Completed: July 29, 2023 | Elevation: 1,852′ | Trail: Table Mountain Trail Loop via Charcoal and Table Mountain Fire Roads | Distance: 5.8 miles
When was the last time you had to hike way down to reach a peak? Such was the paradox of reaching Table Mountain. Often the reward for spending all that time and energy going uphill is an easier downhill return but that was not the case here.
We parked on Highway 35, across from the Saratoga Gap Trailhead. Our starting elevation was 2,542 feet. The trail was pretty level and after 0.4 miles, it intersected with the start of our loop. We decided to go counter-clockwise, turning left onto Charcoal Road, and continuing straight onto it. The fire road is wide and goes continuously down for a mile. Within a short amount of time we had descended close to 750 feet. My first thought was “thank goodness we aren’t coming back up this trail” quickly followed by “shoot, what if the other trail is just as steep?”
Charcoal Road then became Table Mountain Fire Road, which circles the top of Table Mountain. As we approached the side where the “peak” is located, we had to constantly refer to AllTrails to make sure we weren’t blowing right past it. There wasn’t much to see other than lots of trees.
Convinced that we had in fact reached the summit, we continued on our hike, walking past the spur that would have taken us back to Charcoal Road, and veering onto Table Mountain Trail to complete our loop. Doing the hike back out on Table Mountain Trail is the way to go, unless you are looking for an intense cardio workout. The single-track trail was definitely more gradual, with switchbacks and one stream crossing. It’s also just a nicer trail, not rocky or dusty. Most of it is in the forest and well shaded.
Back in the car, and with plenty of time left in the afternoon, we decided to reward ourselves with a little aprés-hike at Thomas Forgarty Winery, a place that we had driven past many times on our way to/from hikes in the nearby hills. Today seemed as good a day as any to finally drop in and check them out. We bought a bottle of rosé, and enjoyed a glass outside. Life is good!
Follow our progress bagging the Bay Area’s Nifty Ninety here.
Coda
This is definitely a nice hike for a hot day with lots of tree cover. Doing the main loop counter-clockwise also makes this a less challenging hike. Table Mountain Trail is definitely more enjoyable than Charcoal Road.