Round Valley Regional Preserve is a

regional park A regional park is an area of land preserved on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, recreational use or other reason, and under the administration of a form of local government. Definition A regional park can be a special park distr ...

just outside Antioch, CA and Brentwood, CA that is part of the East Bay Regional Parks (EBRPD) system. It is on Marsh Creek Road, approximately west of the intersection with

Vasco Road Vasco Road is a roadway over the Diablo Range that connects Livermore and Brentwood, California. Although it is not part of the California State Highway system, it is the principal north–south commuter route serving eastern Alameda and Co ...

. The park was begun in 1988, when Jim Murphy sold of land to EBRPD. The land originally belonged to Mr. Davis' grandfather Thomas Murphy, an Irish immigrant, who had purchased the land in 1878 for a farming and ranching operation. The preserve has since expanded to encompass .East Bay Regional Park District.
/ref> The Round Valley parking area is one of the two staging areas and points of departure for tour buses that carry passengers into Vasco Caves Regional Preserve. Morgan Territory Regional Preserve adjoins Round Valley Regional Preserve on the Southwest. The park is near the edge of the

Diablo Range The Diablo Range is a mountain range in the California Coast Ranges subdivision of the Pacific Coast Ranges in northern California, United States. It stretches from the eastern San Francisco Bay Area at its northern end to the Salinas Valley a ...

, and its wooded hills are a sharp contrast with the almost treeless flat land of the Central Valley, which begins a few miles farther east.Baselt, David."Round Valley Regional Preserve." Redwood Hikes. 2015.
Accessed March 9, 2015

Wildlife

The preserve is habitat for a variety of species. Mammals include the

California ground squirrel The California ground squirrel (''Otospermophilus beecheyi''), also known as the Beechey ground squirrel, is a common and easily observed ground squirrel of the western United States and the Baja California Peninsula; it is common in Oregon and ...

, San Joaquin pocket mouse, Audubon's or desert cottontails, and the endangered

San Joaquin kit fox The San Joaquin kit fox (''Vulpes macrotis mutica'') is an endangered subspecies of kit fox that was formerly very common in the San Joaquin Valley and much of Central California. As an opportunistic hunter, the San Joaquin kit fox primarily p ...

. Round Valley is one of the northern extremes of the kit fox range in California. Birds include

golden eagles The golden eagle (''Aquila chrysaetos'') is a bird of prey living in the Northern Hemisphere. It is the most widely distributed species of eagle. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. They are one of the best-known birds of p ...

and the

burrowing owl The burrowing owl (''Athene cunicularia''), also called the shoco, is a small, long-legged, primarily terrestrial—though not flightless—species of owl native to the open landscapes of North and South America. They are typically found in gra ...

, both of which are a state "Species of Special Concern." Due to the sensitivity of the wildlife habit at Round Valley, dogs are not permitted in the preserve. Signs are posted. Round Valley Regional Park

Activities

The preserve is open to hiking, horseback riding and bicycling (with some limitations). There is one group camping site. The Round Valley parking area is one of the two staging areas and points of departure for tour buses that carry passengers into Vasco Caves Regional Preserve for pre-reserved tours. The other staging area is at Brushy Peak Regional Preserve."Vasco Caves Regional Preserve." East Bay Regional Parks District.
Accessed March 10, 2017.

Trails

There are two important trails in the park. Hardy Canyon Trail is about long, beginning just after the hiker crosses the Marsh Creek bridge near the parking lot, which is just off Marsh Creek Road. This is the more scenic of the two main trails. It starts in a small oak grove and rises to an open, grassy area on the south side of the preserve that provides very good views of Round Valley, and is nearly all single-track. The trail descends into Round Valley and terminates at Miwok Trail, the second major trail in the preserve. Turning right, hikers can return to the parking lot via Miwok Trail, about .

Notes

References

External links

{{East Bay Regional Parks East Bay Regional Park District Parks in Contra Costa County, California Antioch, California Brentwood, California Protected areas established in 1988