rim Trailhead, we soon start seeing views of the park valley below.
8. The South Rim Trail switchbacks along the upper forests of Alum Rock Park. As we near the top of the trail, the foliage becomes shorter and the trail sunnier. And the views get bigger. If the weather is good, we’ll have fine views of the park below and the Santa Clara Valley further out. By mile 3, we have reached the top of the South Rim Trail,
9. We begin our descent while still on the South Rim Trail. It switches back and forth along the backside of Alum Rock Park, giving us a good sense of the steepness of the hillside. We reach the bottom of the trail around mile mark 4.5, and we turn onto the Penitencia Creek Trail.
10. Right away we come to a beautiful rest area near Penitencia Creek and just before an old foot bridge. We’ll stop and have a snack.
11. Crossing over the bridge, we continue on the Penitencia Creek Trail past group picnic areas and various man-made structures to contain the sulfurous mineral springs. We’ll explore some of these structures.

    (from Wikipedia)

    “In the late 19th century and through the 1930s, the park was famed throughout the country as a health resort. Through those years and as late as the 1970s, the park featured a natatorium (a huge, heated indoor swimming pool), dozens of private heated mineral baths that visitors could rent, a restaurant, and various other buildings. Many of the springs were enclosed in stonework grottos, and stone bridges were built across the creek. Due to overuse, some of the springs became extinct, and surviving ones became very weak, producing very little output.”

12. Leaving the mineral springs area, we walk into the “tourist” part of the park and soon come to the Youth Science Institute. We’ll also find bathrooms and water fountains. We’ve now hiked about 6 miles.

    The YSI is used for educating Santa Clara County’s youth about ecology and native flora and fauna. It offers summer camps, classes, and has a good museum with both live and taxidermy animals.

13. Soon after leaving the YSI, we come to the park’s official ranger station, where another small museum awaits, this one offering more human history than ecology. Nearby is one of the oldest buildings in the park – a log cabin built in 1913.
14. The sweet smell of barbecue from the picnickers will probably be our companion as we continue along the Penitencia Creek Trail to the base of the Alum Rock Road entrance. Our total walk is now 7 miles. This part of the road is closed to vehicles, so we can spread out and ascend it to the park entrance where we began.
15. Another 1/2 mile brings us back to my home on Yona Vista Avenue.

Contact me

For more information, you can email me at aughike2016@niseiskiclub.org. My contact number is 510-512-6441. Participants can call me if they get lost coming to my house, or while on the hike.

Link to trail map

Giving Back to the Community

Judy Hom

If you’re looking for a way to give back to the community and be environmentally conscious, consider participating in the coast cleanup. Coastal cleanup day is Saturday, September 17, 2016 across the globe. NSC is organizing a clean-up team and we’ve picked Crown Beach in Alameda as our clean-up site.

Crown Beach

Meet at Shoreline Blvd. and Park Street
(across from Sushi House and bowling alley)
Alameda, CA
September 17, 2016
8:30am-noon

I’ve signed up for 10 spots. Send an email to cleanup2016@niseiskiclub.org to let me know if you want to be part of the NSC team. In efforts to “Go Green” and reduce the amount of waste, please bring a refillable water bottle, a bucket for trash, hat, and gloves. All volunteers should wear closed toed shoes, appropriate layered clothing, and sunscreen. We will be part of the East Bay Regional Park District cleanup effort and they will provide snacks, water, and trash bags.

All volunteers will need to fill out and sign the coastal cleanup day waiver. Here is the link to the waiver.

Afterwards, lunch will be provided courtesy of NSC.

If you want to participate in the Coastal Cleanup but Crown Beach is too far for you, you can find another location on the coastal cleanup map. If you do cleanup in another location, let me or Armand know so you can get credit and get invited to the annual NSC Thank You picnic.

Please consider signing up! I will send you information on where we will be meeting as the event gets closer.

2015 California Coastal Commission Cleanup Poster

Link to flyer: 2017 weeklong trip to Snowmass

The Obon is a Japanese Buddhist custom to honor the spirits of one’s ancestors. The festival has been celebrated at the Mountain View Buddhist Temple’s current location since the temple was completed in 1957. The Obon is the Mountain View Buddhist Temple’s biggest event of the year.

Link to Obon information: Mountain View Obon 2016

Nisei Ski Club Annual
Membership Meeting & Luau Picnic
Saturday, June 11, 2016 noon-5pm

Our annual picnic will be held at Las Palmas Park in Sunnyvale. Wear your favorite Hawaiian shirt and muumuu and join us at our
annual meeting combined with a luau picnic. NSC will fire up the grill with a BBQ luncheon. Soda, beer, water will be provided. Attendees are asked to bring side dish / dessert to share. Please email Karen Soo tripdirector@niseiskiclub.org and let her you know what you are bringing.

Who: NSC members/ families and invited guests.
Look for your Evite invitation in May.

Link to the : 2016 NSC Picnic Flyer

Hoyt Nelson

This is a repeat of a popular hike that hasn’t been done since July 2010. It includes parts of the Marina, Cow Hollow and Pacific Heights districts with lots of grand views and magnificent architecture.

We will meet at the St. Francis Yacht Club parking lot (NOT the lot in back of the old Exploratorium where we met last time).   From Marina Blvd. going W, turn R on Yacht R  (just past Baker St.)  at 10AM with the usual layered clothing, camera, snacks and liquids and a little money for shopping and lunch.  “Facilities” are along some of the shopping streets plus (with a bit of luck) any open blue port-a-potties. Hiking time is expected to be less than 4 hours, but we may spend time around the Palace grounds and taking in scenery here and there. We will pass many stately homes and descend the fabulous Lyon St. stairs – surely the grandest in San Francisco (pictured below).

Signups are limited to 20 people. For more information or to sign up, contact David Schultz or Judy Hom at stairs4@niseiskiclub.org. More detailed info will be sent a week before the hike.

Hope to see you all there!

Link to stairway hike flyer: SF Stairway Hike #4 Flyer

Fred Johnson, Monterey Ski and Social Club

I’m once again planning a trip to beautiful Yosemite. It will be on May 20 and 21 this year.

I have reserved 15 River View Rooms, 4 Mountain View Rooms and the Master Suite this year. The special rates are $158.00 per night for the River View Rooms and $151.00 for the Mountain View Rooms. All rooms have two queen beds unless you specify a king. They also feature efficiency kitchens with a microwave, stove top, small refrigerator and a small sink.

Please call them to make your reservation, and it must be made by April 20th. Tell them that you are a member of The Monterey Ski and Social Club to get this great rate. Their number is 209-379-2681. Call or e-mail me after you have made your reservations so that I know you are coming and I can keep you informed about our pot luck dinner and activities. 831-594-4877 or email at: fbjohnson@comcast.net

April 20 is the deadline to reserve for the Yosemite trip.

Weekend Ski Trip #2, Mar 11-13, 2016.  Squaw / Northstar (or Sugar Bowl instead)
Sign-Up Deadline: Feb 24, 2016
NSC/BAC Member — $205
Non-member — $215
Departure Times: SJ 6:30 PM, EC 7:45 PM

Sign Up Form (click here)

Questions?

• Weekend Bus FAQ
• Weekend Bus Itinerary