Full Answer
How long is the Mount Umunhum hike?
3.7 milesHiking to Mount Umunhum The trail to the summit is 3.7 miles each way (7.4 miles or roughly 12 km round trip).
What is the building on top of Mount Umunhum?
concrete radar towerThe mountain is topped by an eight and a half story (84.5 feet tall) concrete radar tower (5 floors interior), known locally as "the Cube" or "the Box". The tower was part of Almaden Air Force Station, a radar surveillance post which operated from 1958 to 1980.
Can you drive up Mount Umunhum?
California > San Francisco Bay Area You now have a choice of driving or hiking to the top. The hike uses a new purpose-built singletrack trail that switchbacks up to the summit.
How did Mount Umunhum get its name?
The name “Mount Umunhum” comes from the Ohlone Indian phrase for the resting place of the hummingbird. Along with native history, Mount Umunhum is also well known for its military history. The Almaden Air Force Station was built atop Mount Um in the late 1950s and was used until the 1980s.
What was Mt Umunhum used for?
From 1958 to 1980, Mount Umunhum was the location of the Almaden Air Force Station, part of a Cold War radar warning system to watch over the nation's airspace.
How do you pronounce umunhum?
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Is Mt Umunhum open to public?
Mount Umunhum From its summit, visitors can experience 360-degree views from the Pacific to the Sierra Nevada and learn about the mountain's long history with Native Americans, gold rush-era mining and the Cold War. The summit is accessible to visitors of all abilities.
Is Mount Umunhum dog friendly?
You'll need to leave pups at home — dogs aren't allowed on this trail. The gorgeous Mt. Umunhum Trail passes through dense mixed chaparral scrub dominated by shrub species including chamise, big berry manzanita, birch leafed mountain mahogany, and poison oak.
What time does Mt Umunhum open?
Mount Umunhum is only open from 7am to half hour past sunset. There are gates that automatically close when it gets dark. Camping is not allowed, and there are no usage fees.
Can you drive up Loma Prieta?
Turn right on Loma Prieta Road, and take this until reaching the end of the paved road section. Shortly after this, there is a gate which is signed for use by "authorized and resident vehicles only". My recommendation for maximum legality is hiking beyond this point, and staying on the road.
Can you drive up Loma Prieta?
Turn right on Loma Prieta Road, and take this until reaching the end of the paved road section. Shortly after this, there is a gate which is signed for use by "authorized and resident vehicles only". My recommendation for maximum legality is hiking beyond this point, and staying on the road.
Is Mission Peak hard?
This is a moderate to strenuous trail with a constant uphill climb until you reach the summit. The trail is a well maintained gravel base until the last half mile. From this point the trail is hard pack dirt and rocky. Difficulty would definitely increase during the rainy season.
Is Mt Umunhum open to public?
Mount Umunhum From its summit, visitors can experience 360-degree views from the Pacific to the Sierra Nevada and learn about the mountain's long history with Native Americans, gold rush-era mining and the Cold War. The summit is accessible to visitors of all abilities.
When did Mt Umunhum open to the public?
2017Opened to public access in 2017, the Mount Umunhum summit is located within the Sierra Azul Open Space Preserve. One of the highest peaks in the Santa Cruz mountains at 3,486 feet, the summit was drastically altered in the 1950s when the U.S. military graded and flattened the summit to build Almaden Air Force Station.
How to get to Mount Umunhum?
In order to get to Mt. Umunhum, you must first find Mt. Umunhum Road. From Camden Ave. in San Jose, turn west onto Hicks Road. Go past Shannon Road and Guadalupe Reservoir. After some elevation gain, you'll come to a rest area at a 4-way intersection and Mt. Umunhum Road to the right. Travel up Mount Umunhum Road 1.6 miles to the Bald Mountain Trailhead, where there is a large parking lot. Park here for access to the Mt. Umunhum Trail (well signed and marked), or alternatively, drive all the way up to the large parking lot just beneath the summit and walk the 150 or so steps to the top.
What is the name of the mountain that looms over San Jose at dusk?
Mt. Umunhum looms over south San Jose at dusk.
What is a child in a mountain?
Children refers to the set of objects that logically fall under a given object. For example, the Aconcagua mountain page is a child of the 'Aconcagua Group' and the 'Seven Summits.' The Aconcagua mountain itself has many routes, photos, and trip reports as children.
Is Mount Umunhum open to the public?
As of September 18, 2017, after decades of inaccessibility, Mount Umunhum has finally become open to the public. The status of Mount Umunhum has changed many times since the creation of this page, so many photos here will reflect what the summit used to be, and will remain attached to this page for historical reference. My hope is that with the opening of the mountain, new photos will be posted by other contributors.
Did you know?
The six-story tall concrete "cube" at the top of Mount Umunhum isn't a relic from space travelers, but the base of the former radar tower and nearly all the remains of the original Air Force base. The iconic form is visible from many parts of the South Bay.
Hiking Mount Umunhum
This trail opened up in the fall of 2017, and has been very well engineered and built. It's a pleasure to hike up. Go early to beat the crowds and get the best chance of spotting wildlife along the way.
Latest Mount Umunhum Trip Reports
These hike logs will give you a feel for what the current conditions are, and the experience from other Six-Pack of Peaks challengers.
