Jackie and I had a free morning before driving Mom to the airport, so I took
her up to Mt. Umunhum, utilizing the 4mi trail from the Bald Mtn parking lot
down the road. It was a sunny, warm day in the Santa Clara Valley, though a
breeze helped keep it somewhat cool. The trail was in good condition, mostly
dry now from the rains earlier in the month. Portions of the trail and the
concrete tower were closed off. They have erected a scaffolding on one
side of the structure to facilitate work to remove lead-bearing paint and to
apply an anti-graffiti coating. The two workers we saw were decked in haz-mat
suits. The rest of the summit area was open to the public and aside from some
of the usual haze, the views were pretty good with the surrounding hills as
green as they will be this year. We spent about 3hrs on the 8mi effort with
something like 1,700ft of gain, a good workout for the morning.