East Palo Alto sits on the flat edge of San Francisco Bay, right where the Dumbarton Bridge launches its long, low span towards Fremont. To the west lies the wealth of Palo Alto and Menlo Park, home of Silicon Valley's giants; to the east, the salt ponds and marshes of the bay. It is a dense, busy corridor, cut by Highway 101, and for riders it is mostly a place to pass through, refuel and plan the escape to the hills.
The bay shore here has its own interest. The Ravenswood and Palo Alto baylands are a restored wetland world of pickleweed, cordgrass and tidal sloughs, alive with egrets, avocets and the occasional harbour seal. The salt ponds visible from the Dumbarton Bridge flash pink, green and orange depending on the algae, a strange and beautiful sight from the saddle.
The good roads lie in two directions. To the west, roads like Page Mill and Kings Mountain climb into the Santa Cruz Mountains to Skyline Boulevard, with redwood forests and views over the Pacific fog. To the east, across the bridge, routes lead towards Mount Hamilton, where the Lick Observatory sits on top of a long, twisty ascent, and on to the remote Mines Road. Both directions are a world away from the traffic of 101, where congestion at rush hour can be brutal and lane splitting, legal in California, is common.
Fuel and food are everywhere along the highway, from chain stations to taco trucks. Mornings often bring fog off the bay, burning off by noon, while summer afternoons can be hot inland. Fill the tank here before heading into the hills, where stations are few and far between.