Second Review

Second Review

Sunday, 21 October 2012

The book continues to be a hit with us.

“41 Berkeley Walking Tours” continues to be frustrating to use, however, with its confusing layout. It’s got a lot of information in it, no question.

As we repeat walks, we’re always interested when we see changes in the color of a house or when we notice trees have gone missing, for instance. We have even seen steps added to one of the staircases.

We think the big rocks on a lot of the walks in the northeastern section of Berkeley are an attractive addition to the area. 

In Walk #12, Grizzly Peaks, we went into the Park Hills development. All the years we’ve lived in the area, and we had never taken the time to go look at it. It definitely does not look like the rest of the Berkeley hills!

The chickens on Walk #14 were not a surprise—we’ve seen them before—but they are fun to watch in the middle of the walk.

It turned out the time of day we walk has a bearing on the photographs. Afternoons were tough for views out across the bay. So we stuck with morning walks, which meant 63F was a typical starting temperature. 

There was an afternoon or two where we could have gone to Walk #18—Remillard Park, but the sun would have made the photographs unexciting, I think. So we have postponed that walk for now.

We continue to find the stairs easier—our feet are in great shape.

Walk #19, Cleveland Cascades, doesn’t have all that many stairs, but it is a good introduction to Lake Merritt for anyone who hasn’t been there before.

Walk #21, Highland Hospital is not all that exciting a walk, but there are some large, old houses up on the hill. 

When we are walking through an area without overhead utility wires, it is quite noticeable. Everything looks better without the wires.

We’re looking forward to the next set of walks, which are mostly in Oakland and Piedmont.

We’ve been thinking that Charles Fleming might have been dictating the book during his walks. 

Here’s a quick review of the last ten walks. 

Next—Grand Lake’s Rose Garden, unless it’s Remillard Park.