Wikipedia lists the elevation of El Cerrito as 69 feet, which is the approximate elevation at City Hall. The Plaza is a little lower, the shopping districts on Stockton and Fairmont are a little higher, but most of the business in the city probably occurs at an elevation within 50 feet either way. Not so the trails of El Cerrito. For instance, the vista pictured here, on the Ridge Trail above the Recycling Center, is almost 500 feet higher, but even this doesn’t take in the full elevational range of El Cerrito. We’ve barely risen halfway to the high point in the city, a place no trail will take us since it is on private property. And under a house.

After a long gap, we return to the north of the city for the third and last of Tassajara Park’s associated trails, the aptly named Tassajara Park Trail. We’ve previously showcased the Tassajara to Barrett path, which descend from Barrett to Tassajara Avenue, across from the park, and the Barrett to Alva path, which runs along the western edge of the park. But the Tassajara Park Trail is unique in that it begins in, and passes through, the park itself.