20 Attractions to Explore Near Sunol Regional Wilderness

Mission Peak is a 2,517-foot summit east of the San Francisco Bay in Fremont. Mission Peak has symbolic importance, and is depicted on the logo of the City of Fremont. It is located in Mission Peak Regional Preserve, a regional park operated by the East Bay Regional Park District. Mission Peak Regional Preserve is a popular location for hang gliding and paragliding.

This majestic 1,558 acre park is one of Santa Clara County's most unique regional park and recreation areas. It has the traditional features of an urban park such as picnicking, fishing and play areas, with the complex trail system of many regional wilderness parks. The park's recreational facilities include a hang gliding and paragliding area, a dog park, and horseback riding areas. Ed R. Levin County Park has two lakes.

Mission San José is a Spanish mission located in the present-day city of Fremont, California. It was founded on June 11, 1797, by the Franciscan order and was the fourteenth Spanish mission established in California. The old mission church remains in use as a chapel of Saint Joseph Catholic Church, a parish of the Diocese of Oakland. The museum also features a visitor center, museum, and slide show telling the history of the mission.

Niles Canyon Railway is a living history museum interpreting the importance of our heritage railroads in the development of California and the nation. The railroad is operated and maintained by the Pacific Locomotive Association which preserves, restores and operates historic railroad equipment. The NCRy features public excursions with both steam and diesel locomotives along a well-preserved portion of the First Transcontinental Railroad.

A majestic 9,737 acres regional park in the United States that is part of the East Bay Regional Parks system. It offers a 28-mile trail between Mission Peak Regional Preserve in Fremont and Del Valle Regional Park in Livermore. It is a grueling backpack with over 8,000 feet cumulative elevation gain, and most people do it in two or three days.

Vargas Plateau Regional Park sits on a plateau in the Fremont Hills of Alameda County, California that overlooks the San Francisco Bay. This 1,249-acre regional park provides tremendous views from its setting in the Fremont Hills. The park contains an array of habitats, such as grassland, seasonal wetlands, stock ponds, perennial and ephemeral drainages and so more. Hiking, biking and horseback riding are the most popular activities. Observation of birds and other wildlife can also be enjoyed.

The Sierra Vista Open Space Preserve in the Eastern foothills of Santa Clara County offers sweeping views of the Valley and the opportunity to stroll through diverse landscapes including oak woodlands, rolling grassland, and chaparral communities.Enjoy expansive views as you stroll through grasslands and rock outcroppings that were once part of the ocean floor.

Lake Elizabeth was created by excavation of part of Stivers Lagoon Marsh in 1968. It has a 2 mile walkway around the lake. The park is home to a large number of birds. Many people come to bicycle or jog around the lake's perimeter, and many families come for the two playgrounds in the park and the other three that it connects to by walkway.

Alameda Central is a beautiful location where people can relax and enjoy the city's energy without being overwhelmed by it. This is a green garden with paved paths and decorative fountains and statues, and is frequently the center of civic events.

This beautiful 9090-acre parkland is on the oak-covered ridge overlooking Pleasanton and the Livermore Valley from the west. This Park contains over 25 miles of trails, most of which are dirt roads, except for the Woodland Trail, the Bay Leaf Trail, and a few sections of the North Ridge and Ridgeline trails.

Lake Del Valle is a storage reservoir in Alameda County, California. The lake is surrounded by over 5,000 acres of beautiful oak-covered hills at an altitude of 745 feet. The water level at Del Valle Lake fluctuates seasonally from a high of 703 feet in the summer to a low of 678 feet in the winter. The lake stretches for 5 miles and has 16 miles of shoreline. Thus normally stores 37,000 to 52,000 acre-feet. The lake is a popular destination for hikers, bikers, and boaters.

The 720 acres (2.9 km2) park offers 13 miles (21 km) of trails. The narrow floor of the valley includes a visitor center, a small museum/animal rehab facility, picnic areas, playgrounds, lawns, sand volleyball pits, mineral springs, lush plant life, woodlands, creek play opportunities, and occasional group camping.

Niles Canyon is a canyon in the San Francisco Bay Area formed by Alameda Creek, known for its heritage railroad and silent movie history. The Niles Canyon Trail Project proposes to install a six-mile long pathway that is 10 feet wide and is intended to accommodate pedestrians, bicyclists, and equestrians.

Del Valle Regional Park is a part of the East Bay Regional Park District in an unincorporated region of Alameda County, California. This park is ideal for picnicking, horseback riding, boating, fishing and swimming. The park also offers 28 miles of hiking, horseback, and bicycle trails, in addition to 150 camping sites.

A beautiful film museum housed in the Edison Theater, a century-old Nickelodeon movie theater, just half a block from the former site of the Niles Essanay Studios where Broncho Billy and Charlie Chaplin made films in the 1910s. It is dedicated to preserving and showing silent films and their history.The museum houses a large collection of Motion Picture equipment and related artifacts, as well as about 10,000 Silent Films in their archive.

Sycamore Grove Park offers leisurely strolls or vigorous hikes on 775 acres of varied terrain. Several picturesque footbridges crisscross the waterways. Creekside areas boast frogs, pond turtles, dragonflies, ducks and muskrats.

Ruby Hill Winery was one of the largest and most revered producers of wine in the Livermore Valley. In 2002, Mike Callahan purchased the 105 acre parcel, known as Ruby Hill and Rubino Estates Winery. Ruby Hill Winery quickly became a popular location for visitors of the Livermore Valley and what started off as a hobby quickly blossomed into something more.

The Pleasanton Ridge is one of the best hikes around the Tri-Valley area. You can make it as hard, long or as casual as you want. It contains over 25 miles of trails, most of which are dirt roads, except for the Woodland Trail, the Bay Leaf Trail, and a few sections of the North Ridge and Ridgeline trails. Park elevations range from 400 feet at the main entrance to over 1,600 feet at the highest point.

Aqua Adventure is a water park located in Central Park in Fremont, California. Currently, there are two open and two enclosed slides that twist and turn from a height of 40 feet above pools and slide-stopping water gates called run-outs. A 700-square-foot , 3-foot-deep lazy river surrounds much of the complex, while a splash zone of water features water jets and sprays.

This 20.6 acre bayside park, located along Alviso slough and adjacent to the salt ponds and marshes of Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge. The park offers a great variety of recreational opportunities within its boundaries and leads visitors to the Refuge for bird watching, hiking along the pathways, boardwalks, and on regional trails including the San Francisco Bay Trail.It offer fantastic views of the mountains surrounding the bay, and of the wildlife.