Scenic ride all along a bike trail. Shaded for the first several miles. The latter half of the trail opens up into expansive grasslands in South San Jose and Morgan Hill.

Route: MapMyRide — Strava. Described in great detail here and here. The starting point is marked by a big sign saying "Coyote Creek Trail". The trail itself is easy to follow: just stay on a paved bike trail all the way from the intersection of Tully Road & Galveston Road in San Jose to Morning Star Drive in Morgan Hill. At some locations, there are unmarked intersections with other short trails leading to roads. If you hop onto one of these trails by mistake, you will find yourself at a regular road with other vehicles. Turn back and come back to Coyote Creek Trail, which is a paved bike trail throughout.

Traffic: In April 2015, there was mild foot traffic and very few bikes between 8 and 12 on a Saturday morning.

Climbing: Very little. Trail is mostly flat.

Bike Trails: The entire route is along a paved bike trail. No roads. No vehicles that you have to worry about.

Views: The first two miles are shaded by tall trees. At the two mile mark, the trail enters Hellyer Park, which has a gorgeous lake! Spend some time at the lake. Beyond Hellyer Park, the trail starts to open up into a large valley. Views become expansive and traffic noise becomes low. I really enjoyed these last ten miles. See photos.

Water stops and restrooms? At several locations:

1. (0 miles) At the starting point, near the soccer field.
2. (3 miles) Hellyer County Park.
3. (9 miles) Metcalf Park.
4. (16.3 miles) Santa Clara County Model Aircraft Skypark.
5. (17.5 miles) At the very end, near Morning Star Drive in Morgan Hill.

Good time to visit? In spring, hills will be lush green and spring flowers will adorn some of the hills. In autumn, when leaves fall to the ground, the shaded section of the trail promises to be very pretty.

Extensions: In the south, it is possible to continue along Malaguerra Ave → Cochrange Rd → Coyote Rd to reach Anderson Lake (see Google Map). This requires a steep climb though.

Location: Intersection of Tully Rd & Galveston Ave, San Jose, CA 95122 . No street address. Parking area is visible in Google Maps if you zoom in sufficiently.

Directions:

Google Maps:

Parking Fees: Free parking near Tully Community Branch Library and next to playing fields. (last visited: April 2015)

Capacity: More than 40 cars can be parked here. The parking lot becomes full by mid-morning by sports event participants.

Latitude: 37.311468     Longitude: -121.842281