by Mary Pope-Handy | Jun 26, 2022 | Almaden Valley (SJ), Los Gatos, Los Gatos Mountains, Silicon Valley
Mount Umunhum sits high on the Santa Cruz Mountain range, and from there you can enjoy spectacular views. Looking inland, there are vistas of San Jose & most of Santa Clara County, on a clear day even as far north as San Francisco from Mt. Umunhum. Turning toward the Pacific Ocean, from Mount Umunhum’s heights you can see Santa Cruz and Monterey on a fogless day.
This gorgeous peak is part of the mid-Peninsula’s open space holdings, specifically the Sierra Azul Open Space.
Visiting Mount Umunhum
The park is open from a 7 a.m. to about a half hour after sunset (but the gate closes at sunset) per the Sierra Azul Open Space website. The parking lot is not big (just 60 spaces) and it can fill up early on weekends.
It may be warm on the valley floor, but the weather can be quite different, windy and cold, at the summit. Bring layers!
Also, the road up there weaves and winds. If anyone in your party gets motion sickness, you may want that person in the front seat or driving if possible.
The main entrance to the park is at the end of Mt. Umunhum Road, approximately 5.3 miles from the intersection with Hicks Road. There are other places to access the park. You can find all of them on the park’s website under Know Before You Go.
My family and I visited Mount Umunhum on a cold and windy November day in 2017. The views were breath-taking.
For those not able to visit in person, the video below provides information on the work that’s gone into making it available to all of us.
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by Mary Pope-Handy | Oct 12, 2013 | Almaden Valley (SJ), photos
Yesterday I was showing homes in Almaden (San Jose 95120) to one of my buyers for that area. A house in the Shadowbrook neighborhood had a really spectacular view of the hills from the upstairs bedrooms – could not resist snapping the picture to share.
If you are not familiar with this part of Silicon Valley, that’s Mt. Umunhum with the squarish building on top.
A few months back, I took an image of these same hills from the campus of Valley Christian High School. You can see it in this post on this same blogsite:
View from Valley Christian High School: Santa Teresa Foothills & Coastal Range On that one you can spot Mt. Umunhum as the area with the flat top along the crest of the hills.
Want to learn more about this upscale, scenic part of San Jose (in Santa Clara County)? Read an intro post: What Are the Advantages of Buying a Home in Almaden Valley?
More posts on Almaden Valley, the Almaden real estate market etc. here.
by Mary Pope-Handy | Aug 4, 2011 | Almaden Valley (SJ), photos
Lately I’ve been spending a lot of time in San Jose’s Almaden Valley neighborhood. On one side of Almaden the Santa Teresa Foothills rest and on the other, the coastal range or Santa Cruz Mountains. This view was taken in a more southern part of the area with a great view of Mt. Umunhum. So pretty!
Almaden Valley in San Jose (95120) – view of Mt. Umunhum and Santa Cruz Mountains
The mercury mines (not one, but a network of them) aren’t far from here in the hills around New Almaden, the Calero Reservoir and Guadalupe Creek (which is about 4.5 miles west of the New Almaden Mine). All very scenic!
by Mary Pope-Handy | Mar 4, 2011 | About the Valley of Hearts Delight, Blossom Valley (SJ), Foothill Areas, Santa Teresa (SJ)
On Tuesday of this week I was showing some nice folks around the San Jose area. As part of our tour, we stopped in at Valley Christian High School (south San Jose – Santa Teresa area). The sky was clear and the views spectacular! (Sadly, the camera washed out the beautiful blue sky and made it appear white.)
From here we were looking at the Santa Teresa Foothills ((lowest, closest hills). In front of them are the Santa Teresa & Blossom Valley areas of San Jose. Behind them is Almaden Valley.
Along the coastal range in back, the peak on the far right (with a flat area) is Mt. Umunhum. To the far left, the higher peaks are where you’ll find Loma Prieta.
Mount Umunhum sits high on the Santa Cruz Mountain range, and from there you can enjoy spectacular views. Looking inland, there are vistas of San Jose & most of Santa Clara County, on a clear day even as far north as San Francisco from Mt. Umunhum. Turning toward the Pacific Ocean, from Mount Umunhum’s heights you can see Santa Cruz and Monterey on a fogless day.
