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Photograph by Chad Pilster
Trail Mix: A biker rides along the almost-completed Los Gatos Creek Trail.
SJ city officials dedicate Glen spur of Creek Trail
After ten months of construction, another leg in the cross-Valley corridor is complete
By Jessica Lyons
Just off the heavily trodden path that is Meridian Avenue, the Los Gatos Creek Trail passes by on its way through the Santa Clara Valley--a scenic alternative to busy streets and congested highways.
Bicyclists, joggers, walkers and an occasional squirrel have enjoyed this road-less-traveled for almost 30 years. And now, after 10 months of bulldozing dirt and pouring cement, the new Willow Glen segment is up and running, ready for travelers by bike, skateboard, in-line skate or paw.
Originally slated for spring completion, the trail's construction was delayed because of rainy weather. Saturday, June 26, was a bright, sunshiny day, however, as the city of San Jose formally dedicated the new Creek Trail segment.
"It's a multi-purpose recreational trail, it's a commute trail, it's a riparian corridor for wildlife, it's a great feature," says Michael LaRocca, special projects manager for the city's parks division.
The new stretch of the trail, which runs along the north side of Los Gatos Creek at Meridian Avenue, cost roughly $1.4 million.
It's a small price to pay for invaluable open space, say Glenites.
"It gives us a recreational facility in the area; it gives us open space," says Larry Ames, member of the Los Gatos Creek Streamside Park Committee and avid bicyclist. "In this section of Willow Glen, we have Bramhall Park and that's about it. There's not much other land for parks here. Now, for the cost of some asphalt, we got eight acres of open space."
The new segment stretches just north of Willow Street, and continues down the bike lane on Willow to Lincoln Avenue.
Eventually, a third and final portion of the trail will connect this Willow Glen section to downtown San Jose, where the Guadalupe Park Trail begins.
Upon completion, creek trail travelers will be able to commute from one end of the county to the other, and remain completely car-free.
"The long-range goal is to make a bay-to-bay connection," LaRocca says. "Start at the San Francisco Bay and stay on a system of trails that will take you all the way to [Monterey Bay]."
The original stretch of the Los Gatos Creek Trail was dug in the early 1970s, backed by a group of Campbell residents. Since then, other neighboring communities have contributed to the trail's expansion, building a cross-county scenic route. The trail now extends from Lexington Reservoir through Los Gatos, Campbell and San Jose.
The Willow Glen extension of the trail has been in the works since the early '90s, with the Willow Glen Neighborhood Association taking an active role in the expansion. From restoring native riparian habitat and planting 1,000 trees and shrubs along the half-mile stretch of the trail through Willow Glen, to building an informal kiosk for trail users, to donating a water fountain, WGNA has worked diligently to connect Willow Glen to the rest of the Creek Trail cities.
"The new section of the trail is now really reaching Willow Glen," says WGNA President J. Michael Gonzales. "It's such a connection to other communities."
That connection works both ways, say trail aficionados.
Ames, who uses the trail for business and pleasure, often rides to work in Palo Alto. His wife, Liv, bicycles from Willow Glen to Los Gatos twice a week, "for the exercise," Larry says, adding, "Now people from Los Gatos can bike down to the Willow Glen Coffee Roasting Company for the same thing."
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Willow Glen, California Since 1992
