So with my Kilimanjaro trek starting in three weeks, I decided to do a big hike at Mt Diablo.

I also had to test two new cameras so I could decide which to keep and take to Africa.

The Sony RX100 VII that I took to the Sierra Nevada Mountains the previous week was a great camera. But it may have been too much camera for me and my skills. A lot of blurry pictures and the sunrise and sunset pictures using the ‘Sunset’ scene didn’t look anywhere near as good as my Sony HX90V’s ‘Sunset’ scene.

I managed to mimic the pictures I was able to take with my old camera using Auto HDR settings. But those didn’t work for selfies with flash, which I took often to capture me and the sunrise/sunset.

So after getting back, I ordered a Sony HX99, which is basically an upgraded version of the HX90V. Hopefully, it would be better and more in line with how I use the camera.

So to take sunrise pictures at Mt Diablo, you either needed to camp inside the park overnight or get a real early start. I chose the later. It must have been 5:30am when I started up from Morgan Territory Road towards Mt Olympia. It was the best trail that I could get a clear view of the eastern sky and quickly get high enough to really get spectacular sunrise pictures.

Starting in total darkness meant I could test out my headlamp and nighttime navigation skills, both will be needed for Kilimanjaro.

And I took the opportunity to take some 30 second shutter pictures of the stars. Again, this would help me decide what camera to keep.

Once I reached a decent altitude with a good view of the eastern sky, I waited a few minutes for the sunrise. I don’t always get the chance to see the sunrise and sunset in the Bay Area, but maybe I should take the time more often. It was quite a nice sight from the east ridge of Mt Olympia.

I did have to juggle three cameras (I had brought my old HX90V with me to have reference pictures to compare the new cameras against), but it was a nice start to a long day.

After enjoying the sunrise, I made my way up to the summit of Mt Olympia. A great 380 degree view of the area.

North Peak was a quick hike over, but a horribly steep climb for the last couple hundred feet. I was rewarded with another great view, although marred a little by all the antennas that rise from the North Peak.

I could have called it a day, but the main summit was ‘only’ 2 miles away (although it was also a 900 foot climb once I descended almost 600 feet from North Peak).

Success! Diablo 3 Peaks! I had done this trifecta before, but it was always a rewarding hike. And a pretty good training and warmup for Kilimanjaro.

Then as I retraced my steps down to the junction with the North Peak trail, I had to decide to either go up and over to Mt Olympia and descend back to my Jeep on the same trail I came up or push my luck and go over to Eagle Peak and Twin Peaks. I choose the later.

It would be the 5 peaks of Mt Diablo then. Saw a LOT of turkey vultures on the way up to the top of Eagle Peak. I don’t think I’ve ever seen that many in one place… ever.

At the top of Eagle Peak, I saw that the sign post had returned. The last time I was up there, it was MIA. More pictures followed.

On the way over to Twin Peaks, I even saw a tarantula along the trail. After taking a picture (naturally) and warning a group behind me, I reached Twin peaks.

Even with the early start, I made pretty good time doing the 5 peaks this time. But I decided to exit via Michell Canyon and then take a Uber back to my Jeep. Felt like I was cheating a little, but my feet were grateful.

After comparing the photos I still loved the RX100, but the HX99 pictures were still pretty good, a little better than my old HX90V, and was a lot easier to use to get some great shots. It helped that it was $750 cheaper.

So see the pictures below, but be aware that there are a lot of them since I was taking a lot of duplicates to compare the three cameras.