Black Mountain Backpack Camp

Where: Midpeninsula Open Space District - Monte Bello Space Preserve

Trail head: Monte Bello Space Preserve

Length: 3 miles round trip

Cumulative elevation gain: 500 feet

Difficulty: Easy

Reservations required: Required.

Advance planning typically required for permit: 1 weekday

Permit requirements: Call 650-691-1200 between 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Provide number of campers and car license plate numbers. They?ll fax or email you the permit, and you mail the payment after your trip

Price: $2 per person

Campfire: No

Available water: There is a water faucet at the camp, but it must be filtered or boiled prior to drinking. There are no sources along the trail or at the trailhead.

Bathrooms: Port-o-let at the trailhead and bathroom shack at the campsite. The one at the campground is very stinky.

Report date: 2007-08-05

Reported by: Jacqueline

Driving directions: Take the Page Mill exit off of 280, and head west on Page Mill ? away from Stanford. Drive about 10 miles (30ish minutes on a narrow, winding road with lots of cyclists), and park at the Monte Bello Space Preserve. Display the bottom part of your permit on your dashboard, and take the top portion of your permit

Maps: http://www.openspace.org/preserves/maps/monte_bello_map.pdf High quality printed maps are usually available at the trailhead, and there is a color map posted on the bulletin board.

Camp condition: Very good, well marked and worn dirt trail.

Camp description: There are 4 4-person sites clustered very close to one another and the smelly toilet. There is also a 24 person campsite about 100 feet away from the stinky bathroom and the other campsites.

Trail description and other notes: Hike up to the top of Black Mountain for a beautiful view of San Jose, especially of the city lights at night. If you are adventurous, you can also poke your head through the trees to see the rest of the Peninsula. Rumor has it that the oak trees have a disease and will sadly soon die off, but this will leave a beautiful clear view of the entire Peninsula. Night hiking is not officially allowed.

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