Distance: Three miles
Elevation gain: 140 feet
Difficulty: Beginner
Hiking time: 45 minutes to 1.5 hours
Trail surface: Paved and unpaved trails
Best season: Spring/fall
Hours: 8 AM to sunset
Managing agency: East Bay Regional Park District and City of Antioch
Trailhead location: Parking lot at Worth Shaw (Antioch) Community Park, 801 James Donlon Blvd., Antioch, CA 94509
Contra Loma Regional Park and the reservoir it takes its name from in Antioch are home to fantastic recreation opportunities year-round.
The park is a wonderful place for boating, kayaking, sailing, fishing, hiking, picnicking, biking, or just getting outside and close to nature.
Wildflowers at Contra Loma Regional Park. Photo by Lee Pillow
The route we’ve chosen begins at Worth Shaw Community Park, but almost any entrance will work for this short loop.
For a more detailed map of entrances and accessibility, please head to the East Bay Regional Park District website.
From the Worth Shaw Community Park parking lot, you’ll work your way uphill along the trail near the dam and begin the scenic walk along the shoreline and back down the dam.
This route is just perfect as we get into fall for an early morning walk or after-work stroll.
Contra Loma has a great deal of diversity of wildlife and plants that call it home, and the shoreline is one of the best places to see it all, especially as the sun begins to set.
American white pelican at Contra Loma Regional Park. Photo: Becky Matsubara / CC BY
You might see all sorts of waterfowl, raptors of all kinds, other birds, bats, rabbits, coyotes, foxes, squirrels, the occasional deer, skunks, lizards, snakes, frogs, and more.
Most recently we’ve observed a North American river otter basking in the sun along the shoreline.
North American river otters are a special sight at inland reservoirs but do well in these areas thanks to plenty of food and few predators. Photo by Alexander Broom
In fact, there are more than 300 species cataloged around the reservoir on iNaturalist.
Some of those species, like the angle-stem buckwheat pictured below, are rare finds in this area but may be found right out in the open.
Angle-stem wild buckwheat (Eriogonum angulosum) has a distribution that mostly lies much further south, but may sometimes be found at the northernmost reaches of the Diablo Range. Photo by Alexander Broom
Contra Loma Regional Park truly is one of Antioch’s hidden gems that’s worth making a trip to visit and explore, and this hike is a great way to dip one’s toes in.
We hope you enjoy this hike, please check out our new sixth edition of the regional trail map to find more great places to hike close to home.
