Upper Guadalupe River Trail

The Upper Guadalupe River Trail (UGRT) is a historically significant and interesting point of reference; the southerly trailhead (that starts at the north end of Almaden Lake) is not only the beginning of the trail but the beginning of the (Mighty!) Guadalupe River. The «beginning» of this trail will actually one day be the end of the Guadalupe River Trail (GRT) (that, currently, extends from W Virginia St to Gold St in Alviso) once it is linked up to the UGRT. The UGRT is currently only ±2.7-miles if you complete the full loop. It’s a pretty simple trail that starts at Almaden Lake; continues north underneath Blossom Hill Rd and Highway 85; circles the Guadalupe Percolation Ponds at Chynoweth Ave and you’re on your way back. There’s not much to it, but it has some nice features. Here are some highlights:
1) The UGRT features, mostly, paved and super-​wide AC trails. There is approximately 0.3-miles of compacted dirt that begins as you circle the north end of the perc pond. It’s not the best dirt, but I’ve had no problem pushing my BOB through it. It might be a different story after it rains, though.
2)Multiple access points: Almaden Lake, Almaden Light Rail Station, Blossom Hill Rd, Winfield Blvd and Chynoweth Ave are all the different places you can access the UGRT.
3) Decent scenery along the trail. The west side features the Guadalupe River while the east side features storage units, Light Rail tracks, apartments, and shopping centers. There are some unique views of the perc ponds where you can watch people fish and it’s kinda interesting to run under a freeway.
4) The UGRT provides access to multiple points of interest including the Almaden Light Rail Station, Almaden Lake, and two adjoining trails (Lake Almaden and Los Alamitos Creek). You can use the latter to really make a good run/​hike of it.
5) It’s a fairly flat, not very popular and pretty safe trail; there’s also a noticeable lack of Local Outdoor Enthusiasts which is more than I can say for the GRT.
I think that about sums it up for the UGRT. It’s not my favorite trail to use but it’s a pretty decent change of pace and a nice alternative to my normal routine.