Smittle Creek Trail, Lake Berryessa

July/August 09: 2.6 miles each way, out and back total 5.2 miles. 75 mins car travel time each way. Hiked around 9:30 or so before the heat.

Above: One of the many beautiful lake vistas on this hike.

Above: Great hard dirt, well maintained, lightly used, shore-hugging trail around Lake Berryessa.

Lots of opportunities for bird-watching. We saw a family of osprey (mom, dad, fledgling) fighting off a brazen bronze eagle jonesing for the ospreys' fish, stored in the ospreys' nest. The battle was something to see and hear.

Below: I think these are racoon footprints.

Below: I think this is a coyote footprint: there were plenty of them on a nearby trail (the North Trail), and they had sunk pretty deeply into the mud, indicating a largish animal. I don't think it's a mountain lion. Lions have retractable claws, and these prints clearly have visible claw prints.

Below: More views of the trail:

2.6 miles long (5.2 miles out and back) from Smittle Creek trailhead to Oak Shores campground. Interpretive trail for the first 0.7 miles--worth pausing at the signs to consider what you're seeing. Not much total elevation gain, but plenty of up and down parts and some sweet tiny wooden bridges.

http://www.berryessatrails.org/guide/trailguide/smittle.htm.