Picchetti

Location

Picchetti Open Space Preserve and Winery is located in Cupertino at 13100 Montebello Road. To get there, follow Foothill Expressway into Cupertino and West until is becomes Stevens Canyon Road. With the reservoir visible to the left, Monte Bello Road begins to the right as Stevens Canyon Road veers left to hug the edge of the reservoir. The park is on the left, up Monte Bello Road in about one half mile. Park in the gravel parking lot, then walk to the South to enter the Winery. The trails begin near the stream and picnic area, on the South side of the Winery.

Attractions:

Peacocks can be heard from the parking lot! There are at least 3 resident peacocks wandering the winery grounds.
Bring a little cash, and you can taste wine after your hike! Drink responsibly, of course, or just taste and spit into one of the available vessels.
There is a lovely, shaded picnic area with tables near the hiking trailhead.
In the winery space, there are bathrooms and plenty of grassy space for sitting or playing.
The landscape ranges from grassy hills and meadows to shady woods.
There are great views of the hills and Stevens Creek Reservoir from the trails.
There are abundant wildflowers here in Spring - rangers come here for training on the different varieties!
A temporary pond occurs here in the Fall and Winter.
Wildlife include snakes, lizards, rabbits, bobcats, and deer.

Limitations:

Warning - peacocks can be aggressive, particularly when begging for food.
Trails deep in the park can become narrow and without guiderails along steep portions can be dangerous.
No dogs allowed.
No bicycles allowed.
Beware of poison oak and ticks in this area.

Season:

Year round, dawn to dusk.

Fees:

none, unless you would like to taste wine

Maps & More Information:

See http://picchettiwinery.stores.yahoo.net/ for Picchetti Winery Homepage, which provides details about picnic areas and tasting.
Midpeninsula Open Space Preserve Picchetti Ranch Homepage is at http://www.openspace.org/preserves/pr_picchetti.asp
See a map of the preserve at http://www.openspace.org/preserves/maps/pr_picchetti.pdf

Handicapped Access:

The winery is accessible, but most trails are too narrow and have steep portions without guiderails, so are not suitable for handicapped access.

Recommended routes:

Zinfandel Trail:

Though the terrain is suitable for a jogger, the trail is narrow in portions and sides can be very steep, so use absolute caution in short segments of the trail that have these conditions, if using a jogging stroller. Above all, lock the front wheel, use the tether, and push the stroller closest to the uphill side of the trail where it is steep and narrow. If you don't have a lot of experience using your jogger, use a baby carrier (front or backpack) instead and consider bringing along a walking stick or pole to help you keep balance.

The trail begins between the picnic area and bathrooms, South of the tasting building. Follow the wide dirt road across rolling hills, appreciating an abundance of shade and wildflowers. Two small trails are options for non-stroller hikers, which loop back to this wide trail and run uphill and around a temporary pond (in the wet season). See below for these options.

The wide path eventually narrows from fire road width to footpath / stroller width, passing along ridges that afford great views of the Stevens Creek Reservoir and local hills. The path ends in Stevens Creek Park near the junction of Mt. Eden Road and Stevens Canyon Road, after climbing gradually uphill and along some very steep hillsides (use caution). There are bathrooms, telephones, and parking here. Turn back and return the way you came. Total distance (without footpath loops to left of main trail) is 3.7 miles.

If you're hiking with a backpack or carrier, consider the following extensions / alternative routes:
- Orchard Loop Trail: 0.1 miles past the bathrooms on Zinfandel Trail, turn left onto Orchard Loop Trail. The trail leads gradually up and around a hill 0.3 miles before intersecting with Bear Meadow Trail. Turn right and almost immediately turn right again, to head down Orchard Loop Trail another 0.3 miles to Zinfandel Trail. This adds 0.5 miles to a hike along Zinfandel Trail.
- Bear Meadow Trail: ).1 miles down Zinfandel Trail past the temporary pond (you can see the depression for it when it is not there), turn left onto Bear Meadow Trail. The trail climbs gradually uphill, then reaches a T-Junction with other legs of Bear Meadow Trail in 0.3 miles. Turning left provides a very short 0.2 trail before ending at Montebello Road, but the trail to the right provides a much longer (and nicer) 0.7 length of trail that ends at Stevens Canyon Road, where there is parking. Return back the way you came, selecting one of the Orchard Loop Trail legs to turn left onto, for variety (but no more distance). Adds 2 miles.