Entrance to Alameda County Shoreline Trail on the East Bay side of the Dumbarton Bridge.
Access to Shoreline Trail from the south is through a Caltrans maintenance area hidden underneath the Dumbarton Bridge where Marshlands Road from Newark deadends at the Dumbarton fishing pier. The unpaved dirt trail, which is open only during daylight hours, goes north along the top of a salt pond levee. Google Maps shows Shoreline Trail as a bike trail, though bikeability might be tough in the winter when the levee top becomes a goopy mud pit. The packed mud is ridable when dry even with road bikes, though the trail surface can be rutted and bumpy.
From the Dumbarton Bridge, Shoreline goes north to the Alameda Creek Region Trail. It also provides access to Coyote Hills Regional Park via another levee path — the “No Name” Trail. Though Google Maps does not show a direct connection from No Name to Coyote Hills, the connection is there and is shown on the ABAG South Bay trail map [PDF].
Shoreline Trail is part of the 500 mile San Francisco Bay Trail that will someday ring the entire San Francisco Bay and San Pablo Bay shores. When complete, this continuous trail will connect the shoreline of all nine Bay Area counties, link 47 cities, and cross the major toll bridges in the region. To date, approximately 290 miles of the alignment—over half the Bay Trail’s ultimate length—have been completed.
This is a scenic trail. I've been using it for more than 10 years. The levy is far out from the shoreline and almost feels like walking on water.
Thanks for posting, will use this to ride Berkeley to Capitola. If the ponds are full Saimin is right, it will feel like riding the aquabike
Looks like I can go Palomares to 84 (short sketchy bit), then catch mostly bike trail through Fremont to the bridge and then do Willow-Sandhill across Palo Alto.
Any recommendations after that? I was thinking Sandhill – Portola – La Honda – Skyline – Soquel San Jose to minimize steeps on what will be a long day. Have only ridden Soquel-San Jose part of that before, a nice downhill with fairly good bike lanes into Capitola
I stood there today and looked out along the levee. Windy and choppy out on the bay. Spray coming off the rocks along the shorebreak. Still a little wet to ride, so I'll hit it next week. Amazing. When I saw this route suggestion on google bike maos I laughed — “there's no trail there” I thought. Can't wait!
It's a fun little trail — a little different from most of the path riding around here.
Your post inspired me, I'm riding across Thursday. Start at Fremont BART, going up Page Mill, down 9
Coming back Saturday was planning on going up Mountain Charlie Road. Google maps has it dead ending after you take the left off Greenwood, but I saw your photo from Mountain Charlie on Flickr and I think it will go through, somehow.