Learning at Lake Chabot

Lake Chabot is a hidden gem that Castro Valley locals have relished for years. In this nine-mile hike around the lake, outdoor exercises and a cafe serve a hot breakfast to get your hike started. They also serve freshly baked cookies!

Two youngsters, fresh out of middle school, decided to go on a hike together just before the start of school. While on that hike, the adult who was supposed to supervise them left them behind because of their meager speed.

I got into my friend’s car, excited to walk around the whole lake. It went downhill quickly. Her two cousins came along, yet we lost pace with them at the very beginning. It wasn’t too late until we lost track of what trail we were walking on, too. My friend had to call her mommy for help. Hike attempt one was a fail. 

We had to run it back right, so we came back to the lake a year later, hoping we wouldn’t stray off the path again. This time, we had a time bomb as the sun would go down quickly. We had to walk and get out before 5 p.m.

While on this hike, I encountered various dilemmas with my friend. It’s what nature does to me, at least. We pondered the morality of fishing and concluded that if you fish, you should kill it and not waste it. Releasing it back into the ocean often leads to a painful death or irreparable damage, as they are sent back with a punctured mouth. We came to this topic as we saw the fisherman on the edge fishing.

We then discussed my dad’s distaste for killing deer; Lake Chabot is home to some. It was hard to defend this because we kill other animals for food. My friend reached the same conclusion as before. However, I believe there are different moral levels to killing each animal. Deer tend to live longer than small fish, but small fish experience more pain when hooked. We can’t just start using guns to shoot fish less painfully.

Lake Chabot was beautiful that day, and all the other days I’ve been there throughout my life. From the golden-touched water to the viney branches, it was lovely. We must have grown up since the previous time because we didn’t get lost. 

There was no better place to hang out and talk about nature than the finest trails of our little town.