Urban outings
Inspiration Point: Views abound — S.F. Bay, Golden Gate Bridge to Mt. Tamalpais — on East Bay trail
Inspiration Point, Berkeley
With its spectacular ridgetop views and gentle undulations, the Nimitz Way Trail at Inspiration Point is one of the East Bay’s most popular trails. On weekends, it is crowded with hikers, bikers, children, strollers and dogs. (Once I even saw a goat on a leash.) Yet, miraculously, it seems surprisingly sheltered from urban commotion.
The trail is named after Adm. Chester W. Nimitz, commander in chief of the Pacific fleet during World War II. Called the Johnny Appleseed of Tilden Park, Nimitz is said to have frequently hiked this trail, scattering wildflower seeds as he strolled.
At just under 2 miles, Wildcat Peak Trail cuts off to the left, leading you to the Rotary Peace Grove and a little farther on at 1,211 feet to Wildcat Peak and the elegant, stone Rotary Peace Grove lookout, where you feel as if you’re on top of the world. Shortly after the turnoff, the Nimitz Trail enters Wildcat Canyon Regional Park, where super-hikers can continue for 2 more miles to the end of the paved Nimitz Way.
At the end, a steep spur trail climbs to an abandoned Nike missile site that once held a battery of Nike Ajax antiaircraft missiles. This makes for a round-trip hike of just over 8 miles. If you’re not up for this major extension, return along the Nimitz Way Trail from Wildcat Peak to the Inspiration Point parking lot for a round-trip hike of 4 miles.
Bring water and sunscreen. There is a restroom at the start of the trail.
Nimitz Way Trail
Even from the Inspiration Point parking lot, the views are stupendous. Begin by turning right onto the paved, wheelchair-accessible Nimitz Way Trail, which opens to a new panorama with every twist in the ridgetop. To the east are the San Pablo and Briones reservoirs; to the west, the San Francisco Bay, the Golden Gate Bridge, Angel Island and the Marin Headlands. Forget-me-nots dot the shady sides of the trail and poppies the sunny sides. Distance markers every quarter of a mile keep you on track, and memorial benches provide opportunities to rest and admire each new vista.
You pass a redwood grove
planted by the Berkeley Hiking Club and, at the 1¾-mile marker, a huge grove of introduced eucalyptus. Just past the eucalyptus grove, and before the 2-mile marker, a sign on your left directs you to the Rotary Peace Grove. (No bikes or horses are permitted.)
Rotary Peace Grove
Enter a magnificent grove of giant sequoias. Planted by Berkeley’s Rotary Club in 1955 to commemorate the club’s 50th anniversary, the Peace Grove honors individuals and organizations who have fostered world peace. At the entrance to the grove is a large plaque listing all those honored; the most recent addition is Aung San Suu Kyi, the Burmese Nobel Peace Prize recipient and recently elected parliamentarian. There is empty space on the plaque for future peacemakers.
Take time to wander through the serene grove. Under each sequoia is a smaller bronze plaque honoring one peacemaker. You will find Colin Powell, Mother Teresa, Winston Churchill, Nelson Mandela and Martin Luther King Jr. among others, as well as organizations such as Doctors Without Borders.
The Lookout
To get to the Rotary Peace Grove Lookout at Wildcat Peak, continue uphill on the dirt trail. After a quarter of a mile, you’ll arrive at your reward: the lookout, a circular stone bench with a 360-degree view. From here, you can see Sutro Tower in San Francisco, Treasure Island and Mount Tamalpais. Completed in 1962, the lookout is a perfect place for meditation or, if you are in a less contemplative mood, to eat a picnic lunch.
Getting there
By car from San Francisco, cross the Bay Bridge and take Interstate 80 to the Albany/ Buchanan exit. Turn right onto Buchanan Street, which merges with Marin Avenue. Continue on Marin until you reach a traffic circle. Go around the circle and go up Marin — which is very steep — to Grizzly Peak Boulevard. Turn right on Grizzly Peak and then turn left on Shasta Road. Make a slight right onto East Wildcat Canyon Road. Continue for 1½ miles to the Inspiration Point parking lot on your left.