"Be fluid. Be like water. Flow around the obstacles."
—Master Choa Kok Sui
Once again, I have to give “props” to my friend and neighbor, Bill Rothenberg, for recommending this biking route. Though the fat tires of my Sondor’s E-Bike allow me to tackle almost any terrain, this reservoir excursion Bill planned out for us is made to order for cyclists who like to keep their tires on level pavement. We drove to our starting point at Calero Reservoir in San Jose in Bill’s old Suburban. We logged more than 25 miles roundtrip around Calero, Uvas, and Chesbro reservoirs, where the Pueblo and Ohlone Indians used to roam for thousands of years before the arrival of the Europeans.
The Calero County Park was once part of the Pueblo lands of San Jose and Rancho San Vincente land grant. This 4,471-acre park is nestled in the eastern foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains. The reservoir offers a host of water-oriented recreational activities, complete with its own boat launch. The adjoining “backcountry” contains California Oak woodland, chaparral, riparian plant communities, and wildlife habitats. During the months of March, April and May, the backcountry offers a spectacular display of wildflowers. The scenic 1,017-acre Uvas Park and reservoir is nestled below the Santa Cruz Mountains. it was once part of the 11,093 acres Rancho Las Uvas (meaning “Ranch of the grapes.”) The beautiful and scenic 232 acres Chesbro Reservoir County Park is named after a local doctor named Elmer J. Chesbro who was also president of the South Santa Clara Valley Water Conservation District.
After snaking around Calero Reservoir and meandering alongside Uvas Road toward the Uvas Reservoir, we stopped along the moderately trafficked country roads making up this loop to visit and photograph some of the small farms and ranches including the Dini Mapes Ranch in Morgan Hill where three friendly horse gently trotted 20 feet to say hello.
We passed the lush grounds Cinnabar Hills Golf Club, considered the best in Silicon Valley. We purposely skirted past Chesbro Reservoir and continued riding alongside Uvas Reservoir, stopping again for photos of a herd of cows. On the roundabout, we lowered our bikes under a closed iron bar that was blocking us from accessing the parking lot of the Uvas. Bill bumped into some county sheriffs and I was sure we were going to get fined. As it turned out the sheriffs had just pulled in themselves from another entry point to engage in diving practices. Besides spectacular views of the reservoirs, on which there were a few boaters and fishermen, we encountered a few people parked by the side of the road relaxing in their lounge chairs. We then doubled back to the road leading to the Chesbro Reservoir. Bill and I agreed that if we still had some energy left in us, we would complete the mission of visiting three reservoirs in one outing, which is what we did.
Aside from some impatient speed demons in their high powered pick-up trucks wanting to show us who's boss, and riding on sections of the road that had no bike lanes, it was a triumph to complete this bike road trip. The other challenge we had to overcome was riding up some steeper grade hills. But, these obstacles are also mixed blessings, giving cyclists like us a feeling of accomplishment as we approached the summit of a hill. Once we finally reached the top of the crest, overwhelmed with endorphins and excitement we were rewarded with a sense of freedom as we coasted downhill at 27 MPH. We made our way back to Calero Reservoir, packed up our gear and made our way to Happi House for lunch.
