Mount Diablo Summit

Standing at 3,849 feet above sea level, Mount Diablo’s summit boasts one of the best panoromic vistas in the Bay Area. Views from the mountaintop stretch from San Francisco’s Golden Gate to the peaks of the Sierra Nevada across the central valley.

The summit is home to Mount Diablo State Park’s Summit Visitor Center, a historic stone-constructed rotunda built by the California Conservation Corps in the 1930s. The rotunda tower supports a beacon light that was used for aviation navigation prior to World War II. Known as the “Eye of Diablo,” the beacon is now lit annually on December 7 to honor those who lost their lives in the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941.

Adjacent to the tower and beacon is an observation deck equipped with telescopes that allow visitors to view far into the Central Valley and beyond. It is said that Yosemite Valley’s Half-Dome can be seen on a clear day. The Summit Visitor Center also houses the Mount Diablo Museum, which hosts exhibits covering natural and cultural history and ecology information about the park.

Trails lead to and around the summit. The partially ADA-accessible Summit Trail and the Fire Interpretive Trail are two of the most popular choices.

Parking is available at the Summit Visitor Center and in nearby lots down the Summit Road if the summit lot is full. A nearby picnic area is a short driving distance down the Summit Road.