When I came to Morgan Hill last April, the first thing I planned
to do was hike Morgan Hill. Then someone told me there was no such
thing. And thus began my crash course in the City of Morgan Hill.
No matter how different they are, though, Morgan Hill residents
have one thing in common: they love this town, so much so that more
than 600 of them braved the
”
moderate to difficult
”
hike to the top to adore the 102-year-old town in its full
glory.
When I came to Morgan Hill last April, the first thing I planned to do was hike Morgan Hill.
Then someone told me there was no such thing.
And thus began my crash course in the City of Morgan Hill.
Throughout the past year, as I passed the time waiting for the next El Toro hike to roll around, I learned a lot about the residents of this 39,000-population city.
No matter how different the residents are, though, they have one thing in common: they love this town, so much so that more than 600 of them braved the “moderate to difficult” 1.3 mile hike to the top Saturday to adore the 102-year-old town in its full glory.
From the top of El Toro’s 1,400-foot peak, the view was breathtaking.
Or maybe it was the altitude: I had just spent almost two hours hiking from the Morgan Hill Library to the top of El Toro.
The first few steps were the hardest. I assumed there would be a shuttle from the library to the trail’s entrance; there wasn’t. Walking uphill through the neighborhood of lovely homes that abut the mountain, I was already feeling winded. And, having chosen to sleep in and join the 10 a.m. hikers, I was already regretting this decision: temperatures reached the 70s on this beautiful, clear-skied Spring day.
But once my adrenaline got moving, I marveled at the gorgeous landscape before me, and the ever-more-intimidating peak still ahead. Just as it was with my reporting of this town and its issues over the past year: the more I covered, the more there seemed to be yet to come. Affordable housing gave way to the election which gave way to downtown issues which gave way to school budget cuts. During the hike, the paved road meandering to the mountain front gave way to a dirt path which veered south, away from the peak that was my goal, which gave way to a 100-foot stretch at about a 45-degree angle. This last leap involved a rope secured in place by Boy Scout Troop 799 to assist brave souls in climbing the maddeningly crumbling stairs. As I pressed onward in the line of folks scrambling up the south trail, thanking my stars that I’d bought those $3 gardening gloves at the Cochrane Common’s Target, more than a few times I inhaled plumes of dust from a trail of children or dogs skidding through the already disheveled path leading back down the mountain.
True to form, every resident on top of the peak was in a friendly and helpful mood. Every now and then along the way I chatted with some residents who shared stories of hikes past and pointed out where Morgan Hill began and ended. Children eagerly found their homes, smattered throughout the expanse of housing developments and patchwork farms surrounding the city.
Also visible from the mountaintop are the city’s community centers, from the Centennial Recreation Center to the Outdoor Sports Complex.
In total, more than 600 hikers enjoyed the scenery that day. Miraculously, we all made it back down with no injuries. Back at Morgan Hill Library, we enjoyed refreshments and a sense of accomplishment.
A year after arriving, after gaining a healthy overview of this town through my reporting, I finally earned the physical overview: climbing to the highest peak dominating its landscape, El Toro, and looking out over a valley full of good people who are passionate about this charming small town that they call home.
