Bay Farm Island (SF Bay Trail) 2015-11-05

Bay Farm Island, Alameda has a ~6 mile loop around the island that is part of the SF Bay Trail. I had walked the Shoreline Dr. in Alameda Island on day 3 of my SF Bay Walkabout. I was back here with Apollo and started our walk today from Shoreline Dr & Park St. Parking is easy with plenty of spots available on Shoreline Dr. and nearby streets.

A paved blacktop trail for pedestrians runs all along Shoreline Dr. from Crown Memorial Beach (Westline Dr.) all the way to Doolittle Dr. We walked only a short stretch of this today of which a portion of it was an undeveloped dirt trail right by the bay and behind a residential neighborhood. 

This segment connects back to the black top bike trail that goes under Doolittle Dr. and crosses the bay by a bright blue draw bridge to Bay Farm island.  We turned right and proceeded on the wooden bridge to start the Bay Farm Island Loop trail in a counter clockwise direction.

For the next mile and a half, in addition to the blacktop trail popular with cyclists and joggers with strollers, there is a dirt trail that runs by it that pedestrians and dog walkers gravitate to. As you walk in a westerly direction, the trail offers fantastic views of the bay bridge and San Francisco skyline. 

As if the views were not enough, the crisp autumn morning by the bay treated us to a gentle sea breeze with the unmistakable salty freshness. The trail curves around the island in a south easterly direction for the next mile and a half. The beauty of the walk was only marred by a very noisy group of women talking about their lives happenings! The solution to this problem was surprisingly simple - not outrunning them but pausing to enjoy the scenery while they went ahead!

You will go right by the ferry terminal as the trail becomes more urban in character. Office complexes, including Peet's Coffee and manicured lawns on one side and bay waters on the other will set the stage for an urban walk by the bay in this section.

For the next mile, the trail runs parallel to Harbor Bay Pkwy with office complex dotting both sides. Abbott's labs and Oakland Raiders offices are in this section which no longer has the bay on one side, but is still pleasant to walk by.

The trail follows Harbor Bay Pkwy and turns in a northerly direction at the junction of Ron Cowan Pkwy. The next mile is unfortunately a dry section of this loop, with Oakland airport on one side and a golf complex on the other, with construction happening in both properties. 

At the end of this drab section is Mount Trashmore! No, I am not joking. That is the name of the former landfill at the intersection of Doolittle Dr. & Harbor Bay Pkwy. The landfill is fenced off and the trail once again starts running by the bay on the home stretch of the loop. Well, it may be called Mt. Trashmore, but I was moved by the two quotes someone had painstakingly painted in the area. 

The loop completes with this section coming back to the draw bridge. Crossing over the bridge and retracing our steps, we were back on Shoreline Dr. in Alameda island.

The 9+ mile walk, including the ~6 mile Bay Farm Island Loop trail was one of our longer excursions, but is not difficult and can be customized to suit the distance one would like to walk this trail.

More pictures from our walk today.
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