Pinole

Pinole is in the north of Contra Costa County in the San Francisco Bay Area in California on the southern shore of San Pablo Bay. Hercules is a suburban community next door. Neither of them have much to attract tourists, but they do have a selection of restaurants as well as walking and biking paths through the wetlands along the bay.

Get in
WestCAT Bus Route J (with two variations: JL and JR) runs about twice an hour from El Cerrito Del Norte BART station to Pinole and Hercules, seven days a week. The buses start earlier and end later on weekdays than weekends. Route 30Z serves Hercules from Martinez once an hour or so on weekdays.

Amtrak trains pass through Pinole regularly but don't stop here. There's talk of building a train station in Hercules, but as of 2024 construction hasn't started yet.

Get around
WestCAT provides bus service around Pinole and Hercules. For getting around on foot, sidewalks seem to be consistent in the main parts of both towns.

A segment of the San Francisco Bay Trail, a walking and biking trail in development around the San Francisco Bay, has been completed between Pinole and Hercules. It makes a pleasant way to walk between the two towns, thought wetlands and grassy hills alongside the train tracks.