The Big Dish Walk

In the foothills behind Stanford University sits a 150-foot diameter radio telescope which has come to be known simply as The Dish. Originally constructed in the 1960's to probe the scattering properties of the Earth's ionosphere, the Dish has been utilized in numerous research pursuits in its 30-plus years of existence.

The Dish is the focal point of a 3.5 mile hike aptly named The Dish Hike which Julie took me on earlier today.  The weather was spectacular as you can see in the pictures;  clear and warm (in the low 60's).  We refer to this as 'property tax' weather - because this is why we pay them ;)  A wonderful way to play hooky from work.

The hike takes you into the hills above Stanford.  It's a bunch of walking up and down but well worth the effort.  The views are spectacular.  You can see all the way to San Francisco.   Here's a picture of the Reservoir at the top which overlooks the Stanford campus.  That's the Hoover Tower in the background as well as the eastern part of San Francisco bay.

Julie and I added a couple side trails to extend our total distance to about 6.5 miles.

The Stanford foothills are largely undeveloped and home to lots of wildlife.  For instance, wild cows.

Also - moles!  How Team Henderson is that?

We look forward to sharing this hike with some of our friends!  We'll definitely be doing it on a more regular basis.