Touring * Beginner *

From U.S. 101, exit at Pacheco Pass Road/10th Street and head west to get onto 10th. Follow 10th across Monterey Highway. Soon after you enter the residential area, the street veers down toward the levee. At the base of the levee (where the trail awaits), a right turn transforms 10th into Uvas Park Drive. Follow this to the intersection with Miller Avenue, turn left, go down the dip, and take the first left into the lot at Christmas Hill Park. Park close to Miller.

Uvas Creek Levee is another tour that's truly spectacular in the spring, with a wealth of natural scenery and great views of the coastal hills. Of course, as the summer heat dries out the grasses of the surrounding slopes and fields, those bright yellows and lush greens are inevitably singed to duller golds and browns. But since the most comfortable summer skating is in early morning or evening when the sun is low, you're often apt to find a landscape bathed in lovely golden light. Join the trail near the middle by skating to the right out of the parking lot, on the shoulder of Miller, and scooting up from the dip. Gliding along on the wide, zebra-striped pavement where the raised levee parallels the tree-filled creek bed, you may be impressed by all the work that went into tar-patching the trail's many longitudinal cracks. But also be aware that on very warm days, that tar will soften and become grabby, causing sudden and alarming slow-downs. A playing field and school are up ahead on the left, and just after you see an overpass at the creek, the trail comes to an end. Back at Miller Avenue, cross to the western half of the trail. This is the really spectacular section--hence saved for last. The farther west you skate, the more expansive the creekside scenery to your left, with vast vistas of low, rolling hills leading up to a coastal mountain range. This panorama is hard to match, and you'll rightly want to pause with the squirrels and savor the view. The town of Gilroy would do well to extend this trail; in fact, when it ends after only a mile, you'll be tempted to skate on the street that beckons up ahead below the levee, wide and traffic-free. Don't, unless you enjoy obnoxiously rough pavement. Christmas Hill Park is a fine place for a picnic after the skate.