Today I visited Mount Diablo State Park, in Danville California.

Fortunately, sunset wasn’t until about 8:30 this evening, so I was able to go after work and still enjoy the winding drive up to the 3849′ summit. Along the drive I was treated to sweeping views of the San Francisco Bay area as well as a variety of small wildlife. There were deer bounding about in the tall, dry brown grasses and some interesting rabbits. One of the rabbits had sandy brown fur all over, but for his dark black tail and the tips of his long, upright ears. As I was engaged in the task of driving at the time, I was unable to get any photos of the wildlife.

At the summit there is a squat tower with a beacon atop it. Attached you can see a photograph of it, as well as some cyclists catching their breath after the several miles long climb to the summit.

The sunset was typical of those often seen in California; colorful and bright. I have not as yet mastered sunset photography with my new camera, so I shall have to spend some time adjusting my technique based on the photos I made this evening.

For any visitor to the Walnut Creek area, I would strongly recommend the drive up to [url=http://www.parks.ca.gov/default.asp?page_id=517]Mount Diablo Summit[/url].