Led by a Cualli Adventures Guide, this experience combines hiking, storytelling, and educational visuals to bring the area’s rich history to life. Along the route you’ll explore the ancestral homeland of the Bay Miwok people, learn about cultural burning and Indigenous stewardship, discover the rise and fall of California’s largest coal mining district, visit historic mining features, and reflect on the stories preserved within Rose Hill Cemetery.

Throughout the hike, your guide will use visual poster boards featuring historical photographs, maps, diagrams, artwork, and timelines to help illustrate each chapter of the journey.

The experience concludes with a group meal before participants depart on their own.

Adventure Details

Meeting Location: Black Diamond Mines Regional Preserve, Antioch, CA

Destination Highlights:

• Bay Miwok Cultural History
• Historic Mining Areas
• Coal Mining Sites
• Rose Hill Cemetery
• Scenic East Bay Hills

Transportation: Not included. Participants meet at the trailhead.

Difficulty: Moderate

Adventure Length: Approximately 4-5 Hours

Hiking Distance: Approximately 4-6 Miles

Elevation Gain: Moderate Hills

Age Requirement: 18 Years or Older

Adventure Schedule

2:00 PM – 2:15 PM Check-In and Welcome at Black Diamond Mines Parking Area

2:15 PM – 3:00 PM Chapter 1: Bay Miwok History and Cultural Burning Presentation in Woodland Area

3:00 PM – 4:00 PM Hike to Historic Mining Sites and Coal Mining Interpretation

4:00 PM – 4:30 PM Chapter 3 & 4: Coal Mining and Sand Mining History

4:30 PM – 5:15 PM Rose Hill Cemetery Exploration and Historical Presentation

5:15 PM – 6:00 PM Scenic Return Hike

6:00 PM – 7:00 PM Group Meal and Closing Discussion

7:00 PM Adventure Concludes

What’s Included

• Guided historical hiking experience
• Cualli Adventures Adventure Guide
• Educational presentations throughout the hike
• Historical visual aids and poster displays
• Stories and interpretation of Native, Mining, and Cemetery history
• Group meal at the conclusion of the adventure
• Curated small-group experience

Experience Highlights

Bay Miwok Homeland

Learn about the Chupcan, Volvon, and Ompin peoples who lived throughout the East Bay long before European arrival. Discover Indigenous food systems, cultural burning practices, trade networks, spiritual beliefs, and the deep connection between people and landscape.

Coal Mining Boomtowns

Walk through the remains of California’s largest coal mining district and learn how immigrant miners helped fuel California’s growth during the nineteenth century. Hear stories of miners, families, children, and entire communities that once thrived in these hills.

Sand Mining Era

Explore how the region transformed from coal extraction to industrial silica sand production and how Black Diamond resources contributed to East Bay glass manufacturing and steel production.

Rose Hill Cemetery

Visit one of the preserve’s most significant historical sites and learn about the miners, families, immigrants, and children buried there. Discover the symbolism hidden within historic grave markers and the ongoing efforts to preserve this community landmark.

Living History Visual Exhibit

Unlike a traditional hike, this adventure includes portable educational displays that help bring each period of history to life through maps, timelines, photographs, illustrations, and historical diagrams.

Food Information

The Black Diamond Mines Adventure concludes with a shared group meal.

The meal is included with your registration.

Participants with dietary restrictions should notify Cualli Adventures prior to the event.

What to Bring

• Comfortable hiking shoes
• Water bottle
• Sunscreen
• Hat and sunglasses
• Light jacket
• Small backpack
• Camera
• Personal medications if needed

Meeting Information

Participants will meet directly at the designated Black Diamond Mines Regional Preserve parking area.

Please arrive during the check-in period. The Adventure Guide will verify attendance, conduct a safety briefing, and provide an overview of the day’s journey before the hike begins.

Specific meeting instructions will be provided after registration.

About This Adventure

This is not just a hike. It is a guided journey through thousands of years of history.

Together we’ll explore Indigenous stewardship, Spanish colonization, coal mining boomtowns, industrial change, cemetery preservation, and the transformation of Black Diamond Mines into the beautiful regional preserve we enjoy today.

We’ll walk the land, hear the stories, examine historical visuals, and reflect on the people whose lives shaped this landscape.

We look forward to exploring Black Diamond Mines with you! ⛰️🌿⛏️⚰️🔥

Must be 18 years or older.