There are numerous bike riding trails around the Bay Area, but several trails in the San Jose area are worth checking out.
One trail that leads through parks, creeks and neighborhoods, offers a tour worthy of the inexperienced or experienced rider. This is the Coyote Creek Trail that takes you all the way from San Jose to Morgan Hill. It's a paved trail that is also used by walkers and skaters, but it's well maintained with ample room to allow for multi-use. There are even benches, picnic tables and emergency phones located along the way. It begins near the velodrome in San Jose and goes past Coyote Creek, around Cottonwood Lake, all through Hellyer Park. Hellyer Park has the usual playgrounds, picnic areas and in the fall, Cottonwood Lake is stocked with trout. After Hellyer Park, the trail takes you underneath Highway 101 and to the high-tech companies of Silicon Valley. If you continue going south, you'll pass by fruit orchards and nearby restaurants.
The Coyote Creek Trail ends up at the south of Silicon Valley. This is an excellent ride if you want to see a good part of the southern Bay area, including homes, businesses and water bodies. If you want a little more outdoorsy adventure, then the Los Alamitos Creek Trail might be a bit more to your liking. This is another multi-use trail through San Jose's upscale Almaden Valley. This trail starts at Lake Almaden's southeastern side where swimming, fishing and boating are popular in the summer. You can ride to the south next to a creek which will take you past wealthy neighborhoods near the Santa Teresa Hills.
At Greystone Lane, however, the paved trail temporarily ends and turns into a gravel path near the creek or to Camden Avenue, which is a rather busy road. If you continue on the creek trail, it'll turn back into a paved path. There are several routes to take that will lead you back to Lake Almaden or to the Almaden Reservoir. If you're an expert rider, you might consider taking the Hicks Road trail, because it is curvy, narrow and steep, taking you up into the mountains and then descending to Guadalupe Reservoir.
Another trail is the Los Gatos Creek Trail, which travels through Los Gatos, Campbell and San Jose. There are actually several routes to this system of trails where a diverse scenery can be seen and experienced. This will take you through parks, restaurants, shops and urban areas. The good thing about this trail is that you will have the opportunity to hopefully see some wildlife. The Los Gatos Creek transports water from Lexington Reservoir to downstream ponds, and this trail follows the creek. You will travel through no fewer than three cities; Los Gatos, then Campbell and ending in San Jose. This is also a multi-use trail that can be accessed at numerous points along the way.
There is a dirt trail, perfect for mountain bikes, which goes to the south along the creek. While it's a reasonably flat trail, it is gravel and somewhat bumpy, so mountain bikes are much better on this section. Most of the other routes are designed for either. Even though there are more trails and bike paths available, the trails discussed above are a few of those where someone can catch a glimpse of the Bay Area while enjoying a relaxing ride.