The Six-Pack of Peaks Challenge
This hike is part of the Northern California Six-Pack of Peaks Challenge, a series of challenging hikes up six, diverse and scenic Bay Area mountains. Sign-up to take the challenge today!
Where is Mount Umunhum?
Mount Umunhum is the fourth-highest peak in the Santa Cruz Mountains just south of San Jose and can be reach by the new five-mile Mount Umunhum Road which is off Hicks Road in Los Gatos. At the spectacular summit I had a 360-degree view from the Pacific to the Sierra Nevada! I was visiting during the Wine Country fires of 2017 and could see the pattern of smoke as it spread over the valley. Also on the mount, a ceremonial circle has been built to allow descendants of Ohlone native people to pray and dance. Twelve interpretative signs provide information about the summit's history as a military post to its meaning for area Native Americans. From the main parking and restroom area 159 steps lead to the summit. A small passenger drop-off space is available for those not able to master the stairs. There are no guides, trash cans or drinking water available. Dogs are not allowed, even inside a car. Care has been take to make Mount Um, as the locals sometimes call it, a safe , peaceful, open space for everyone to appreciate the majestic views of central California.
How many steps to climb Mount Umunhum?
After you have negotiated the windy road to get to the parking lot with plentiful parking, you can either hike a short pleasant 0.3 mile uphill trail along the side of the mountain, or you can walk up about 160 steps to ...
Where is Mount Umunhum?
Opened to public access in 2017, the Mount Umunhum summit is located within the Sierra Azul Open Space Preserve. One of the highest peaks in the Santa Cruz mountains at 3,486 feet, the summit was drastically altered in the 1950s when the U.S. military graded and flattened the summit to build Almaden Air Force Station. Midpen acquired the land in 1980 shortly after the base was decommissioned, preserving the land as open space. In 2009, Midpen received federal funding to clean up the site. The agency removed 3,000 cubic yards of hazardous materials, including lead paint, asbestos, fuel storage containers and PCB transformers, and deconstructed 13,680 tons of concrete, asphalt, wood and other materials, 97% of which were recycled or reused.
What is the Mount Umunhum Summit Project?
The Mount Umunhum Summit Project is an excellent reflection of the three foundational strands of Midpen's mission - to preserve open space, to protect and restore the natural environment and to provide opportunities for ecologically sensitive public enjoyment and education. It also illustrates the long-term commitment that is required to fulfill that mission.
When did Midpen approve the Mount Umunhum Summit?
After Midpen staff spent three years listening to the public and researching potential options for the summit, the Midpen board of directors approved the Final Design Development Options for the Mount Umunhum Summit Project unanimously on August 26, 2015. Midpen then worked with experts to restore the summit to a more natural condition by recontouring and naturalizing the topography and reestablishing biodiverse habitats by planting native vegetation.
What is the name of the mountain in San Francisco that Midpen built?
Midpen’s vision was for Mount Umunhum to join the ranks of the Bay Area’s great publicly-accessible peaks, like Mount Tamalpais, Mount Diablo and Mount Hamilton. To achieve that aspiration, the agency widened and repaved the 5-mile road to the summit, added new parking and staging areas, built welcoming multi-use trails, created in a Native American ceremonial space in partnership with the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band and developed an accessible overlook of Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay.
How long is Mount Umunhum?
More. Mount Umunhum is a 7.7 mile heavily trafficked out and back trail located near New Almaden, California that features beautiful wild flowers and is rated as moderate. The trail is primarily used for hiking, running, and mountain biking and is accessible year-round.
Is Mission Peak hard?
Excellent trail. Beautiful views along the way and especially at the top. I just climbed Mission Peak last week and to compare these two Moderat e rates hikes- Mission Peak is much more challenging and a tad hard for the straight up incline, this one is switchbacks the whole way. During the week was perfect as there is limited parking.
Hiking is legal
Hikers are only arrested at the AFB. There is a public road and hiking the mountain is not illegal. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.6.71.26 ( talk) 01:31, 24 January 2008 (UTC) []
The Links
Somebody keeps taking off the Summitpost link, as well as other links. It's getting kind of annoying. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Mrgooseskin ( talk • contribs) 00:50, 4 June 2008 (UTC) []
AFB scheduled for demolition?
According to http://www.almadenafs.org/ , a site for the Almaden Air Force Station 2010 reunion, "This is the LAST chance to visit the site before it is demolished in the fall."
When was the cube built?
The article now says "The summit of Mount Umunhum is the site of the former Almaden Air Force Station, an early-warning radar station built in 1957 that operated from 1958 to 1980." This suggests the well-known "cube" dates from 1957-- which it apparently doesn't, so a footnote (or something) is needed.
Let's stop calling it the "cube"
Discussions with actual Almaden Air Force Station veterans who served at the site yielded that they were actually offended that people call the 5 1/2 story Mount Umunhum radar tower a "cube", "box", "monolith", "obelisk", etc. Logically, speaking, the structure is nowhere near the actual dimensions of a "cube" and is not hollow like a box.
Aerial photo of Mount Umunhum summit
My second contribution to Wikimedia Commons, uploaded today into Category: Mount Umunhum.
