Two-Heel Drive has chronicled my hikes throughout the Bay Area from mid-2004 to the middle of 2009. I’ve hiked pretty much every trail worth trodding, particularly in the hills around Silicon Valley. I’m not sure when I’ll get back to updating this site regularly, but I figure until then, the top post at this site should offer a quick guide to everything within. There’s plenty.

  • The best Bay Area hikes. These are my favorites — you can’t go wrong (though you can get lost, of course) at any of them.
  • Five great hikes for Bay Area travelers. This is a Sunday Travel piece I wrote for the San Jose Mercury News, including some great places within a few hours’ drive of the Bay Area.
  • Bay Area hiking clubs. If you’d rather not hike alone, these folks’ll be glad to have you along.
  • Dog-friendly parks. The Bay Area is a mecca for dog lovers, but many parks don’t want any pooches around. This page offers links to the ones that do.
  • Park Profiles. These are profiles of local hiking parks that I wrote about in a column at the San Jose Mercury News. It covers all best places to hike near San Jose.
  • 10 Essentials. What I consider essential to happy hiking, plus a link to the Real 10 Essentials for outdoor survival.
  • Latest Hike Reports. Many Two-Heel drive regular readers posted descriptions of recent hikes here.
  • Hike Hacker. This is a site full of savvy hiking tips that I got started but ran out of time to develop fully. Find out how to hike off your pounds and clean a sleeping bag.

That’s a rough start. The rails on the right-hand side have tons of categories for my writing on gear, wildlife, the environment and the fate of California’s state parks. And there are dozens of must-visit external hiking sites. Plenty to keep you busy there.

I cannot promise when I’ll resume posting regularly again. Could be a few weeks, could be a few years. One thing I can say: for as long as I can remember, walking in the woods has been one of my favorite things on earth. Stands to reason I’ll get back out there one of these days.