Hiking above Lake Berryessa

Lake Berryessa is a large reservoir only a handy half hour's drive from Davis. It was created in the 1950s by the construction of the around 100m high Monticello Dam blocking the Putah Creek and providing irrigation water and around 10MW of electricity to the area. Lake Berryessa was my first small excursion into the Coast Ranges, the mountains running along the mighty Pacific. And it was great!

Katrina, a friend from work, picked me up in her beloved Chevvy Volt. We had planned to do the Blue Ridge trail, which climbs to about 450m and offers a great views of the lake embedded in the rolling hills. The path leads through Cold Canyon to a "homestead", I'm guessing some sort of delapidated logging or mining camp, before climbing up to the ridge over giant wooden steps. It was obvious that the area had been burned in recent years. Charred trees reached leafless into the cloudy autumn skies. A wildfire had come through here in 2015, destroying the trail and the respective infrastructure. But it is amazing how much vegetation has already regrown in the two years since. The path had been restored by the UC Davis, who manage the Natural Reserve and use it for research purposes.

Up on the ridge we discussed past hiking experiences, German grammar and theories on the surprisingly meticulous divide between sparse brown shrubs on the east and greener bushes on the west side of the hills. The path was easy to walk, climbing bluffs and dipping in between, offering ever different vistas of the lake and the Coast Ranges. A couple of black hawks soared above while we were having a snack on a some large rocks taking in the beautiful scenery. The lake has a smaler, narrower part right at the dam and fills a wider valley further in the distance. To the east, we looked over the plains of the Central Valley and could just make out the skyscrapers of Sacramento in the distance. The sun came out to play and it was a beautiful little hike through amazing landscape.

After making our way back down the far side of the ridge we made a quick stop over at the "Glory hole" behind the dam, a round spillway which prevents the lake from overflowing. Unfortunately the waterlevel was too low so instead of a seemingly infinite sink hole it was just a sad round wall of concrete. Somewhat disappointed we drove towards Davis and stopped over in the cute town of Winters. A great burger at the annoyingly popular "Putah Creek Cafe" replenished used-up calories and topped off a fun Sunday in beautiful California.