Devil’s Elbow a cure for city ailments TOM STIENSTRA
At Devil’s Elbow Trailhead, the moment you leave pavement and hit the trail, the sensation of freedom from all conflict can wash over you like rain after a dust storm.
On the way to Devil’s Elbow at Mount Diablo last weekend, a car passed my old truck on Interstate 680 at about 100 mph and, seconds later, traffic jammed to a stop. Just ahead, we discovered, somebody had fired a shot into the side of a gray car (a passenger was hit and is expected to survive).
On the way out, right in front of us, an SUV crossed from right to left and then rammed into the center barrier, went airborne and, at a 45-degree angle, harpooned into a set of Caltrans waterfilled barriers. The water shot straight into the air like a twosecond Old Faithful, 50, 60 feet high.
In between those events, high on the flank of Mount Diablo, we entered a world that runs in a different orbit than nearby on I-680.
Everybody on the trail was friendly. People hiked or biked at their own pace. Nobody threatened anybody.
Out of Devil’s Elbow, the views are world-class. They span across Diablo’s high crags, then plummet into canyons far below. To the east, you can see across the San Joaquin Valley to the snowcovered Sierra crest. From the Juniper Camp parking area and viewpoint, you can see west across the ridges of the East Bay and Peninsula to the ocean.
A good dose of Mount Diablo State Park can cure all ills. Devil’s Elbow Trailhead is located about a half-mile below Diablo’s 3,849-foot summit.
From Devil’s Elbow (3,480 feet), the best two hikes start on the same route: a 4-mile round trip to the crag-topped, 3,557-foot North Peak, or you can break off from the same route to 2,946-foot Mount Olympia, 4.5-mile round trip. You also could combine them, both the North Peak and Mount Olympia, for a 5.1-mile trip, out and back.
City ills on park road
Mount Diablo is located in Contra Costa County, east of Walnut Creek. Its land mass and prominence from the surrounding lowlands make it visible from throughout the Bay Area and for miles beyond. The park spans 8,000 acres with a network of trails and roads that extend to remote areas. With links to adjoining parks, you could explore for a lifetime and not see it all.
The experiences on the drive in and on the trails are about as far apart as the North Pole and the South Pole.
Some drivers and cyclists are taking their city driving habits into the park and up the narrow, curvy two-lane route to the summit. When the two meet, you can get cyclists who ride in the middle of the road and shout obscenities at passing cars, and at the same time, enraged drivers who feel blocked and then squeeze cyclists to a sliver of pavement along a rough-edged shoulder.
At the entry kiosk, rangers ask each park visitor to please share the road and watch out for the other. This is an order from state-park headquarters, rangers say. Along the road up, signs are posted over and over: “Share the road,” “Watch downhill speed,” “Avoid Crash, Slow Down.” Cycling pullouts are available on the uphill route to allow cars to pass.
I’ve been on both sides of these experiences, cycling and driving, and my estimate is about 80 to 90 percent of drivers and cyclists are trying to make it work here. That’s not good enough. Flashpoint showdowns are still common. It’s still a powder keg that could detonate any weekend.
The biggest danger is for downhill cyclists who face the potential of a head-on collision if they encounter a fast uphill driver who crosses into the oncoming lane on a curve when passing a slow, uphill cyclist.
Summit ventures
As you drive up and near the summit, there is a small sign on the right for the Devil’s Elbow Trailhead.
The trail starts by sailing down 500 feet over the course of a mile to Prospectors Gap, a major junction. While en route, you get views across to your destination, North Peak, as well as far below to the Livermore Valley.
At Prospectors Gap (2,956 feet), you then bear right on North Peak Road. It climbs a half-mile to a junction (3,300 feet). To the right is a steep road/trail that climbs 0.3 of a mile to 3,557-foot North Peak. The final 100 yards is one of the steepest sections of trail at any park in the Bay Area.
On top, a short ramp and metal stairway leads to a lookout platform to the north, and you can make the crag summit with a short rock scramble. Transmitter towers mar the near scope, but the North Peak has other untouched crags just beyond you also can climb for a trail picnic with a view.
In winter, you often can see layers of clouds that provide a backdrop for a spectacular view: Plummeting below to Brentwood and the San Joaquin Valley, across a typical winter haze layer to the snowbright high flank of the Sierra.
For many, this is the payoff they came for. But there’s more.
Just 0.3 of a mile down the trail, turn right at the junction (3,300 feet) for the North Peak Trail. It leads 0.7 of a mile, with a descent and then followed by a climb at the end to 2,946-foot Mount Olympia. It towers over Clayton with additional sweeping views to the north. On clear days, you can see the high risers of downtown Sacramento without binoculars.
On the way back, there was a memorable moment. We were hiking the 500-foot climb out of Prospectors Gap to Devil’s Elbow when we met headlong with a mountain biker sailing down the hill. Guess what happened next? He slowed his descent and then came to a complete stop, and with a friendly smile, let us pass him by uphill and wished us a good hike; we, in turn, wished him a good ride.
Maybe there is hope the same attitude on the trail can reach drivers and cyclists on pavement. Tom Stienstra is The San Francisco Chronicle’s outdoor writer. Email: tstienstra@ sfchronicle.com Twitter: @StienstraTom