Knightsen, Knightsen, CA

Knightsen is a rural community in eastern Contra Costa County, east of Oakley and northeast of Brentwood, where the roads run straight between orchards, pastures and horse property. The center is a few buildings along Knightsen Avenue, and past it the land opens to farms and ranch homes. Homes sit on larger parcels than the suburbs nearby. Expect ranch-style houses, barns, arenas and fenced paddocks with generous room between neighbors. Horses are a real part of life here, and the local 4-H club keeps the farm-kid tradition going. For outdoors, much of what you do happens on your own land or the roads around it. Sunset Park and Dakota Dog Park sit on the Brentwood edge, and the Marsh Creek Regional Trail is a short way off for walks and rides. Farm stands come and go with the seasons, including Smith Family Farm and The Stand at Knightsen. Eating out is small scale. Knightsen Saloon at 3055 Knightsen Avenue has a honky tonk atmosphere, and the Red Coach Deli at 3079 makes sandwiches. McCauley Estate Vineyards pours wine and flights on Sunset Road. Coffee means heading to Brentwood, though there is a Starbucks just outside the community. In nearby Brentwood, the East Contra Costa Historical Society keeps local-history displays in the Byer-Nail House, which dates to 1878 and began as a boarding house. Errands mean a drive. Brentwood and Oakley have the supermarkets and medical offices, and the roads out lead to Antioch and Tracy. BART is a long way off. The price of open land is distance. Almost everything beyond the saloon and the deli is a drive, and a quick trip for milk takes longer than it would in town. The best hour in Knightsen is early evening, when the horses are fed and the only sound is wind in the orchard rows.