I first scoped out the Alviso marshes when I signed up for the free boat tour, the "Salt Marsh Safari". Going north on Great America Parkway, you can't get more Silicon Valley with tech buildings on both sides, the Convention Center, the Levi's Stadium, ending up the Polycom hill. After going under the 237 overpass where I got a FasTrak violation, there lies Alviso, a ghost town of industries past. It was once a thriving port city in its own right before freight trains replaced ships as transport between Santa Clara Valley and SF. Every time I take my regular jaunt on Mallard trail, cargo trains or the Amtrak run through the east side.

Lying around are decrepit boats near the docks, the dilapidated Bayside Cannery building. The last of the trifecta of damaging industries is the extraction of pure solar salt from the sunlit ponds. Now, the sloughs are one of the largest solar evaporation complexes in the world, courtesy of the bay area's unique geography. On one side, you can see the shoreline salt deposits quivering like meringue. On the marsh side, you can see a spectrum of colors in the flats, depending on the salinity levels to reflect the different algae and bacteria.

If you walk to the other side of the water, you get a good view of the Levi Stadium and the Aloft hotel. Sometimes it feels like the sky touches the water like an infinity pool.

With the salt restoration project, original inhabitants like leopard sharks are returning to their old stomping grounds and endangered species are securing their habitats. Even the billions of shorebirds migrating along the Pacific Flyway are using the wetlands as a temporary respite.

There is a dock where you can launch boats. You can also rent kayaks nearby to paddle up the Guadalupe River, along one of the trails.

There are clean restrooms. There is a free parking lot where you can usually find a spot but there is also plenty of street parking right before the park entrance if you can't.

As other reviewers have mentioned, there is a rude worker that ushers people out at closing time but it doesn't bother me; he's just a guy with a megaphone.