Some South Bay hikes are a long drive into the mountains. Fremont Older Open Space Preserve starts at the edge of the suburbs. The 739-acre Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District preserve runs from the Saratoga and Cupertino foothills toward Mt. Eden Road and Stevens Creek County Park, with open hayfields, oak-covered trails and long views across the Santa Clara Valley.

Hunter's Point and Maisie's Peak

The best-known spot is Hunter's Point, a 900-foot bald hilltop with sweeping views of the valley. Midpen suggests a 2.5-mile loop: climb the Cora Older Trail to the Seven Springs and Woodhills Loop trails, reach the hilltop, and come back on the Hayfield Trail.

For the highest point in the preserve, Maisie's Peak, start at the Prospect Road lot and take the Cora Older Trail to the Seven Springs Loop, then the Hayfield and Coyote Ridge trails. The peak is named for Maisie Garrod, who bought land here with her brother R.V. Garrod in 1910 for pasture, orchards and hay. Leftover hayfields and fruit trees still show that farming past. Wikipedia counts 14.7 miles of trail in the preserve, nearly all open to horses and bikes, and it links to Stevens Creek County Park and Montebello Open Space Preserve.

Who Fremont Older was

Fremont Older was a San Francisco newspaperman for nearly 50 years. As managing editor of the San Francisco Bulletin, he went after the Abe Ruef political machine, and that fight led to the graft trials that followed the 1906 earthquake. He later spent about 20 years working to free Thomas Mooney and Warren Billings, who had been wrongly convicted in the 1916 Preparedness Day bombing.

Older and his wife Cora bought the land in 1912, and in 1914 they built a house called Woodhills, which Cora largely directed herself. The house mixes shingle-style and early modern features. When Midpen bought the property in 1975, the house was slated for demolition. Newspaper publishers Mort and Elaine Levine leased it and paid for the restoration, which was finished in 1979. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Levine family still lives there, and the house and garden are not open to the public. Midpen says no tours are planned for now.

Parking and rules

The main lot, with 21 spaces, is on Prospect Road in Saratoga. From Highway 85, take De Anza Boulevard toward the hills, turn right on Prospect Road and follow it past the Saratoga Country Club. There is also parking in Stevens Creek County Park and two roadside spaces on Regnart Road. Dogs are allowed on designated trails on a leash of 6 feet or less. Bikes must stay on designated trails, helmets are required and the trail speed limit is 15 mph. Most Midpen trails don't allow e-bikes, and drones, fires and smoking are prohibited. There is no drinking water at most Midpen preserves, so bring your own.