By Martin Kunz

Sunol is beautiful, wild, and steep. I may be tainted by old age, but it is very well possible that this is the steepest terrain I ever entered with an O-map in my hands​—​and I grew up doing Orienteering in the Swiss alps. So, be prepared: If it looks steep on the map: it is actually even steeper. The fact that the map is drawn with non-standard 7.5 m contour intervals gives testament to how unusually steep this wilderness is.

The steepness of the terrain combined with the often dry-grass vegetation makes it often slippery and tricky to negotiate. I strongly recommend O-shoes with cleats or dob spikes for the advanced courses (Brown, Green, Red, Blue). Alternatively, bring rappel gear and a harness (don't do that​—​I'm just kidding).

Having said all this: I tried hard to set courses around the steepest parts.

The second constraint, besides the treacherous cliffs, is given by the strict requirement of the park management to not cross any fences. Not crossing means no going over, under, or through fences. Gates are okay; broken fences are okay, too. Again I tried hard to set the courses such that good route choices don't require crossing fences. So, if you find yourself tempted to cross a non-broken fence, you are either lost or chose a really slow route (or both). But please do not cross any fences, or you will unleash the wrath of the rangers upon BAOC (i.e., jeopardize our future use of the park).

Besides the steepness, the area is quite open and runable. There are cows (mostly friendly) and some poison oak. The latter has lost most of the leaves, so it is sometimes hard to spot. Many ravines are lined by poison oak hedges at the very bottom. These are not always mapped.

The quality of the map varies. I tried to update it around the courses. But there are many unmapped cow trails, which I didn't add, since they tend to come and go. The contours are generally accurate, and since there are so many of them, you can't get completely lost.

Course Details ↑

Here are the details for the courses (numbers of controls on Orange, Brown, and Green corrected after the event):

Course    Distance    Climb   Controls
White      1.9 km      30 m       9  
Yellow     2.6 km      90 m      13
Orange     3.5 km     200 m      11 12
Brown      3.5 km     170 m      14 11
Green      4.3 km     230 m      12 14
Red        6.1 km     420 m      15
Blue       7.6 km     500 m      18

Beginners should be aware that the distances shown are the cumulative straight-line distances between controls. Your actual distance will be somewhat longer. For a rough estimate of how far you will actually go, mentally change "km" to "mi" (e.g., for a "1.9 km" course, you might travel up to "1.9 mi"). The climb numbers represent the amount of ascending that would be done on the "optimum route" (in the Course Setter's opinion), without regard for any descending.

The Start is 2.5 km from the assembly/parking area, with about 100 m of climb. Plan on 30 minutes or more to get there. The Finish is just across the bridge that is near the Visitor Center.