Thursday Bilingual Hike: Coal Mine Ridge!

Hello Thursday bilingual hikers!  I had a wonderful time with you at the Baylands.  It was so enjoyable to look at barn swallows and their little chicks.  You can learn more about them here:  https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Barn_Swallow/id.

We also saw some fun plants like pickleweed:  http://virtualmarsh.org/marsh-field-guide/china-camp/pickleweed/ and the native, but parasitic, bright orange saltmarsh dodder, Cuscuta salina:  http://www.calflora.org/cgi-bin/species_query.cgi?where-calrecnum=2540.

This Thursday, let us try yet a new place, at Coal Mine Ridge (this is the preserve I manage).  There is plenty of parking at the intersections of Alpine and Willowbrook road, in Portola Valley.  This mapquest link will show you more: https://www.mapquest.com/us/ca/portola-valley/94028/alpine-rd-and-willowbrook-dr-37.364551,-122.215730.  As the group finds each other, be aware that we are hiking in Coal Mine Ridge, not the better-signed Windy Hill.  Email or text me if you cannot make it, otherwise, I will look forward to seeing you for a short hike at 6:30?

Para los alumnos de español - vamos a ver algunas de las plantas describidos en este articulo: http://www.sandiegored.com/noticias/63706/Las-11-plantas-mas-apropiadas-para-tener-durante-sequia/  - especialmente:  Estafiate, Toyón, y Encino Amaergo. Puede imprimir el articulo y traerlo a la clase si tiene alguna pregunta!

I look forward to seeing you soon!

For next week...I was thinking about hiking here...http://www.weeklywalker.com/Walks%20by%20county/San%20Mateo/Eaton_a%20walk%20to%20walk%20to.htm.  It's a neat little "secret hike" - tucked up in the hills, but with much to see.  Dejenme saber que piensen!  Let me know what you think!

Next up: Henry Cowell!

Hello Saturday hikers!

I had a glorious time with you last week at Mori Point.  Such incredible beauty, and how wonderful to share with friends, and be in the presence of so many whales!  The hills were coated with Clarkia rubicunda, which is also called Farewell to Spring, and Golden Yarrow (Eriophyllum confertiflorum.)  We also got to practice telling the difference between white yarrow and poison hemlock.

Tomorrow, let's keep on keeping cool at Henry Cowell Redwood State Park.  We will meet at the:

Day-use Entrance Address

101 North Big Trees Park Road

Felton, CA 95018 . 

Here is the website:  http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=546.  Please let me know if you cannot make it.  Otherwise, I'll see you at 1:30!

Saturday Hike: Mori Point!

Hello everyone!  Thank you for a wonderful first class.  I'm sorry that I picked a hike that we wouldn't all be able to stick together on.  This upcoming hike at Mori Point should solve that issue.

First, a recap.  For me, by far the highlight of the day (besides hiking with all you lovely people!) was seeing some albino redwood shoots (some of you had gone on ahead and missed it, I think.)  This is only the second time I had seen this in my life, so it was very special for me.  Here's a short article about albino redwoods.   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albino_redwood



We were also very lucky to see some other cool things, such as a banana slug.  If you're not easily grossed out by these yellow guys, check out some information about the wild and whacky world of banana slug mating!  More information can be found at:  http://www.cityofpaloalto.org/civicax/filebank/documents/10743.

For this Saturday's hike, we'll visit Mori Point in Pacifica.  This area has a rich natural and cultural history.  You can learn more about Mori Point by visiting http://www.parksconservancy.org/visit/park-sites/mori-point.html.  If you want to carpool, consider posting so in the comments.  You can also post any photos that you took.  The parking is next to the water treatment plant (lovely!)  I look forward to seeing you this Saturday at 1:30 PM at Mori Point!  Please email me if you think you will not make it.

Bilingual Thursday Recap

Hello, intrepid bilingual and trilingual learners!  I had a great hike with you for our first meeting.  Thanks so much for being there!  And we saw such cool stuff, didn't we?

It's always good to know how to identify Poison Oak, and fortunately we'll get plenty of practice doing so!  You can also do a Google image search for Toxicodendron diversilobum and you'll find plenty of pictures of both the plant and the rash it causes!  In Spanish, we just call it "hiedra" which just means "ivy" and is also used to refer to the ivy one might have at one's house.  Interestingly, the Latin name for the ivy genus is Hedera, very similar to "hiedra"!

We saw the very cool Soapplant, Chlorogalum pomeridianum, doing it's post http://www.parksconservancy.org/conservation/plants-animals/native-plant-information/soap-plant.html

Next week we will meet at the Palo Alto Baylands, and there should be quite a few cool birds to see!   Here is the link to the website:  http://www.cityofpaloalto.org/gov/depts/csd/parks/preserves/baylands.asp.  It says dogs are allowed but only on a leash.  Because there are endangered species there, please only bring your dog if he or she can behave nicely and not scare things.

If you are studying Spanish, you might want to have a look at this little article, which discussed two endangered species we would be very lucky to spot!  sfenvironmentkids.org/animals/wildlife_span.pdf.  
If any of the Spanish gives you trouble, feel free to print it out and bring it to our hike and I can help you with it. 

We can meet at the building which now houses Environmental Volunteers.  It's a cool building that looks kind of like a ship.  It's right across the street from the duck pond.  They have signs which I believe are bilingual!  In Spanish, no German, sorry!  :)

I look forward to seeing you then.

Peninsula Nature Hikes (English class) - 1st Hike - Purissima!

Hello everyone!  I'm excited to see so many familiar names on the roster, and of course a couple of new people too!  For our first hike this summer, we'll keep it cool and shady Purisima Creek Redwoods Preserve.  Learn more about it at:  http://www.openspace.org/preserves/purisima-creek-redwoods.

SUMMER HIKES WILL START AT 1:30.  They'll be a little further away from Palo Alto, so we can hopefully keep cool, hence the later start time.  Carpooling is ALWAYS encouraged, it's kinder for the environment and easier to find parking!  If you would like to carpool but are not sure with whom, please feel free to use the comments section to coordinate.

Purisima has two parking lots, we will be meeting at the MAIN ENTRANCE.

Please let me know in advance if you are unable to attend.  Otherwise I will look forward to hiking with you next Saturday!