Diablo Fit: The East Bay gets a Comprehensive Trail Guide

Oakland-based Interactive Recreation Information Systems publish the first ever GPS-based trail guide for the East Bay

Sometimes the woods can be a labyrinth: Trails tangle up, landmarks fade to brush and signposts can, at times, raise more questions than they answer.

Yet, hope is in sight. Oakland residents Susan and Claire Kaymon, co-owners of Interactive Recreation Information Systems have recently published their new map book titled San Francisco Trail Collection: East Bay Volume I. The book, tailored to be tucked into a jacket or stashed in a glove box, contains maps and information for more than 580 miles of trails in 38 parks and regional wilderness areas around the East Bay.

The new book contains up-to-date information ranging from simple parking fees to trail widths and surface conditions to whether your dog is allowed on the trail. Susan, the President of IRIS, says that in creating the book they wanted to make it as reader-friendly as possible. It is also the first GPS-based map book for trails in Northern Alameda and Western Contra Costa Counties.

“It really highlights the extent of the outdoor recreation available to us in the East Bay,” she says.

Unlike the compilation of some map books, East Bay Volume I was created using information that the co-owners gained onsite walking and riding on the trails—more than 1,000 miles to be exact.

“We have actually walked or ridden every mile of the trails we’ve graphed and our ultimate goal is to get the S.F. Bay Area trails mapped and digitally available for people to use on their own GPS systems,” she explained. Their long-term goal is to create a series of map books that cover the entire Bay Area in four sections: East, North, South and West.

As an avid hiker, cyclist and general outdoors person, Susan said that she empathizes with the difficulties presented to newbies trying to get out into the woods. In one of their early visits to the Oakland Hills, Susan and Claire found themselves completely disoriented. “What I thought was going to be a one and a half hour run turned into 3 hours!”

Now a seasoned trail user, the duo want to help others avoid some of the common pitfalls presented to new hikers and cyclists.

“What’s rewarding for me is to see the reaction of people who see all of our trail data and say ‘Hey, I haven’t been there’ and then they go out and visit that trail or go back to one they haven’t been to for years,” she says. “When you’ve got the outdoors who needs a gym?"

For more information about East Bay trails and other trail resources, visit ultimatetrailguide.com.

 

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