BART from Berkeley to Richmond From Richard Katz's
Skating Unrinked book, published in paperback by HarperCollinsWest in 1994. Or was it '95? If you are not reading this on a screen, stop reading and head to www.Amazon.com. Thanx. Richard Katz = katz@frogojt.com. email
If you didn't really want to read a rollerskating trails book: Back to Richard Katz's Homepage
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Chapter berkBART
BART from Berkeley to Richmond: Skating under Rails
Transportation evolves. What was once an efficient mode of movement becomes, for one reason or another, not so efficient.
That's what happened to the Atchison Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad, who used to run a team track through here. the kind you would bring your team of horses to. Now the freight handling capabilities of that train have been elegantly supplanted by the marvels of intermodalism. The passenger stations, like the Depot on University Avenue in Berkeley, have been turned into restaurants and bars. And the tracks have been turned into rollerskating trails.
The one thing you won't see on this trail is vestigial rails, as you can observe in Monterey or Sausalito. The Santa Fe had replaced their rickety old jointed track with brand new 119 lb rail just prior to selling the route to BART, and they ripped this rail up and reused it somewhere else in the Santa Fe system. Slick.
How to Get There by Car from Interstate 80 and 580:
Take the Central Avenue exit and head east on Central. Go about a mile, turn right on Richmond Street, cross Fairmount Avenue, and park in the staging area where Richmond dead ends.
What It's Like:
It's, like, urban.
But that having been said, the strip of asphalt beneath and slightly to the side of the elevated BART tracks is just far enough off the beaten path to be a good place to skate. Like the railroad it replaced, the path goes through back yards and alleys, and crosses at least one major thoroughfare.
From the staging area, start skating north past the sign "City of El Cerrito -- Ohlone Greenway -- At Fairmount Avenue." That's the El Cerrito Plaza BART station up above. The Greenway refers to the landscaping the City of El Cerrito has done, with a Par Course featuring a Jumping Jack Pad as well as some more useful items like a chinup bar. At Fairmount Avenue there is a playground for the kids. This is good smooth asphalt, maybe worth a five star rating. The Greenway greenskeepers have planted lots of young trees, and a bit of mulch and twigs can be found on the trail at times, but it's not too bad. Each section of the trail is a block long at this point, except at Eureka Avenue, where there is a ramp up to the street on the right. At Schmidt Lane, the kids will be delighted that "You Are Now Entering the Dinosaur Forest." The Department of Motor Vehicles has a parking lot at Manila Avenue that is unused on weekends, definitely a five star surface; similarly, there is a basketball court between Manila and Potrero Streets good for a little figureskating. When you get to Cutting Boulevard, you have gone one complete BART stop to the El Cerrito del Norte station. You have to jog left at Cutting, then at Knott Avenue you skate through a parking lot. It's all part of the officially marked and sanctioned trail, this parking lot detour; it lends a whole new meaning to the word "variance." The trail ends abruptly at Key, at the sign "End of Bike Path."
If you bear left on Humboldt Avenue (a little street skating here,) there is an amazing rock in the front yard of #2218. Definitely something you don't see everyday. You can grab a little refreshment at the Del Norte Place on Wall Avenue, right near the end of the trail. By the time you have returned to the staging area at Fairmount Avenue, you have covered 4.6 miles round trip.
Back at the staging area beneath El Cerrito BART, if you want to do a little more, head south on the same trail, past El Cerrito Plaza on your right. It's another whistlestop tour with lots of cross streets. After you cross busy Solano Avenue, there is quite a bit of open space. It's downright parklike after Marin Avenue, paralleling Masonic Avenue. After you cross Dartmouth and are approaching the threecorner intersection with Gilman Street, stay to the left. The most recent section of the trail is on the other side of Gilman.
The southern section of this trail doesn't die, nor does it fade away. With a great deal of perseverance, you can hack your way past some tennis courts at Hopkins Street, around Cedar-Rose Park, past a basketball court, and around the North Berkeley BART station. On the other side of the BART station (BART is underground by this point) the City of Berkeley has constructed Ohlone Park, which has wide concrete trails suitable for skating, all the way up to Shattuck Avenue.
The section of trail from Fairmount Avenue in El Cerrito to Gilman Street in Berkeley (the recommended excursion here) is just over two miles one way.
Places to Eat:
At the north end of the trail, there are some delightful places to sit outside and enjoy a bite to eat. As you head south from the end of the trail at Key, turn off the path at Wall Avenue, and skate into Del Norte Place. At JR Muggs (open at 6 A.M! weekdays) it's okay to skate in and order a cappuccino and snacks. Later in the day and into the evening, there is more elegant fare at String's Italian Cafe. Skate right up.
At the south end of the trail, there is an outdoor dining area managed by Brothers Bagels and Toot Sweets. It's at the Gilman Street crossing. Brothers Bagels is a few yards away on Gilman.
Public Transportation:
BART.
The BART Del Norte and BART El Cerrito stations perch above the trail.
Ratings:
Path Surface = Mostly ****
Public Transit Access = *****
Surroundings = *
Level of Difficulty = EASY
Overall Rating = *
Length = About 4 miles one way
Other trails to check out in the neighborhood:
Berkeley Marina
Tilden Park
10/10/96
Note from the Author: Haven't put in links to the other chapters yet.
From Richard Katz's Skating Unrinked book, published in paperback by HarperCollinsWest in 1994. Or was it '95? If you are not reading this on a screen, stop reading and head to www.Amazon.com. Thanx. Richard Katz = katz@frogojt.com. email
Back to Richard Katz's Homepage
If you want to go back to the Table of Contents of Skating Unrinked, Back to TOC