Yelpers got a little carried away with their gushing reviews of this spot. Of all the East Bay runs I’ve done since we moved here this summer, this one was certainly the most disappointing so far. ”Inspiration Point” in a Berkeley section of Tilden Park was less than inspirational. To begin with, it took us about 40 minutes to drive through the winding roads to reach this run despite the fact that we live literally 5 minutes away from Berkeley. I’m not against driving a bit to get to a good trail run but instead we found a rather dull, paved bike path on a grassy hill.
Inspiration Point, Tilden Park, Berkeley
It was a hot (well, hot for the Bay Area) day and it didn’t help that we were running at noon with zero shade. There were a few little side trails but they didn’t really seem to lead anywhere and were mostly just dusty paths through the grasses. There was a pretty good view about 2 miles out, but I’ve enjoyed MUCH better views after running a mile out my door. I think perhaps it would be an inspirational spot if it was transplanted into a city such as Danville but for being in the heart of the East Bay, you can do so much better than this.
I do recommend it if you are running by yourself and concerned about safety, as there are tons of runners, walkers and bikers out on the weekend. I might go back and try it on a rainy, winter day. The lack of shade won’t matter and the paved path without car traffic should work well in the rain.
Overall rating: OVERRATED
It still sounds a hell of a lot better than any running trails in San Jose…
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