*But were afraid to ask:
TheLabyrinth is located precisely at:
Okay...65 feet (20 meters) below Post #4, in the quarry pit, described in theinterpretive trail guide, in Sibley Volcanic Regional Preserve, in theEast Bay Regional Park District, located in the hills aboveOakland,California.Not quite a ¾ mile, gentle hill-and-dell walk from an easily accessibletrailhead, one will encounter no more than about a 200 foot (61 meters)change in vertical in getting there. The Labyrinth is about 1,575 feet(480 meters) above sea level.
FromPost #4, take the short, narrow dirt road that leads south (to yourright, when facing the Labyrinth from above), then loops back north anddown into the quarry pit, ending at the Labyrinth. Avoid scramblingdown any trails directly to the Labyrinth as the slopes at the quarry(actually a gravel quarry) are steep, unstable and quite dangerous.It’s not uncommon for visitors to experience at least one minorlandslide at some time during their short visit. It’s just a reminderof nature reclaiming itself, taking on a more natural, stableconfiguration to the landscape.
TheLabyrinth was built, during the spring equinox in 1990, by HelenaMazzariello (b. c.1960-), in an area that she routinely took her goats tograze. She originally layed out the Labyrinth as aclassical (or 7-circuit), left-handed, earthen labyrinth. But her labyrinth quickly took on a life of its own ashikers, now attracted to the site, began to build it up as a rocklabyrinth before Helena could finish it.
Labyrinths aredescribed by how many concentric circuits or paths they contain, andthe first turn in this labyrinth is to the left. Unlike a maze(and even some labyrinths), aclassicallabyrinth has a single, well-defined path that leads to the center withno dead ends, no loops and no forks. All classical labyrinths share thebasic features of an entrance, a single circuitous path and a center(aka cairn, altar, eye, fire pit, or shrine).
Someof the earliest forms of the labyrinth are found inCrete,dating back to 1500 BC. The legend of Theseus and the Minotaurgenerally comes to mind at the mention of the word ‘labyrinth,’ but fewtoday know and recognize the labyrinth symbol. So important was thelabyrinth in ancientCrete that it was mintedon coins and inscribed on pottery of the time.
Anamazing aspect of the classical labyrinth is that historical variationsof its 7-circuit structure can be found throughout Europe, as well asthe orient, and even pre-columbian North and South America.
Anadditional rogue path was later added to the Mazzariello Labyrinth bysomeone, obviously on a lark, that extended the original entrance fromthe south, around to the now familiar northwest entrance. The Friendsof the Labyrinth feel this addition adds a funky, yet specialCaliforniatwist to the experience. The Mazzariello Labyrinth was thefirst of five labyrinths built throughout the Sibley VolcanicRegional Preserve and is, by far, the largest and most visited.
Urbanlegends persist, of other labyrinths having been built in thearea of present day Sibley Volcanic Regional Preserve, prior to1990 -and even during the 1930's and1940's. Unfortunately, thorough studies of high resolutionblack and white aerial photo archives of the era only prove a void ofsuch activities.
